CHAPTER 11
Black Rock
Petrie and Mama Flyer were falling through a steep tunnel. Mama Flyer was trying to be as calm as she could, while poor Petrie screamed and cried. They kept their eyes closed as they felt their stomachs lurch from the speed of their fall. Even with their eyes closed, they could tell that around them was nothing but darkness, which further terrified Petrie.
Petrie dared himself to open his eyes for one split second and look down. He saw that the end of the tunnel was very near, and he gasped.
"Brace for impact!" he wailed, and his mother promptly got herself into a kneeling position. Petrie, however, still wouldn't let his pink tree star slip out of his feet.
Finally, the Flyers popped through the hole, and Mama Flyer landed on her feet. She felt a sudden pain jolt through her ankle, and she fell onto her chest. Petrie, however, took the worse …
The little Flyer came down on one of his wings, and he felt his wing receive some excruciating pain just before his body rolled over several times like a log. Mama Flyer opened her eyes just in time to watch her son roll over, and she gasped in horror, knowing that a rollover like that would most certainly hurt him badly.
"Oooowwww!" Petrie wept in pain as his right wing burned with pain, "Me wing hurt! Awwwwhowhowhowhoooowww!"
Mama Flyer crawled over to her son as she found it hard to stand up with the pain in her ankle, and she sat up and pulled Petrie onto her lap. She then gently removed the pink tree star from his feet and cradled him tightly.
"It's okay, Petrie, Mommy's here," she said soothingly.
Petrie looked up at his mother as tears poured from his eyes, and then a terrible realization dawned on him as he saw just where they were …
"Oh, no!" he gasped, "Me never wanted to come back here!"
Mama Flyer looked at their surroundings. It was very dark and quiet, but there was something about this darkness that could be very scary to children, but especially for those like Petrie, whom easily got frightened of just about anything.
"You've been here before?" she gasped as she recalled the story of the last time Petrie had fallen in here.
"Yes," gulped Petrie, "This … Black Rock!"
"This place does look like it could scare any child out of his wits," commented Mama Flyer, "There's almost no light in here."
"You okay, Mama?" asked Petrie.
"I'm not sure," answered Mama Flyer as she looked down at her left ankle.
Blood was oozing out from a tiny wound in her ankle, and once Petrie saw it, he was horrified.
"Oh, no! Mama, you bleeding!" he panicked as he hoped off his mother's lap.
"I'll be fine, Petrie," assured Mama Flyer as she tried to stand up, "Ow!"
In an instant, a sharp pain stung her left ankle, and she had to balance herself on her unharmed right ankle.
"I think I twisted my foot," she said, "I won't be able to walk for quite a while."
"But at least you, … OW!" Petrie yelped as he moved his right wing around, receiving a sting of pain, "Owwhowhow!"
"Are you okay, Petrie?" asked Mama Flyer worryingly, "It's you I should be more concerned about than my own foot."
"Me wing hurt!" quivered Petrie, "Me no can fly!"
"Aw, dear," gasped Mama Flyer, and she motioned for her son to sit on her lap again, "Come here."
Petrie obliged, and his mother examined his right wing …
There was a deep bruise from the rough crash-landing, and there was a bruise on his back from the subsequent rollover.
"There's bruises on your wing and your back," said Mama Flyer, "You must have landed quite roughly, Petrie."
"Aw, no!" Petrie cried, "Me no can fly, and you no can walk! We never get outta here!"
He looked down at his pink tree star, and he sighed sadly as he thought about Ducky.
"So, … that, I assume, was going to be your love gift for Ducky?" asked Mama Flyer.
"Lucky guess," sighed Petrie despondently.
"I really think she might like it, Petrie," said Mama Flyer thoughtfully.
"Too bad it have to end like this," lamented Petrie, "Now look where we are. Black Rock! Swooper no live here anymore, me no can fly, and you no can walk. We never get back to Great Valley, … and me never get to give this pink tree star to Ducky! She would love this tree star, but now she no get to see it, because … we no get to see each other anymore! It all my fault!"
The poor little Flyer couldn't keep his floodgates closed, and he buried his face in his mother's chest and began weeping hysterically. Tears came pouring out of his eyes and formed waterfalls down his cheeks. He was sure they would never make it back to the Great Valley, and that he would never see his beloved Ducky again. It made him wonder how she would feel if she never saw him again. It tore him up just thinking about it.
"Aw, Petrie," sighed Mama Flyer, feeling so terrible for her heartbroken son, and she embraced him by wrapping her wings around him and nuzzled his face with her beak, "Sssh. There, there, Petrie. It's okay, it's okay. Please don't cry. I'm right here, my little baby. I'm right here. Ssh. It's okay. We'll figure out a way to get out of here."
"Me wish," cried Petrie miserably.
"I can still fly, and you can still walk," said Mama Flyer thoughtfully, "Since you've been here before, maybe you can find us a way out of this cave, then I'll carry you on my back and we'll fly back home from there."
Petrie looked up at his mother with tears still streaming from his eyes like waterfalls.
"You s-sure, Mama?" he stuttered as he tried to get a hold of himself.
"Just calm down, Petrie," soothed Mama Flyer, "Once you've gotten a hold of yourself, you can lead the way."
Petrie wasn't so sure about the idea. Although he may have been here once, he didn't have a good memory of where everything was. He remembered so little about his last trip to Black Rock other than trying to comfort Guido or meeting Swooper. However, he knew he was the only chance they had of escaping this dreadful mountain alive, and he knew that with his mother by his side, he could try to brave the darkness and find their way out, as long as there weren't any vicious monsters lurking around at every corner.
"Okay," he sniffled as his sobs turned into hiccups.
It took several minutes for the poor little Flyer to recompose himself, but once he did, Mama Flyer winked and grinned at him to assure him that she would stay by his side.
"How you follow me if you no can walk?" asked Petrie.
"I'll just have to limp on one foot until we make it out of here. If I get tired of that, then I guess I'll just get down and crawl. There's not enough room for me to fly in this cave without crashing into something," explained Mama Flyer as Petrie grabbed his pink tree star.
"Me wish me had been more careful because of all that wind," lamented Petrie.
"It's okay, Petrie. It wasn't your fault," his mother reassured, "At least you were able to find something for Ducky before this happened, so it wasn't all for nothing."
"True," sighed Petrie doubtfully.
"If only there was something to eat around here, though," said Mama Flyer.
Upon hearing that, Petrie suddenly remembered something from his last visit to Black Rock.
"Me know where there food in Black Rock," he said, "We just need to find cave where light come in."
"Okay, Petrie," grinned Mama Flyer, "Lead the way."
With a nervous gulp, Petrie slowly took a few steps as his mother struggled to get herself up due to her injured ankle. She limped on one foot as she followed her son through the dark cave. She hoped Petrie knew where he was going …
Ducky distraughtly walked back to the river that flowed through the tiny neighborhood area where she and Petrie lived. Ever since Petrie's mother had taken off to save him, she couldn't help but feel useless for not being able to help rescue her Funny Flyer. She felt that she needed to be with him while he was out there all alone and probably so scared. Who knew where he was now? What if something horrible had happened to him? What if his mother wouldn't be able to save him?
"I miss you, Petrie," Ducky sniffled as she walked at a very slow pace, "Wherever you are, … I hope you come back soon."
Eventually, the little Swimmer arrived at the river and sat down on the bank, dipping her feet into the chilly water. Her toes instantly felt a soothing sensation as she sighed and looked down at her own reflection. By looking at the water, she could see some tree stars flying above her, which indicated that the winds were still blowing across the valley.
"Why, wind? Why did you have to blow Petrie away to Black Rock again? Why, why, why?" she asked as she looked up and glared at the gusts that had tossed her boyfriend out of the Great Valley, "It is all your fault."
"What are you yelling at the wind for, Ducky?" came her mother's voice from behind her.
The Swimmer looked to her right and saw her mother stepping into the river and lying down to soak up some water.
"This wind has been so mean today," sighed Ducky, once again glaring up at the sky.
Mama Swimmer sighed. She knew her daughter was still torn up over Petrie being blown away.
"Listen, Ducky, sometimes there are things we can't control, and today just so happens to be one of those days," she explained.
"But look at today's coinced-da-, … um, … co-en-cidence," she stuttered as she struggled to pronounce the word correctly.
"Coincidence?" her mother corrected her with a chuckle.
"Yeah," said Ducky, "Look at what happened-ed today! Petrie got blowed away to Black Rock again! His mommy went out to rescue him, … but … they have not come back!"
Mama Swimmer cautiously approached her daughter and gently patted her back.
"I'm sure Ms. Flyer will be back soon, … with Petrie," she said soothingly.
"I am not sure," lamented Ducky, "The wind has been blowing so hard, and they probably do not have enough energy to fly all the way to Black Rock and back again. What if they got trapped-ed inside Black Rock just like what happened-ed to Petrie and Guido?"
Mama Swimmer sighed sadly. She knew Ducky was losing hope with every second that passed. Petrie meant so much to her that for him to disappear the way he did tore her young heart to pieces. She really was doubting that they would ever see each other again. The longer he was gone, the more heartbroken she got.
"If Petrie got lost in Black Rock once and managed to find a way out, then I'm sure he'd be able to find that way out again like he did last time," Mama Swimmer reassured her daughter, "I'm sure he has some good memory of his last trip to Black Rock, and if his mother got trapped with him, then he has one of his most supportive figures to accompany him so that he isn't scared or lonely."
"I should have been the one who got trapped-ed with Petrie in that stupid mountain!" pouted Ducky as she crossed her arms.
"Now, Ducky, I'm sure Petrie misses you just as much as you miss him, and because he misses you, he'll be very determined to find a way back home, … so he can be with you," explained Mama Swimmer with such a sincere voice.
Ducky looked up at her mother and saw a warm grin on her face. The little girl could see that she had lots of faith that Petrie and his mother would return. It was as if her mother knew deep down that the Flyers would eventually return, and that patience would be what it took to handle their absence until then.
"Really?" the little Swimmer stammered as she tried to fight off her tears.
"Of course, my little one," grinned Mama Swimmer, "Just you wait, my dear Ducky, and Petrie will be back in the Great Valley before you can say, 'playtime'."
Ducky managed to chuckle the slightest after hearing those words, and her mother affectionately licked her cheek.
"Mama!" she giggled.
"I love you, Ducky," smiled Mama Swimmer.
"I love you, too, Mama," replied Ducky.
"And don't worry, my dear," added Mama Swimmer, "I'll bet Petrie and his mother are trying to find a way back home right now. You just wait and see, my precious one."
"I hope so," sighed Ducky.
Mama Swimmer sat down in the shallow river and started soaking her body with cold water to refresh herself. Ducky simply watched as her mother bathed herself with cold water, but her thoughts remained only on Petrie. She hoped he wouldn't be so scared out of his wits while trapped inside Black Rock, even if his mother accompanied him.
Petrie shivered as he led his limping mother through the dark caves of Black Rock. Strange noises echoed throughout the caves, and the darkness made their surroundings look terribly frightening. The little Flyer did his best to not feel so scared, but even though he had been here once before, he could still imagine a terror bird or a small Sharptooth lurking around at any corner.
"I hope you know where you're going, Petrie," said Mama Flyer, still limping on one foot as the pain in her left ankle refused to subside.
"M-me sure me know where to go," gulped Petrie, although, truth be told, he was not sure that they were going in the right direction with there being so many caves.
Whenever they reached an intersection, every cave led to nothing but darkness, and some of the caves contained rotting skeletons that smelled like a hundred dead dinosaurs. Others even led to dead ends that contained the skeletons of more unfortunate souls long lost and probably forgotten. For Petrie, it was so sickening that he nearly retched.
"Me think we lost," he panicked.
Seeing that her son really was terrified out of his mind, Mama Flyer nuzzled him to provide some form of reassurance.
"I know you're very scared right now, my little one, but you must be brave," she spoke in a gentle, assuring voice.
"How me feel brave in place like this?" replied Petrie, not feeling any sense of reassurance from even the gentlest of his mother's words or cuddles.
"You have to at least try, Petrie," she told him, "Try thinking of when you were here last time, and when you found … whatever that place was that you mentioned."
"Me try to, but me no can find it anywhe-"
"ROAAAARRRRRRR!"
Petrie jolted and wrapped his mother's wings around him.
"AH! What that!?" he screamed as he shivered.
"Sssh! Don't yell so loudly, Petrie!" whispered Mama Flyer, "Whatever it is, we don't want to get its attention."
Now absolutely terrified, Petrie scrambled free from his mother's wings and ran back to the last intersection they had reached. He looked in all four directions, desperately trying to figure out which way was the right one. The last thing he wanted was to run into a Sharptooth.
"Which way we go!?" he panicked, scanning each direction several times before he made a split-second decision and jolted forward. His mother struggled to keep up with him due to her injured ankle, and she got herself down and crawled after her son as fast as she would be able to.
"Petrie! Not so fast!" she panted.
Petrie seemed to take no notice. He ran as fast as his feet would let him, tightly holding his pink tree star as if it were his snuggling stick.
He looked ahead, … and suddenly, he noticed something …
Light.
Not just light. He looked around and noticed the stone teeth and the ground star plant. Suddenly, he realized …
"Mama! Look! Me find it! Me find it!" he cheered in delight, jumping up and down like an excited little hatchling.
"Find … what, … Petrie?" his mother wearily panted behind him, dragging herself across the ground.
"This where me and Guido find ground star plant and find our way out! This it!" said Petrie, "Come on!"
Mama Flyer hesitantly obliged and lagged behind her son, trying her best not to groan in pain as her ankle continued to bleed the slightest.
Petrie recognized the stone teeth as the ones that Swooper had named, and he recognized the ground star plant with tiny crawlers squirming all over it.
Mama Flyer looked at their surroundings. She found it unimaginable that Petrie had been in this particular cave before.
"Is there where you met Swooper?" she asked.
"Yes," recalled Petrie, "We not far from way out now."
"That's a relief to hear," said Mama Flyer, "Although I could do with a little food so I can get my strength back."
"Me think you lucky, Mama," grinned Petrie, pointing to the green stars on the ground, "Try this ground star plant!"
"Oh, thank goodness!" she sighed in relief, "Finally, a place where I can rest my good foot."
As Petrie walked right up to the ground star plant and pulled off a ground star, his mother sat down on a rock behind him and instantly felt her good ankle straining with pain after so much limping.
"Here you go," said Petrie, and he presented a ground star to his mother.
Mama Flyer took one look at the ground star, and she saw something that didn't look right with it …
"Um, Petrie, … there's crawlers on those ground stars," she said.
Petrie immediately brushed the crawlers off the ground star and allowed his mother to take it.
"No crawlers now," he chuckled.
"Oh, Petrie!" giggled Mama Flyer, feeling amused by her son's humor, and she eagerly took the ground star and took a small bite from it, "Hmm, not bad."
"See! You feel better soon, Mama!" smiled Petrie, and he took a ground star for himself and began eating it.
"These really aren't that bad," commented Mama Flyer as she slowly ate her ground star.
"Me like these ground stars," agreed Petrie, "They very tasty."
As Mama Flyer swallowed the last of her ground star, she some sudden newfound strength in her wings.
"I feel strong again already," she said, "You mind if I have another one, dear? I'm sure that two of them will be enough for me to get us all the way back to the Great Valley in one flight. After all, we wouldn't want to land anywhere that might contain Sharpteeth."
"Sure, Mama," replied Petrie, and he picked off another ground star from the ground star plant, brushed off the crawlers and handed it to his mother.
"ROAAAARRRR!"
Petrie instantly shook and hid himself within the ground star plant after hearing that echoing roar again. Now, he was certain that there must have been some Sharptooth lurking around these caves.
"Oh, speaking of Sharpteeth!" he cried, "Oh, please no!"
"Settle down, Petrie," his mother spoke calmly as she pulled him out, "We'll be out of here before that Sharptooth manages to find us."
She saw Petrie's look suddenly change from worried to complete horror. He looked like he was staring at something utterly horrifying that was apparently right behind her.
"Petrie?" said Mama Flyer, "Are you alright?"
Petrie was breathing very fast. His eyes were wide with shock. His breaths only came out faster with each second that passed. He wouldn't take his eyes off whatever it was he was staring at.
"MamaaaaaAAAA!? LOOK OOOOOOUUUUUUT!"
Mama Flyer looked behind her, and her heart suddenly skipped a beat …
A Sailback Sharptooth was standing just a few inches away, its eyes locked on the two Flyers. Judging from its size, it had to have been an adolescent. Fully-grown Sailbacks were much bigger than this one, and Sailback children were nowhere near this big.
The predator slowly opened its jaws and prepared to take a bite at Mama Flyer.
"DOWN!" screamed Petrie.
The Flyers ducked to the ground just as the Sailback snapped its jaw, missing its mark by an inch.
Adrenaline suddenly took over Mama Flyer. Even with her injured ankle, she managed to get back on her feet, despite the tremendous pain and cracking sounds coming from her ankle, and she lifted Petrie off the ground and placed him on her back.
"Hold on!" she said.
She noticed a hole in the ceiling where the light was coming through, and she locked her eyes on it and began flapping her wings …
The Sharptooth suddenly smashed its head against the hole and hissed viciously at the Flyers.
"AAAAAH!" Petrie screamed as he shut his eyes and cowered on his mother's neck.
Before either of them could process another thought, the Sharptooth brought its tail swinging at the Flyers. Mama Flyer felt a sudden "WHAP!" slam her body, and before she knew it, she was being thrown backwards like a seed.
"AAAAAAAAAH!" the two screamed.
Mama Flyer fell to the cave floor and rolled over a couple of times. Petrie slipped off his mother's back and landed on his side, while his mother rolled some distance away from him. The little Flyer frantically got back on his feet and grabbed his pink tree star, which was thankfully unharmed. He hid himself behind a rock as the Sharptooth approached him, and he didn't dare move until the monstrous predator had ran past him, not taking any notice.
Then, he gasped in horror as he saw the Sharptooth approaching his mother. She was still down, struggling to get back up, and the predator was just a few feet away.
His mother was in danger. The most trusted and lovable figure in his life was in grave danger, and nobody else was near but himself. She was helpless. She was doomed. She would meet her end in just a matter of seconds …
Suddenly, Petrie felt something he had rarely felt in his life …
He felt a sudden urge to actually do something before it was too late, … something that would be incredibly risky.
He didn't dare make a sound so as not to gain the Sharptooth's attention, and, with his pink tree star still in hand, he climbed up a wall and into a little tunnel just under the ceiling. Pain shot through his bruised wing and back as he struggled his way through, and he saw what looked like tons of rocks that seemed only just small enough for him to lift.
A new idea had suddenly spiraled into his head. He knew it might have been stupid, but he just had to do it …
Not caring about his injured wing, or any pain he knew would come, Petrie grabbed one of the rocks and looked down toward the Sharptooth trying to attack his mother. He remembered how his mother had told him about willingly sacrificing her life to save him like many other mothers would, but today he was not willing to let her die. He was not ready for that moment to come this early in his life. He was going to save her, and he didn't care how much she would protest and urge him to save himself.
"HEY!" he screamed, and he lifted his arms as high as he could and threw the rock as hard as one good wing and one injured wing would be able to let him do.
Pain coursed through his wing as he made the throw, but he ignored it and watched the rock smack the Sailback's nose.
The Sailback froze for one split-second before it looked up at Petrie with a growling hiss.
"Petrie! No! What are you doing!?" Mama Flyer gasped in disbelief, "Get out of there!"
"LEAVE ME MOMMY ALONE!" Petrie yelled at the Sharptooth before picking up another rock and throwing it at its head.
Mama Flyer was horrified to be watching this. As much as she would have been willing to die right there to save her son, to suddenly see him trying to save her at the risk of his own life was every mother's worst nightmare.
"Petrie! Stop!" she yelled.
"GO, MAMA! GO! RUN! RUN!" he yelled back at her from above, "ME CATCH UP!"
"NO!"
"GOOOO!"
Seeing that her son was not willing to back down, Mama Flyer reluctantly got back up and ran back to the cave with the light shining through it. She turned back and tried to pick up the sight of her precious little Petrie. She couldn't help but feel baffled by this sudden change of character in him. She had never seen him do something this daring before. Since when had Petrie gained the bravery to save her from certain death just as she always tried to do for him? Was it simply because he was injured and not able to fly without her aid, or was it truly out of the mother-son love they shared with each other? She had known Littlefoot to be this brave, always egging his friends to be as brave as he was, but Petrie? This was completely new to her.
The Sharptooth jumped and snapped at Petrie, but the Flyer scrambled his way back into the tunnel just in time, hastily grabbing his pink tree star to keep it out of harm's way. He crawled back through the tunnel and stopped at the other end. Seeing how high the tunnel was, there was no way he'd be able to jump without a rough landing with his inability to fly. He'd have to slowly climb his way down, but that could only buy the Sharptooth more time to catch up to them and strike again.
"Petrie!"
"Mama! Over here!" the little Flyer called to his mother.
Mama Flyer didn't hesitate in limping her way towards her son, and she spread her arms out.
"Jump! I'll catch you!" she called to him.
Petrie hesitated for a moment, still nervous about a potential crash against the ground that would only cause more harm to his already-injured body. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath and jumped. He let out some cries of fright as he fell, not knowing how this could end. He didn't dare open his eyes. He braced himself for the crash.
Suddenly, he felt two wings wrapping tightly around him, stopping his fall. He opened his eyes and found himself in his mother's tight hold.
"Gotcha!" came his mother's voice.
The boy looked up to see his mother's frantic expression, but he had no time to process the next thought before another ear-splitting roar echoed across the cave.
"We need to get out of-"
"CRASH!"
The cave shook violently, and the ground tremored beneath their feet. The Flyers nuzzled each other before they heard another deafening roar that blew warm air around them.
"OH! That Sharptooth have terrible breath!" cried Petrie.
The predator launched another snap with its jaw, and Mama Flyer ducked to the ground, dropping Petrie in the process. The little Flyer got himself back up, refusing to leave his tree star behind, and he ran into another cave.
"Petrie! GET BACK HERE!" his mother's voice screamed behind him, but he kept running, just wanting to get away from this dreadful Sharptooth that was so determined to win them as its delicious meal.
Suddenly, the Flyer stopped once he saw that this was another dead end, … but it wasn't quite a dead end …
He saw that the floor contained some sort of pit below, and he slowly peeked down.
The pit stretched down for quite some distance, and there appeared to be tons of stone teeth that stretched from the floor and contained very sharp points on top.
Petrie cringed at this terrifying sight, but then it suddenly gave him an idea …
"Wait!" he said to himself, "Maybe me make Sharptooth fall in!"
He had so little time to contemplate his idea before he heard the rumbling footsteps of the Sailback approaching quickly. He turned back and saw the beast slowly stalking him, hissing viciously at him with its very sharp teeth.
The Flyer froze in place and didn't move a single muscle. He slowly lifted his hands up until they were about the height of his head. He made no further movement as the Sailback brought its head down and sniffed at him.
The Sharptooth's breath made Petrie wince in disgust as he tried to remain still. He turned his head away, but at that same instant, the Sharptooth took advantage of having his eyes not looking directly at him and scraped its feet against the ground, and made its charge …
Petrie quickly realized just what kind of trick the Sharptooth had tried to use against him, and he saw its open mouth come within inches of scooping him up.
With hardly even a millisecond to spare, the Flyer suddenly dived to the side and slid all the way to the wall just as the Sailback's face crashed against the ground. He closed his eyes as he heard its feet sliding against the ground in an effort to stop.
Then, … he heard an echoing roar that sounded like it was shocked. He knew it could only have been one thing …
"SHLUCK!"
To Petrie, it didn't sound like just one stab; it sounded like a hundred echoing stabs all happening simultaneously …
The Sharptooth suddenly let out high-pitched roars of agonizing pain, accompanied by very quick breaths in between each dreadful roar. The sound of what seemed like water splattering all over the place nearly drowned out the first few roars.
Petrie opened his eyes, and he dared himself to look down at what he knew must have probably just turned into a gory nightmare …
The Sharptooth had fallen into the pit. Its body had been stabbed all over by numerous stone teeth, each one coated with blood. A pool of blood flooded the floor of the pit. The Sailback was helplessly roaring in pain and shaking as if it was having some kind of panic attack.
Then, the Sharptooth became silent and stopped shaking, and it slumped and suddenly sank a little deeper. The stone teeth further penetrated its wounds and splashed more blood in all directions until the predator was partially sunken in a pool of its own blood.
Petrie gasped as he watched the Sharptooth slumping and the blood flying everywhere. He groaned dreadfully and winced in agony. He had only looked down for about ten seconds and he already couldn't bear to watch anymore of the Sharptooth's suffering. He felt something building up in his throat as the sight of it all sickened him. He coughed and retched, and he felt himself throwing up something he had previously ate. His vomit splattered all over the cave floor right under his feet, and he coughed and fell on his butt, unable to stand while he was dizzy from the sickness.
"Oh, me feel sick!" he cried before more vomit poured out of his beak. He coughed and coughed, and lazily began to crawl his way back with his tree star in hand.
Petrie sluggishly dragged himself across the tunnel, pain coursing throughout his entire body. He felt so nauseous that he just wanted to faint. After seeing that Sharptooth die such a gruesome death, he felt sure he would be having night terrors every night until the next Night Circle cycle. This felt more traumatizing than nearly drowning with … that Sharptooth that had so nearly killed him and his friends so long ago.
"Petrie!" he heard his mother's unmistakable voice hollering out to him.
The boy was too nauseous to reply, and he slumped on the floor and panted as saliva drooled from his beak. He continued to hyperventilate as he watched his mother frantically limping her way towards him, and just as he felt her warm wings enveloping him, everything turned black …
Ducky was soaking in some cool water from the river whilst her mother gently rubbed and stroked her in a soothing manner. The little Swimmer felt very relaxed from these soothing sensations, she felt as if she could fall asleep and take a nice nap.
"Hmm? Hmm?"
Ducky turned to notice Spike standing on the riverbank, looking worryingly at her. He instinctively jumped into the water and nuzzled her before she had time to react.
"Spike," she protested, "Please, not right now. I am too tired."
"I think Spike would agree with me in saying that you're not tired, dear," her mother playfully teased, "You're just worried about Petrie."
"Mama?" groaned Ducky.
"I can tell, my little one," said Mama Swimmer, "I know my children's troubles when I see them, and for you, it's no different."
"Okay, fine! I am still worried-ed about Petrie!" Ducky pouted.
"Hey, don't be so pushy, Ducky. You just need to be patient. Like I said, if you wait patiently, everything will be just fine," her mother said.
"You really think so?" sighed Ducky doubtfully.
"I know so," her mother replied with a wink.
Ducky simply leaned her back against a rock and grabbed a tiny stone. She tossed it up and down for a moment before she made an underhand throw. The stone made several bounces across the water before it finally splashed down and disappeared below.
"Hmm. This might be a little fun, … at least until Petrie comes back," she sighed sadly, and she grabbed another stone and repeated what she did with the previous one. The second stone also made a couple of bounces against the water before it, too, disappeared with a splash.
Seeing a pile of tiny rocks next to her, Ducky began throwing them to see how far she could make them bounce, while her mother and Spike watched with interest. She quickly found it quite entertaining, but not enough to put a smile on her face. She knew her precious Flyer friend was still in probable danger, and with there still being no sign of him or his mother, anything could have happened to him …
"Petrie?"
…
"Petrie? Wake up."
…
"Petrie? Please wake up, dear."
The voice seemed to sound rather distant and incomprehensible as he partially opened his eyes. Everything looked so blurry that he couldn't make out anything. He groaned from the exhaustion he felt throughout his body. He could barely move at all.
He blinked a few times, and the blurriness slowly faded away. He could only make out … blue.
A shade of blue that could only mean one thing …
He looked up and saw a very familiar face nuzzling him. There was only one Flyer he knew who would nuzzle him like this …
"M-Mama?" he murmured.
"Oh, Petrie!" his mother gasped with relief, "Oh, thank goodness!"
"Wha-w-what … ha-happen?"
"You fainted, dear," his mother answered, "Apparently, you drew the Sharptooth into a trap, and I assume you must have glimpsed at him after he fell. I saw vomit on the ground after you fainted. You must have been so shocked by watching the Sharptooth fall into the pit that you got sick and fainted."
Suddenly, Petrie remembered everything that had happened; luring the Sailback into a trap, listening to those fatal stabs and roars of pain, seeing the Sharptooth in a bloody mess, vomiting from the trauma of seeing such a gory sight, and passing out from the nausea.
The little Flyer began to pant heavily again as the very recent memory of that Sharptooth's nasty death lingered in his mind again.
"Oh, Mama!" he cried as he sat up and hugged his mother around the chest.
Mama Flyer jolted from her son's sudden crying, but she instinctively hugged him back and tried her best to soothe him.
"It so horrible!" Petrie cried, "Sharptooth fall into trap, and me watch it die! Oh, it so scary!"
"Sssh. There, there, Petrie. It's okay, it's okay. It's all over. The Sharptooth is gone. We're safe now," his mother assured him, "It's alright."
Petrie just kept weeping, and his mother had to gently rock him side-to-side whilst shushing him like she was comforting a crying baby.
"Sssh. Calm down, my little Petrie," she whispered to him soothingly, "It's okay. Mommy's right here. I gotcha. It's okay."
Slowly but surely, Petrie's weeping died down to hiccups, and he took deep breaths to calm himself down as much as he could.
"That's my little baby," his mother whispered to him with a smile, "There, there. You're alright. Just take a deep breath. Nice and steady."
Petrie felt deeply embarrassed by having his mother speak to him as if he was a baby all over again. Even though she did it to show motherly affection, he still hated being called a 'baby'.
"Me wish you stop calling me 'baby'," he sighed with dread.
"Well, you are my precious little boy," chuckled Mama Flyer, "To me, deep down, you will always be my sweet, little baby."
"Mama!" moaned Petrie, blushing deeply, "Please!"
Mama Flyer simply countered her son's sarcasm by tickling his feet with one of her hands, and her precious son began laughing adorably.
"Mamahahaha! Stahahahahop!" laughed Petrie.
"Cootchie cootchie coo!" teased Mama Flyer playfully, "That's my sweet, little baby!"
"Mmmhmmkeeheeheeheeheeheehehehehehehehahahahaha!" Petrie laughed in a bubbly voice, "Pleeheeheeheeheeheehease!"
"Are you gonna stop complaining, my little one?" his mother asked teasingly.
"Yehehehehehehes! Me give! Me gihihihihive!" replied Petrie, shaking with laughter.
Mama Flyer took that as her prompt to stop the playful tickle torture, and her son took some deep breaths to calm himself down.
"I must say, that was the bravest thing I've ever seen you do," she spoke gently once he had recovered.
Petrie nervously looked into his mother's gentle eyes, worried that she would scold him for what he had done to keep the Sharptooth away from her.
"W-well, … m-me just … w-wanted to save you from being … eaten," said a cringy Petrie.
"Well, you must know that I was not very pleased to see you putting yourself in danger just to save me. You know very well that I am trying to protect you, not so that you can turn around and try to protect me," said Mama Flyer in a stern yet gentle voice.
"Me know, Mama," whimpered Petrie, sinking his head in shame.
"You should consider yourself very lucky that we both got out of that situation alive," his mother spoke as her voice grew a little more calmer yet retained its sternness, "I am proud of you for standing up to that Sharptooth so that we could escape, but you must understand that you're too young and little to take on Sharpteeth like that. Once you and your friends get older, you'll be able to protect our valley from those fierce beasts, but until then I am forbidding you from doing it again. I will tell you this now in case we happen to bump into another Sharptooth on our way back, but should I ask you to run, you will do as I say and let me do the fighting. I don't want to see my youngest child murdered. Your word, Petrie?"
She held out her hand in front of Petrie, and he cringed and quivered a little from the gentle scolding before he reached out to take her hand.
"Me word, Mama," he spoke shyly as they shook hands.
"That's my boy," his mother smiled, and she enveloped him with both wings again, "You know I love you very much, and I want to be able to watch you grow up. I'm sorry if I may have sounded harsh, but I just want you to be safe."
Petrie felt his mother kissing him on the beak, and he couldn't help but chuckle after feeling her motherly love sink in. He understood just how much he meant to her. He knew she wasn't ready for him to risk his life to save hers, even after this lucky escape. He knew she wanted him to wait patiently until he was old enough to actually start fighting against any Sharptooth whom might attack the valley in the future, even though he had encountered many Sharpteeth in his short life already. He had seen his fair share of jaws and was already wishing he'd never have to see them again, but the odds of it happening again were very high with him still being so young. However, the only one he had ever revealed to his mother was when he nearly drowned with … Sharptooth. The mere thought of that memory made him cringe again.
"Me love you, too, Mama," he murmured once he had gotten a hold of himself after flashing through the memories of his numerous Sharptooth encounters, "And … me sorry."
"That's okay, dear," his mother replied.
"Me promise me will let you protect Petrie instead of me protect you," he promised.
"That's my boy," Mama Flyer smiled proudly, "Now, I think it's time we made our way out of this forsaken place before anymore Sharpteeth come crashing in."
Suddenly, Petrie remembered …
"Wait! Where me pink tree star!?"
"Don't worry," Mama Flyer giggled, "It's right here."
She handed her son the tree star. Remarkably, it was still unharmed after all that they had been through.
Petrie sighed in relief and looked at his tree star. He could faintly see that it contained the tiniest bit of sparkles, and he picked up its refreshing scent of red tree sweets and sweet bubbles. It smelled so good that he felt like it was from another world.
"Ducky love this," he thought to himself as he thought about how Ducky would react when he gave it to her, … if he and his mother ever got back to the Great Valley, "It smell so good, me think it remind her of me because me pick it out for her. Maybe she love Pink Forest, too. Me wish me take her there."
Suddenly, he remembered something else …
He looked down at his mother's foot, only to see that it had been wrapped in leaves and herbs.
"Don't worry about my foot, Petrie," Mama Flyer reassured her son, knowing what he was concerned about, "Us getting home is more important than some wound on my foot."
Suddenly noticing that he was feeling something on his back, Petrie turned his neck and noticed ground stars covering his back and his right wing.
"Yes, dear," his mother chuckled, "While you were out, I treated your wounds with herbs and bandaged them with some of those ground stars. They should heal in good time."
"Um, … okay," sighed Petrie.
Mama Flyer lifted her son onto his back, and Petrie once again used his feet to tightly grasp his pink tree star. She limped her way towards the hole in the cave's ceiling and stopped.
"I won't be able to climb up that wall with my foot still in bad shape," she said, "However, I can shoot my way up with a perfect launch and soar my way into the sky, and from there we won't stop until we reach the valley."
"Um, … o-okay," shivered Petrie nervously, unsure if her idea was going to work.
Mama Flyer slowly flapped her wings a few times to prepare herself for the flight. Even while standing on one foot, she skillfully built up enough strength to lift herself. Petrie clung on tightly to her neck while curling his tiny toes to hold his pink tree star firmly.
"Okay! Hold on, Petrie! Here we go!" she said so that he'd be prepared to brace for a possible crash.
Petrie shut his eyes, and before long, he felt his mother lifting herself off the ground and flying straight towards the hole that led back to the outside world. He panicked as he anticipated the worst to happen …
It never did.
The little Flyer opened his eyes once he felt light poking through his eyelids, He looked around and saw that they were suddenly soaring over the misty trenches of the Mysterious Beyond.
"We made it," he muttered as he realized that they had truly escaped, "We make it out of Black Rock!"
"I should be thanking you, of course!" beamed Mama Flyer, "Without your knowledge of Black Rock, we might have been stuck in there for a long time."
"You welcome, Mama," smiled Petrie.
"Hang on tight, my little Petrie," grinned Mama Flyer, "Great Valley, here we come!"
"WHOOO, HOOO!" Petrie cheered in delight as he found his ride on his mother's back exhilarating, earning a playful laugh from her.
The little Flyer could barely contain his excitement as he nuzzled his mother's beak. In just a matter of minutes, they would be returning to the Great Valley, and he would be reunited with his beloved Ducky. In just a matter of minutes, everything would be alright again!
"Hold on, Ducky! Me coming!" he thought happily as he relaxed and snuggled himself on his mother's back, unable to wait for that moment to come.
Ducky was still tossing stones across the river, watching them bounce like Hoppers. It was the one and only form of entertainment she could find as long as the valley felt empty without Petrie. Although she did somewhat enjoy this, it just didn't feel the same without her Funny Flyer being around.
"I hope you come home soon, Petrie. I do, I do," the Swimmer said to herself in a low voice before tossing another stone with an underhand throw.
"Hello, Ducky. Ducky, hello. Are you feeling alright?"
Ducky sighed as she found that her peacefulness was not to last. She needn't even guess who that voice belonged to.
She turned and noticed Ruby standing next to the riverbank, but she wasn't alone. Chomper, Littlefoot and Cera had joined as well, all appearing to be worried for their Swimmer friend.
"Hi, guys," sighed Ducky, "I guess I am feeling … sort of … okay."
"Hello again, kids," Mama Swimmer greeted them.
"Hello, Mrs. Swimmer," replied Littlefoot.
"Did you come to bring any news about Petrie?" asked Mama Swimmer.
"I wish we could claim we were, … but … no," answered Chomper solemnly.
Ducky leaned against the bottom of the riverbank with a dreadful sigh. She had been anticipating the news of Petrie's return, and yet here her friends were with no new news. Petrie could still be anywhere right now, and now she was sure it could be ages before he returned, if he ever came back at all.
"I guess we just wanted to see how Ducky was doing," sighed Cera.
"Thank you, everyone, but I am just worried-ed about Petrie. I am, I am," said Ducky sadly.
"Don't worry, Ducky," said Littlefoot, "Ms. Flyer will be back with Petrie soon. I'm sure of it."
"Me, too," agreed Chomper.
"Me three," put in Ruby.
"The wind seems to have settled down by now," said Littlefoot as he looked up at the sky and could no longer see the tree stars blowing around, nor could he hear the howls of gusts, "I think the worst is behind us."
"I hope so," said Cera gruffly, "I've really gotten tired of the wind by now."
"It's been quite a while since Petrie and his mom disappeared," said Chomper, "Surely, they should be back by now."
"For now, I guess we will just have to wait, because waiting is such an easy thing to do," said Ruby.
"Speak for yourself," snorted Cera.
"Listen, Ducky, we all miss Petrie just as much as you do," sympathized Littlefoot, "He's been a great friend to all of us for so long, and we know that if he's still out there, he'll try his best to find a way back."
"Oh, I hope Petrie's okay," said Chomper.
"We all do, kids. We all do," said Mama Swimmer, with Spike murmuring and nodding in agreement.
With that, the children decided to take a chill and drink some water whilst they watched Ducky toss stones across the river to watch them bounce their way across. Littlefoot, Chomper and Ruby seemed fascinated by it, while Cera took no notice and simply took a drink from the river.
"Please be okay, Petrie," thought Ducky, "I am so worried-ed for you, my Funny Flyer. I am, I am…"
Mama Flyer continued to soar over the Mysterious Beyond with Petrie on her back. The boy held on to his pink tree star with his feet while keeping his wings wrapped around his mother's neck. Below them, it seemed to be nothing but a misty wasteland with plenty of Sharpteeth occupying the area. To Petrie, it seemed to have already taken ages to find the Great Valley after departing from Black Rock.
"Me not sure if we going right way, Mama," gulped Petrie, "All me see is dark, scary trenches and really scary Sharpteeth."
"I know for sure we're going the right way, Petrie," Mama Flyer reassured her son.
"How you know?" asked Petrie dumbfoundedly.
"Look up ahead," his mother said with a grin.
Petrie peeked his head out from behind his mother's head, and, sure enough, he could see one of the border walls of the Great Valley just ahead.
"We find it!" the little Flyer cheered in delight, "We find Great Valley!"
"I told you there was nothing to worry about!" chuckled Mama Flyer, "We're almost home!"
"Yippee!" Petrie squealed happily, "We back! We back!"
"Hold on tight, my little Petrie! We're going in!" said Mama Flyer, and she pointed herself down slightly to speed up their flight over the wall, and in no time, they could see their beautiful Great Valley again.
The river was sparkling in the Bright Circle's light, and all the plants looked so extraordinarily beautiful from how high up they were.
"Hold on, Ducky! Me coming!" Petrie cheered, earning a playful chuckle from his mother.
As Ducky kept on throwing stones across the river, the Gang suddenly heard what surely sounded like a Flyer's screech.
Everyone paused and looked up at the sky for any signs of the Flyer that made the call. Ducky felt her heart ready to leap out of her chest. She began to anticipate that maybe, just maybe, Petrie's mother was returning to the valley and had brought her son back with her. She looked all around the sky, but she couldn't see anyone.
"Look! Someone's coming!" Chomper shouted.
Ducky looked at Chomper's hand so that she could get a glimpse at his finger. When she noticed which direction his finger was pointing to, she turned to that direction, … and she saw just what he had …
"Is that Ms. Flyer?" said Littlefoot as he noticed immediately that it was an adult Flyer.
"I think it is," replied Ruby.
"Sure looks like her," said Cera.
"Can you figure out who it is, Chomper?" asked Ducky pleadingly.
Chomper immediately used his sniffer to pick up the scent of the approaching Flyer, and he sensed the presence of a Flyer they knew anywhere; in fact, not just one, but two.
"I smell two Flyers," he said as he sniffed the air, "It's Petrie's mom, and my sniffer tells me she's got Petrie!"
"She does!?" said Ducky as her heartbeat suddenly increased rapidly with the anticipation of the news that her boyfriend was safe again.
Then, just as the Flyer came within a short enough distance in which the Gang could recognize her, there came an ever-so-familiar voice …
"Hi, guys!"
"Petrie!" everyone but Spike shouted with delight.
"Oh, thank goodness!" said Mama Swimmer, letting out a sigh of relief.
"PETRIE!" Ducky screamed with joy, "HE IS BACK! HE IS BACK!"
The Gang watched with odd faces as Ducky jumped out of the river and started jumping with joy with the news that her boyfriend was okay and had finally returned to her.
"Hello there, kids!" Mama Flyer called in an echoing voice, "Petrie's alright!"
The Gang let out some celebratory cheers as Mama Flyer hovered over them and slowly made her descent.
"Thank you, Mama!" Petrie said as he nuzzled his mother's beak, "Thank you!"
"You're welcome, Petrie," beamed Mama Flyer, "Then again, it's you that I should be thanking, because if it wasn't for you, we'd be trapped in Black Rock for who knows how long."
"You welcome, Mama," chuckled Petrie.
Eventually, the Flyer mother touched down on the ground with only her good foot, as her left ankle nearly throbbed in pain from the injury it had received.
"Down you go, dear," she said to her son, and she carefully took the pink tree star from his feet whilst he slid down her back and onto his feet.
The instant the little Flyer came down on his feet, he saw a very happy sight approaching him so quickly that he almost didn't have time to register what it was.
Ducky was running towards Petrie as fast as she could, happy tears streaming from her eyes as she ran up to her boyfriend.
"PETRIE!" she screamed in delight as she snatched the Flyer and squeezed him in a bone-crushing hug before spinning around for several seconds, enough to make Petrie feel very dizzy and breathless, "Oh, Petrie! I am so glad you are back! Yep, yep, yep! I was so worried-ed about you! I thought-ed something awful had happened-ed to you, but you are safe! You are back, and we are together again! Yep, yep, yep, yep, yep, yep, yep!"
No one could say a word as they watched the Swimmer envelop the Flyer in such a tight cuddle that Petrie couldn't reply, … and almost couldn't breathe.
It almost immediately took a toll on Petrie, as Ducky unknowingly shot more pain through his injured wing and bruised back with her tight hug.
"Duck-ky!" the Flyer gasped, "Me … no … can … breathe! Ow, ow, ow!"
"Okay, Ducky. I know you're excited and everything, but you must calm down, dear," Mama Swimmer chuckled as she joined in on the happy reunion.
Ducky realized that she was close to choking Petrie, and she quickly loosened her grip on her boyfriend.
"I am sorry," she said, "I am just so happy that you are alive and well, and that we are back together!"
"Me happy, too, Ducky," panted Petrie as he struggled to regain his breathing stability.
"Ducky, I would recommend that you don't hug Petrie so tightly," informed Mama Flyer, "We both took a little hit from falling into Black Rock."
Ducky gasped in shock and she immediately released Petrie. Only then did she notice that his right wing and back were bandaged. Petrie reluctantly removed the tree stars bandaging his wounds and revealed the dark purple bruise on his wing and back for everyone to see. The Swimmer gasped in horror.
"Oh, my goodness! You are hurt-ed! Are you okay?" asked Ducky.
"What happened?" asked Chomper as the rest of the Gang saw Petrie's bruises.
Mama Flyer sat down and revealed the bloody wound on her left ankle, which was also bandaged with leaves.
"Oh, my!" gasped Ruby.
"What on earth happened to you two?" asked Mama Swimmer with shock.
"I lost my energy after trying to save Petrie, and we fell into Black Rock and landed quite roughly," explained Mama Flyer, "I twisted my left ankle and it bled for a while, … but Petrie landed on his wing and rolled over several times. The rollovers bruised his back."
Mama Swimmer and the Gang gasped and remained speechless for what felt like ages.
"Me no can fly for a while," sighed Petrie, "Probably for few days."
"And I won't be able to walk for a little while. You'd have no idea how painful it felt to fly from Black Rock all the way back here," added Mama Flyer.
"Here!" said Littlefoot as he leapt into action before anyone could respond.
"Littlefoot?" said Ruby, "What are you doing?"
"I'm gonna get the Flyers some healing flowers," replied Littlefoot.
"Oh, I could sure use one right about now," sighed Mama Flyer.
"Me, too," agreed Petrie.
Hardly a moment later, Littlefoot returned with two healing flowers, and he set one down in front of Mama Flyer, and the other one in front of her son.
"Go ahead and eat," the Longneck said kindly, "You'll feel better soon."
"Thanks, Littlefoot," grinned Mama Flyer as she took her healing flower.
"You kindest Longneck around, Littlefoot," smiled Petrie.
Littlefoot smiled and blushed slightly as he took in Petrie's compliment, and everyone watched as the two Flyers slowly ate their healing flowers.
Before long, both Flyers felt the pain in their injuries subside, although their cuts and bruises would likely remain for a while.
"Me feel better already," said Petrie.
"My foot doesn't feel as bad as it did before," said Mama Flyer, "It'd probably be best if I stayed here for a while before I risk straining my foot again."
"Good idea," agreed Littlefoot.
"Me stay here, too," sighed Petrie, "Petrie no want to hurt meself again."
"Okay, Petrie," replied Chomper, "Maybe you can join us for a little game tonight before the Bright Circle goes down."
"Maybe," said Petrie doubtfully.
"I think I would like to stay here, too," said Ducky, wanting to spend some time alone with Petrie after they had been separated all day.
"Alright, Ducky," Littlefoot accepted, and he turned to the others, "Come on, guys! Who's up for a game of 'Catch the Pointy Seed'?"
"Ooh! I am!" Chomper said eagerly, with Spike nodding along.
"Let's go!" announced Littlefoot, and he, along with Cera, Spike, Chomper and Ruby ran off to find the nearest pointy seed.
Now that they and their mothers were finally by themselves, Petrie and Ducky smiled at each other and gently took each other's hands.
"Me have something for you," he beamed cutely.
"Really?" gasped Ducky with an adorable grin, "Did you really go through so much trouble just to find me a gift?"
"No just any old gift, Ducky," smiled Petrie, "It a love gift that express me love for you."
"What a co-en, … uh, … coincie-dence," said Ducky, still struggling to pronounce the word correctly, "I just so happened-ed to find something for you, too."
"Really?" gasped a surprised Petrie.
"Okay, you two. Maybe we should present them one at a time. Is that okay?" suggested Mama Flyer.
"Okay," Ducky and Petrie nodded in agreement.
"So," said Mama Swimmer, sitting down next to her daughter, "Who should be first?"
Petrie eagerly leaned back against his mother's wing, and she felt her handing him just what he wanted to give her. He walked in front of Ducky again, hiding his gift behind his back.
"What did you give me, Petrie?" asked Ducky as she noticed Petrie's bubbly smile, and the Flyer slowly brought his wings out from behind his back and out in front of her.
Ducky's eyes went wide with wonder, and she gasped in astonishment at what she saw …
It was a pink tree star that sparkled delicately and smelled like red tree sweets and sweet bubbles.
Ducky was speechless. She was so astounded by this pink tree star that she couldn't even think of a word to describe it out loud. It was the most beautiful plant she had ever seen in her life, and after imagining that Petrie had gone through so much trouble just to get her a pink tree star, even getting himself hurt while doing it, she felt that she suddenly loved him more than ever; in fact, just as much as she loved her mother. She began to think of Petrie as the sweetest Flyer on the entire planet, and she wanted nothing more than to smooch him all over until the end.
"W-where did you … find … that … tree star?" the Swimmer stuttered as she remained nearly breathless from the sight of the pink tree star.
"Me and me Mama find this special place hidden somewhere in Great Valley. It called Pink Forest," explained Petrie, "There live a friendly Threehorn named Sparkle, and she guardian of Pink Forest for many Cold Times."
"I have never heard-ed of Pink Forest before," said Ducky thoughtfully, "What is it like?"
"Pink Forest filled with so many trees growing sparkling, pink tree stars," said Petrie as he vividly remembered his visit to Pink Forest just a little while ago, "They smell so good, and they heal very quickly. Me had one after wind make me stumble into Pink Forest and me hurt me feet, and me feet heal so quickly that me could walk again in no time!"
"I'm sure everyone would want to go to Pink Forest," said Mama Flyer, "It's such a gorgeous place."
"Why hasn't anyone ever mentioned Pink Forest?" asked Mama Swimmer curiously.
"Because long time ago, Pink Forest get surrounded by all this green food, and it left abandoned for longest time," sighed Petrie sadly as he recalled Sparkle's story, "Sparkle tell me to tell you to tell our friends about Pink Forest so that we spread it to others. Then, someday Pink Forest get visitors again."
"Did you say Sparkle was a friendly Threehorn?" asked Ducky.
"She very friendly," replied Petrie, "She pink, just like tree stars, and she very generous to me when me land there by accident."
"And she gave you this to give to me?" grinned Ducky.
"Well, … me no did tell her that we in love, but after me promise to help her get visitors again, she give me two pink tree stars, and me thought me give one of them to you. You know, me just thinking me sure if me take you there, you be very welcome there," said Petrie thoughtfully.
"At least you kept-ed our love a secret from her," Ducky sighed in relief.
"She live alone," nodded Petrie, "Nobody live in Pink Forest but her, and she never leave Pink Forest."
"Wow," said an astonished Ducky, "Now that I think about it, … you should take me to Pink Forest, Petrie, … once you are able to fly again. I would love to see it. It sounds like another beautiful place for us to hang out together, just like our secret forest cave."
"Yes," smiled Petrie in agreement, "That is, as long as Sparkle no catch us kissing. Maybe tomorrow, when me able to fly again, me take you to Pink Forest. It only possible to find it when you have Flyer around like me. There so much green food covering Pink Forest that dinosaurs living here today no know about it."
"That is pretty sad," sighed Mama Flyer, "It's too bad that everyone had to forget about Pink Forest because it got surrounded by so much green food."
"Do you think you can introduce me to Sparkle when we get there, Petrie?" asked Ducky.
"Of course, me will!" beamed Petrie, and Ducky promptly hugged him and kissed his beak.
The Flyer then ceremoniously handed the pink tree star to his loving girlfriend, and the Swimmer smiled and grasped it in her hands.
"This for you, Ducky," said Petrie proudly, "This pink tree star express me love for you, and how me always think about you every day. This way for you to think about me whenever you look at it, because me love and devotion for you stronger than anything else. Me love you, Ducky, … and me will always love you from bottom of me heart, … forever and ever."
Ducky smiled as happy tears came spilling out of her eyes. She was so touched by Petrie's loving words that her heart melted with so much happiness. She could only think about smooching Petrie all over after seeing him present his gift to her, and she now desperately wanted him to be her mate, regardless of their age. She could already picture them having a great life together in the years to come.
"You are the sweetest-est Flyer I have ever knowed, Petrie," the Swimmer cried happily as she cuddled Petrie into a hug and smooched his beak a few times, making him smile brightly from the love she was giving him, "Whenever I look at this pink tree star, I will always think about you, because my love and devotion for you is stronger than anything else on Earth. You are the Flyer of my heart, Petrie, and I will always love you from the bottom of my heart, too, … forever and ever. Yep, yep, yep."
Petrie blushed deep red and smiled as brightly as he ever had in his life, and he had to look away for just a moment to hide any possible tears. When he faced Ducky again, he gasped as a flower had suddenly appeared in her hands, … one with green leaves, and yellow in the middle.
"W-what that?" he stammered in surprise.
"It is a flower I found-ed in a forest before I heard-ed your call for help," answered Ducky, "It is as green as me, and it is as yellow as me, and I think that with this flower, its colors will make you think about me whenever you look at it."
"Aww, Ducky!" Petrie sniffled happily, wiping a few tears from his eyes.
Ducky handed the flower to her boyfriend, and he sniffed at it and could only say that it smelled so nice, like some of the tastiest tree stars around.
"That is for you, my Funny Flyer," smiled Ducky, "To express my undying love for you, because you are so sweet to me just like I am to you."
Petrie felt so much love that he thought his heart would never stop melting in happiness. His chest felt so warm that it began to feel so pleasant, and he wrapped his wings around the Swimmer's neck and kissed her face several times.
"Me heart never stop beating for you, Ducky," smiled Petrie.
"My heart will never stop beating for you, either, Petrie," replied Ducky.
With that, the two lovers hugged each other tightly and engaged in a passionate kiss before they closed their eyes and sighed in relaxation, their gifts seeming to form a protective layer around them. Ducky's bill playfully pulled Petrie's beak in by sucking him closer, and they started clapping their tongues together as they moaned in pleasure. Each felt so attached to the other that they seemed to become one.
"Mmmmm, mmmmm," Petrie murmured happily in a muffled voice as he felt Ducky's bill splashing saliva all over his beak.
"Mmm, mmm, mmm!" Ducky pleasantly agreed as she playfully licked Petrie's beak all over and tickled his tongue, making the Flyer giggle briefly.
Their mothers watched, chuckling as happy tears fell down their cheeks. They couldn't stop smiling as their children delicately exchanged love with each other. They felt so proud for the both of them. Mama Flyer, in particular, was very proud of Petrie after he had gone through so much trouble to find his special love present for Ducky, and that he had been so brave during that unexpected trip to Black Rock so that he would ensure that Ducky got her present. However, she was especially proud of Petrie because he had already found the love of his life at such a young age. When she looked at Ducky, she could tell that she had many things that Petrie loved about her, and she could sense a great future for both of them as long as they stayed together.
Eventually, the two loving kids broke their kiss and started gasping for air, which they felt they desperately needed after sucking each other's faces for several minutes.
"That was so cute," said Mama Flyer in a gentle, happy voice, making the two children look up at her with blushing smiles, "I'm so proud of you, Petrie. You went through all that trouble and bravely got us out of Black Rock just to make sure that Ducky received the greatest present you could give her. You really are a generous little Flyer, Petrie, and I'm proud to be your mother."
"Aww, Mama!" replied Petrie sheepishly with a blushing smile.
"I'm especially proud of you because I can see how you two mean so much to each other," continued Mama Flyer, "Even at such a young age, you have each discovered that special feeling in the other that brings you two together, and your hearts have connected delicately to the point where you know you will be together for the rest of your lives."
Petrie exchanged a bright smile with Ducky, and the two kissed each other's cheeks before looking back up at Petrie's mother.
"On top of it all, your love and devotion to each other is so strong that one of you would be willing to risk your life for the other's safety … and happiness, as I've seen today," Mama Flyer went on, "You've proven to me already that no matter what stands in your way, you will stand up to all the obstacles you face, and in the end, there will be joy and happiness. I'm so proud of the both of you, kids, and I hope you will stay together for a long, long time."
"So do I, kids," agreed Mama Swimmer, "You've both done such brave things, mostly without our permission, but we see that you mean good in them, and I'm very proud of the both of you, too. I can see us being one big happy family at heart someday far in the future."
Hearing such heartwarming words coming from their mothers brought joy into the hearts of Petrie and Ducky. Knowing how strongly their mothers supported them being together felt like nothing else. They each felt that the other's mother was becoming a very motherly figure, almost as much as their own mother, and they could feel as if they were already ready to treat them like they were one big family.
"Wow! Me feel so happy!" beamed Petrie, unable to contain his excitement after hearing their mothers' sweet, supportive words.
"You feel just like a mama to me, Ms. Flyer," added Ducky, "You have such a warm heart towards me, and it makes me even happier to have falled in love with Petrie. Yep, yep, yep!"
"And you sometimes feel like mama to me, too, Ducky Mom," chuckled Petrie, "Me happy to know that you happy me fall in love with Ducky. Yep, yep, yep."
All four of them laughed as Petrie finished his sentence with Ducky's catchphrase, and their mothers playfully lifted each of their children onto their laps, facing each other. As the kids felt their mothers playfully placing their arms behind their backs, they cutely spread their feet out and began clapping them together.
The two kids felt so playful to be playing their recently-invented feet-clapping game while sitting on their mothers' laps. Their mothers chuckled and gently kissed their respective kid's faces as they played with their feet, earning bright, playful smiles from the loving duo.
To all four of them, this felt just like it was a brief taste of what their futures would look like many Cold Times from now.
Ducky and Petrie continued to smile at each other as they allowed their mothers to soothe them warmly while they played their feet-clapping game. They began making a little tune that comprised of somewhat babyish or childish sounds, in rhythm to their feet clapping.
"Doop. Doop. Doopity-da, dee, dee, da, da.
Beep. Boop. Boopity-da, bee, bee-da, da."
They repeated this a few times as they clapped their feet, their voices singing together in perfect unison. Their mothers giggled as they listened to their tune, finding it to be the most adorable thing they'd ever heard. Hearing their mothers giggle only widened the already-so-bright smiles on Ducky and Petrie's faces as they smiled bubbly and sang together. Their hearts were leaping with so much excitement that their smiles nearly caused saliva to leak from their mouths. It was such a perfect moment.
This lovely moment felt like the beginning of a new chapter in their lives. Not only did it show just how much Ducky and Petrie loved each other, and how much their mothers were greatly accepting the idea of them being a future family, but it proved that they would love each other to the end, … and stay together …
… forever and ever.
The only other thing that could have entered Petrie's mind at that moment … was a very special plan for tomorrow …
And so, Petrie returns to the Great Valley and finally gets to give Ducky the pink tree star, but he had to go through so much just to do it, and it involves my first true Sharptooth confrontation scene in any of my stories! Previously, I've been terrible at intense action scenes, but I knew I had to try it out sooner or later, and I decided to place some random Sailback into the fray!
You could say that Petrie has gone through quite a bit of development in this chapter. His newfound determination to keep his mother safe at all costs has led him to do the most daring thing he has ever done in his life, but believe me, it will traumatize him for quite some time. You'll see. :D Sometimes, I wonder: the Gang would surely have had PTSD for a long, long time after the events of the first movie, but why don't the sequels show any of that? Consider this as taking a swipe at the filmmakers for not including that! :P
Anyways, that's all for today, and I'll see you next week with the next chapter.
