Chapter Six: The Waterfall and Yellow-Tailed Claw-Hands
"Why the long faces?" Petrie asked, swooping over the four travelers nearing the dense forest that edged the Great Valley mountainside. "Remy here. You be happy?" The flyer landed between Spike's plates, looking between the down-casted faces.
"Mrs. Maia chased us away from her nest. She was afraid we would crush her eggs, and she didn't like Remy either." Littlefoot answered, glancing back at Ducky, who had been silent for most of the walk, lost in her thoughts as she wrung her paws. "I guess it doesn't help that an egg disappeared from Mrs. Maia's nest last night."
"Egg disappear? That no good." The flyer gasped, his eyes growing wide with panic. "Me need to tell Mama. Watcher not be happy if eggs are stolen. Petrie not want new siblings gone."
"Relax, Petrie." A rough feminine voice sounded from the trees the five were approaching. Cera stood in the shadows, rolling her eyes at the panicky pterosaur. "Your mom made a nest high on the cliffside. I doubt anything can get up there."
"But-but, what if egg-eater really small? Or flyer who eat eggs? Me no want siblings eaten." Petrie pressed his wings to his face, beak nearly chattering in fear.
"I am sure your mom and Watcher are keeping a good eye on those eggs, Petrie." Ducky placed a paw on the flyer's back. "They will both be excellent parents. They will, they will."
"Watcher?" Remy mouthed to Littlefoot. She knew the flyer had lost his father when he was young, but it wasn't unexpected for his mother to take up another mate. However, Remy had yet to hear news about it until now.
"Yeah," Littlefoot whispered back. "We didn't know about it until half-a-moon-cycle ago when Petrie's mom laid two eggs. She'd been keeping her relationship with Watcher from Petrie and his siblings until…well…" The long-neck grimaced when the brown flyer began pacing between Spike's plates. "I think Petrie's taken it pretty well, considering he suddenly has a new dad and is expecting new siblings." Littlefoot glanced to Petrie again, cringing. "His siblings…not so much."
"I'd be in a bad mood if I just found out my mom was dating some guy, and she was 8 months pregnant with his baby. Jeez, why'd she do that to them? Did she even introduce Watcher to her kids, or did she just kind of…lay the eggs?" Remy awkwardly rolled her wrist in a gesture of eggs being dropped into a nest. "It sounds like he's helping take care of the eggs, right?"
"Yeah. According to Petrie, Watcher's been watching the eggs day and night since they've been laid. Supposedly, Petrie's mom had brought him to the nest a few times, but Petrie and his siblings all assumed he was just a friend." Littlefoot sighed, Petrie still pacing the length of Spike's back. "Petrie, relax. Everything'll be okay. It seems like the egg-napping always happens at night."
Petrie stopped, wings slowly sliding from his face as he looked up at Littlefoot. "You…you right, Littlefoot. Me watch over nest tonight!" He pumped his wings in determination. "If me don't get too tired."
"Never mind all this," Cera seated herself in the shadows. "What were you going to show us, Littlefoot? We've been waiting for almost a moon-cycle."
"That's because I wanted Remy to see it with us. Come on, follow me." With that, the long-neck led the rag-tag group through the forest.
The rag-tag group traversed the dense forest, ducking and weaving through low hanging branches and pushing back curtains of lichen. The gurgle of water in the distance washed over their ears, and the sweet smell of ripe fruit beckoned them to push past the trees that clawed their scales or the rocks that threatened to trip them.
"Come on. It's not much further," Littlefoot encouraged, holding back a heavy branch as the others slipped past him. "I can't wait for you guys to see it."
The large long-neck weaved through a space between the trees just big enough for him and rejoined at the front of the group. There was a bounce in his step as he led them down an incline. The grass-covered soil turned to rough, dark rock, and the sound of splashing water grew louder.
Littlefoot paused in front of a thick curtain of dark green lichen and moss. His smile couldn't grow any larger, the entire length of his body nearly vibrating with excitement. "I found this place a while ago. It's the first thing I want to show you." Using his long neck, Littlefoot pushed the lichen away and stepped aside so that each of his friends could walk past him into the small, secluded oasis.
A sheer rock face stood to their right, a curtain of crystal-clear water cascading down the dark stone into a large pool of equally clear water. The waterfall was split in half by a stone jutting out of the middle of the rock face. An extensive ledge overlooked the pool. Thick clumps of algae clung to the bottom of the large stone while more decorated the flat, ever water-slick surface. Lush plants grew at the base of the ledge and around the pool.
Littlefoot stepped into the water until he was laying in the deep end, his entire body submerged, though his long neck was clear of the water. "I figured this would be a great place to hang out and get away from our folks. It's quiet, and I'm sure not a lot of the other residents know about it." He looked over at the waterfall he was nearly lying under. "It's peaceful here. It'd be a great place to think. The water is also amazing."
"I bet, I bet." Ducky scrambled up the rock ledge overlooking the pond. She stared into the clear depths, seeing nothing but silky sand. With a wiggle of her behind, Ducky dove into the water, barely making a splash. Resurfacing a second later, she shook the water from her head. "The water *is* great, it is, it is. Come on, Spike."
The spike-tail merely laid on the shore and sent the swimmer a half-smile. The lush bush dripping with the spray of the water was far more tempting than a dip in the lake with Ducky. He submerged one forefoot and the tip of his four-spiked tail into the cool water and tucked into his third meal of the afternoon.
Ducky giggled. She swam under Littlefoot's neck, popping up under the waterfall. Her laughter echoed across the rocks. Even though her bright green body was distorted through the falling water, it was clear that Ducky had climbed onto the rocky steps behind it. "There is an opening behind the waterfall."
"Yeah." Littlefoot turned to Ducky but did not move from his spot. "I checked it out when I first found this place. It doesn't seem to have anything special in it, though, I couldn't really tell since it was so dark."
"I do not see anything in here either. I do not." Ducky's form disappeared into the water once more. She resurfaced in front of Remy, who had taken off her boots and dipped her feet into the water. "The water is great. What do you think, Remy?"
Remy smiled back, kicking her feet in the cool water, toes brushing the sandy floor. "It feels really good on my feet." She looked up at Littlefoot. "This is a great place."
"Thanks." He smiled, then turned to Cera, whose gaze had been narrowed at the water since they arrived. "Come on, Cera, get in the water. It's great."
The orange three-horn tested the water, dipping a forefoot into the clear liquid. Satisfied with the temperature, she slid into the water. She settled beside the rock ledge, trying to not show how much she was enjoying the cool water on her scales. "I guess it's nice, long-neck."
"Petrie, do you want to join?" Ducky hauled herself out of the water and held a paw out to the flyer. Petrie was perched on the rock ledge Cera was lying next to, nervously watching the happenings below him.
"Petrie good. Water not good for flyers."
"I can teach you how to swim, or you could sit on Littlefoot's back." Ducky still held her paw out, blue eyes encouraging as she waited for Petrie to take her offer.
"Me no know…" Petrie fidgeted with his hands, watching the water pouring from the waterfall. "Me not have good experience with water."
"I will not let you have any more bad experiences with water, Petrie. I am here, and I will teach you how to be a great swimmer like me." Ducky smiled.
A flood of warmth washed over Petrie. Slowly, he hobbled to the edge of the rock and took Ducky's paw. She pulled him into the water. Petrie gasped and spluttered, but Ducky never let go of his hand. She pulled him through the water, and he floated with her. His light frame that was perfect for flying allowed him to float like a leaf on the surface of the water. He kicked his legs as Ducky instructed while stroking his free wing in the swimming motion she demonstrated.
As Ducky taught Petrie to swim, Cera and Littlefoot lounged in the water, and Spike enjoyed his meal, Remy leaned back and stared into the thick greenery around her. Half-listening to her friends' conversations, her mind wandered while the cool water lapped at her feet. Ducky's encouraging words to Petrie drifted in and out. Simultaneously, Cera's conversation with Littlefoot was mixed with gossip the three-horn had heard the other day, and a story Littlefoot's grandfather had told him the night before.
As Remy was swishing her feet in the water, something caught her eye. She rolled onto her front, her knees and elbows digging into the stone, but her feet were still in the water. Just like at Maia's nest, she caught a glimpse of beige and grey, followed by a tan and dark brown combination.
"What…?" Remy breathed, hauling herself to her feet. As she pulled her socks and boots on, she could make out the familiar form of a pair of bird-legged, feathered claw-hands.
A few different types of claw-hands and other dull-teeth lived in the Valley, but they weren't as numerous as the many different kinds of flat-teeth. Seeing as the Valley council was uncomfortable with any dull-tooth living beside them, each and every one of the leggy claw-hands, crested-beaks and related fast-runners, or the lumbering long-claws were kept under a close eye. Commonly, a flyer was assigned to any dull-tooth within the Valley's walls to ensure their diet didn't waver. The untrusting eyes and uneasy murmurs might explain why so few omnivorous dinosaurs lived in the Great Valley.
Remy looked to the sky but could barely see through the gaps in the thick canopy. Nonetheless, it didn't seem that a flyer was overhead to keep an eye on the two claw-hands hidden within the foliage. A sinking feeling settling in the pit of her stomach, she approached the pair. Remy held her breath as she peered at the two claw-hands through a curtain of lichen. They didn't notice her, carrying on with their casual conversation as they stared at the Great Valley through the gaps in the foliage.
"Just a few more hours before the sun falls," the beige male muttered, long spindly fingers laced together in anticipation. "It won't be long. Oh, it won't be long at all." The thick layer of grey feathers on his back nearly raised with excitement.
The sound of grass ripping from the ground reached his ears.
He turned to the tan-scaled and brown-feathered male beside him. "What in the name of the Creator are you doing?"
The grey-backed male stood, the bright yellow feathers on the end of his tail nearly swishing away the lichen Remy hid behind.
"He who Struts in Field!"
The unique name, signature of dull-teeth, hung in the air as the brown-backed male slowly raised his head, a clump of grass hanging from his beak. "Eating?" The word was barely audible as he slunk closer to the ground, ashamed of being caught, but he did not spit out the grass.
"Spit it out." The grey-backed male wrapped his long fingers around the other male's neck, claws digging into the soft tan scales of his throat. "No brother of mine is going to be eating grass. Not tonight. Not ever again."
"But I'm hungry, Ozokerite."
Anger flashed in the grey-back male's amber eyes. "You will not call me by that name anymore. I am no longer Ozokerite Found in Stone. I am just Oz. Nothing more. I abandoned that name when we left our home." He released his brother, only to turn around and whack him with the end of his tail.
He who Struts in Field nearly choked on the grasses clamped in his beak. He spat out the foliage and meekly looked up at his brother. "Why don't I get to change my name?"
Oz sent him a sharp glare. He settled on his haunches, staring out at the Valley through the gaps in the trees. Unsure of everything, He who Struts in Field sat next to his brother and followed his gaze. The pair were so similar yet so different. They had the same body shape, only a few shades difference between their scale colors and the yellow feathers that decorated their tails' end. Oz's tail feathers were a much brighter tone of yellow, a signal of better health. The brothers even shared a pair of spots on their left leg and another spot on their right flank.
"I'm hungry, Oz. Can't I just have a nibble?" the brown-backed brother was already leaning his long neck to the thick leaf in front of them.
"No, Strut. Just you wait. We'll be having something far more satisfying tonight. As soon as darkness falls upon the Valley…"
The sinking feeling in Remy's gut had gotten too much to bear, and she pushed aside the curtain of lichen. "Who are you two?"
The brothers scrambled to their feet. They stood a good head taller than Remy. Oz let loose a low hiss and fanned the dark brown feathers on his forearms. Strut glanced between his brother and Remy before taking the same stance, albeit unsureness danced in his yellow-orange eyes.
The earth shook with the approaching footsteps of Littlefoot and the others. "Remy? Who are you talking to?"
The moment the long-neck spoke, Oz tore through the bushes, Strut just paces behind him. Remy ran after them, but she had little hope of keeping up with the long-legged, speedy claw-hands. She pointed to the brothers' forms zig-zagging through the trees. "Those two. I don't think they're supposed to be here. They're acting really suspicious."
Littlefoot nodded and turned to the others who were following close behind. "Petrie, can you watch them from the skies?"
"Me no know, Littlefoot." He stretched his wings, still dripping with water. "Hard to fly with wet wings, but Petrie try." With a few flaps of his wings, the brown pterosaur took to the air, but it was clear that he was slower than usual. Remy kept running through the trees, leaving the much heavier dinosaurs behind.
Somehow, she was able to keep the bright yellow tails of Oz and Strut in her sight as she ran. She thanked her days in track. If the situation wasn't so worrisome, she would have been enjoying the burn in her lungs and the ache in her legs.
By the time the forest gave way, Remy had lost sight of the brothers. She stood in the tall grasses, looking this way and that for the claw-hands light brown hides, but they blended in well with the light green and yellow grasses. "We'll have to tell the council about those two."
A scream pierced the air.