A while ago, I was trying to find out about The Land Before Time VIII:The Big Freeze on the ezboard website. On it, I found out that the voice actress Judith Barsi,who did the voice of Ducky in The Land Before Time I, actually had a terrible life as a child. Her father was a drunkard who would always be beating Judith and her mother. Think of one of those digimon fanfics(if you've read them)where Sora's dad beats her and then Tai saves her and you'll get the idea. The only difference is that Judith ,tragically never was saved. Not long after the film was finished, Judith's mother and she were going to leave her father but he shot them both in cold blood before they could make their escape. To avoid being imprisoned for life, he shot himself also. I'm sorry to have brought this horrible fact into your lives but the person who wrote that said they thought it would be a good idea to honour Judith by writing a fanfic about Ducky losing her voice and having to go on a search to find it. I know some of you will think it's a sick idea and in some ways I agree. But as far as I know, no- one else has bothered to do the fic so I accept the responsibilty.So here is my first fanfic.*Note*:this is also a Littlefoot+Ali romance. Nothing bad, so don't worry.





Disclaimer: I don't own The Land Before Time or the characters. The only things that are mine are Ducky's father's name and the story itself. I claim no credit because this is an honoury fic and I didn't come up with the idea.



The Hunt For Ducky's Voice By mega charizard





Night had fallen over the Great valley. Most were asleep, but there was one who had been awake for hours. Ducky tried not to cry because if the tears touched the cuts, that would just make them sting. She had just received another beating from her father. During the day, her father-Daggerhead-was nice and kind. The family would spend time at the water, laughing and playing together. But at night, Daggerhead would take Ducky to a secluded part of the valley and hit her hard. The first time he did this, he warned her that if she told anyone, he would beat him or her too. For a long time, Ducky tried to figure out why her father hated her so much. Once, she believed that she had been an unwanted egg but that couldn't be true because he even accepted Spike more. Then one day, while walking along, ducky heard her parents arguing.

"Why do you treat her like this?!?!"sreamed her mother. He calmly answered:

"Every time she speaks with that voice, I must punish her."

"What is so wrong with her voice that you have to beat her?!" she screamed again,close to tears."

"Her voice has a sense of rebellion in it against me as well as hatred!" shouted her father,starting to get angry.

"She hates you because you made her hate you!!!!"she shouted and stalked off. But before she got far, he crept up behind her and hit her hard being true to his word. That night, he had hit her harder because he thought she had told her mother. The truth was Ducky's mother had seen the wounds and had figured it out quickly. It was lucky that her friends never noticed, although Littlefoot and Petrie had sometimes looked at her in strange ways. That was the thing about those two. They noticed everything. She couldn't tell her friends about what was happening because she knew they would want to help. Littlefoot always wanted to try and help anyone no matter how over whelming it might seem. When they were searching for the valley, seven years ago, Cera had led the others the wrong way while Littlefoot had gone the right way. But even though they had been so mean to him, he was there when they needed help the most. When they had torn a hole in the wall surrounding the valley, he wanted to help to fix it, overlooking the fact that it might be dangerous. When Hip, Nod and Mutt had gone to the Mysterious beyond, Littlefoot followed them even though they had bullied the group so much. After that, Littlefoot had thrown himself into danger to get the nightflower to help his grandfather. When Chomper fell into the Big Water, Littlefoot jumped in to help him. Littlefoot didn't care that he might be killed by a Sharptooth when he had to get a tooth for Saurus Rock nor did he mind when he led the others to get her back from Pterano. He was also the smartest one of the group. When the white ground sparkles(snow)came to the Great Valley and Spike had left, he was the one to guess that she had gone after him and came up with the idea of how to clear the path into the Great Valley.

Petrie would want to help because he was her best friend. Neither of them were sure why, but they figured it was because they were almost the same height. When Icthy had grabbed when she tried to get a stray night flower, Petrie flew up to try and save her. He was also the second most worried about her when Pterano took her away.

The most worried was Spike. Spike would worry because she had helped bring him into the world. They were closer than any of the others.

Cera was the hardest to figure out. when she was kidnapped by Pterano, Cera blamed Petrie right away. But when the time came, she saved him from being crushed by a boulder. When she had had been mad at Spike and said she felt funny in a bad way, she noticed that Cera seemed worried that Ducky might be sick.

Ducky sighed and rolled over. She rolled over and landed on a sharp stone .She tried as hard as she could to hold it in but a small cry of pain escaped her lips. She shut her eyes tight and waited for the next thing to happen. It didn't take long. Soon, Daggerhead's shadow loomed over her.

"Ducky," he said in a harsh whisper," come with me." Ducky rose to her feet, knowing what was about to happen. He led her along a familiar route and finally stopped at a place where the green grass was stained with red. This was where he took her to beat her. After they reached their destination, he turned around and slapped her hard!

"How many times must I tell you? Use that voice where I can here it and I will be forced to hurt you!!" he yelled. It was then that Ducky realised that he didn't hit her because of her voice! He was actually mad and insane! He had lost his mind years ago! He raised his hand to slap her when four things happened at once! Petrie appeared and slashed at his eyes, not blinding him but still hurting him! Littlefoot was there too and whipped Daggerhead in the leg with his tail, hard enough to bring him to his knees! Spike came out of nowhere and(being one of the strongest)hurled a boulder at him! Cera appeared and head butted Daggerhead knocking him over.

"Maybe that teach you leave Ducky alone!" said Petrie.But that had really made Daggerhead angry! He rolled a huge rock at them with great force to separate them all.

"Get him!!" yelled Cera, her temper rising also.

"Strike, then run so you don't get hit" commanded Littlefoot. His plan didn't go to well. Spike charged but Daggerhead kicked him hard around the head knocking him out. Then, he literally threw Petrie into a tree knocking him out also. Cera was making sure Ducky was okay so Littlefoot knew he was the only one left to fight. He charged toward Daggerhead and received a blow to his head with a rock. A second blow drew a line of blood going from just over his right eyebrow curving down to the side of his mouth and rendered him unconscious also. Daggerhead looked around and saw a Cera near Ducky. Cera had made a big mistake. She had bent her head to check Ducky lifting her frill up and exposing her neck. A hit with a stick was all it took to knock her out cold. Littlefoot's fighting force had failed. All it had done was earned her a bigger beating even though she hadn't told them. The truth was it was Littlefoot and Petrie's fault. They had seen the wounds and told the others so they all decided to watch her that night and see what would happen. When they saw her being beaten, Littlefoot devised a plan of attack. But as always, Littlefoot's plan worked better in theory rather than practise.(Not to be unkind but it is true. e.g: when Ducky fell into the river in number seven, he had a plan which did go wrong but worked out in the end) Now it was just Ducky and her father. Instead of hitting her, he spoke.

"I have tried brute strength to remove your voce," he said," now I will use power."

"W-w-what do you mean?" stammered Ducky.

"Like you, my mother was a Swimmer." he said calmy," But my father was a Rainbow-Face."

"A Rainbow-Face?" gasped Ducky. She knew from Littlefoot that Rainbow-Faces had strange powers.

"Yes. And I inherited my fathers powers and I will use them to take away your voice!" With that, he held up his hands and Ducky started to glow a bright yellow. The glow moved away from her and turned into a golden orb resting in Daggerhead's hands. He looked at her, then the orb and then at her again. He said:

"Good-bye, Ducky and ran off toward the North entrance of the valley. The same entrance Ducky and the others came through when they first found the Great Valley. Ducky tried to tell him to wait but found that she couldn't! He had actually taken her voice...

After a while, the others started to come around. First Petrie, then Cera, then Spike and finally, littlefoot. They crowded around her a bombarded her with questions like:

"Are you okay?"

"How long has this been happening?"

"Why you no tell friends?" Of course, Ducky was unable to answer them and it didn't take long for them to ask why. Ducky just pointed to her throat miserably.

"What are you trying to say?" asked Littlefoot"Have you lost your voice or something?" Ducky nodded and started to mime out what happened. When they figured out what had happened, Petrie spoke up.

"We go catch bad Swimmer!"

"But how? He has a head-start." said Littlefoot.

"Ducky "said" that he was heading for the North entrance." said Cera."I know a short-cut."

"Lets go then!" said Littlefoot.They followed Cera and ran through a mix of dark trees and plants. As they climbed up the hill, the pass came into view.

"There it is!" cried Petrie.To the side, they saw Daggerhead running also clutching the yellow orb. Littlefoot came close but Daggerdead slashed his face giving him two parallel lines of blood running diagonally out of the left corner of his mouth to go with the other cut and hit him hard around his left I eye which would bruise up in the morning. Dazed, Littlefoot swerved and the others stopped to see if he was okay. Daggerhead ran through the pass and used his rainbow power to shoot the pass and make it cave in. Now the others couldn't chase him!

"He's getting away!" cried Cera.

"Yeah, and it's all my fault!" said Littlefoot.

"No it not." reassured Petrie." He just too big and mean."

"We're gonna get 'im though." said Littlefoot."When the Bright Circle rises we'll take the East path and try to head him off again. There's been a lot of sky water recently so he'll leave good tracks." Everyone agreed and they all left. Littlefoot, Spike and Ducky would leave before their families awoke because otherwise, they would have to explain Ducky's voice and Littlefoot's wounds.

Littlefoot couldn't get to sleep now. Not because of the night's events, but because he was thinking about his life. In ways, he was lucky. He had loving grandparents and four great friends. But his mother died not long after he was born and he never even knew what had happened to his father. He had friends but he also wanted more. The truth was, Longnecks matured very quickly. That was why he was smarter than his friends(but even then his intelligence was abnormal). The thing was, he wanted an actual mate or a life partner as you might put it. He didn't want to try and start his own family yet. He hadn't matured that far. The only Longneck who he ever had loved though was Ali and he had missed that because he was still juvenile back then. He made a promise to himself right there. If he ever saw Ali again, he would take the chance because she was the type he wanted to be with. Finally he fell asleep hoping to get another chance, not knowing that his chance was coming up soon...

At morning's first light, each of them left their families after saying a silent good-bye to them and eating as much as possible so they wouldn't hungry right away. They met each other in silence and they left. They all felt sad about leaving so they didn't talk much. After an hour, they made it to the other side of the North pass.

"Just as I thought." said Littlefoot examining the path,"He left a clear trail." They all saw the Swimmer tracks leading off into the distance.

"What we waiting for then?" squawked Petrie.

"Yeah, let's go!" said Cera.

"Is everyone ready?" asked Littlefoot.He got two "yes'es" and two nod nods." Usually I'd get three "Yes's" and one nod." thought Littlefoot sadly. The group had been moving for three hours and their spirits were sagging more than ever. It was obvious that their families had noticed they weren't around by now and they were starting to get tired. Littlefoot also had very little patience right now because the morning air was making his wounds hurt. As predicted, the area around his left eye had gone black and blue. This and the fact that he had gotten very little sleep last night had put him in a black mood. He found it hard to put up withy the other's complaining.

"When do we get to take a break?" asked Cera.

"Yeah, me tired and thirsty and hungry!" said Petrie.Littlefoot lost it.

" OH WILL YOU JUST, PLEASE, QUIT, COMPLAINING!!!!!" he yelled. The others stop talking and stared at him. Littlefoot's frown gradually turned up side down.

"Sorry guys." he sighed,"I've just got a short temper today. The others nodded in a forgiving way. They worked out how far ahead he probably was and Littlefoot let them rest when they found out that it shouldn't be to far ahead.

It wasn't long after their break, when they started to feel the ground shake!

"EARTHSHAKE!!!" screamed Cera! As the earthquake started, the land started to split! The kids ran all knowing that if they stopped, they would fall into the unknown underground! They rounded a corner and came up against cliff!

"We trapped!" cried Petrie.

"You can escape!" shouted Littlefoot,"You can fly away!"

"No way!" he squawked back,"Where you guys go, Petrie go!" Petrie really was a good friend!

"It's coming!" yelled Cera! The ground cracked and gave way under their feet casting them to the horrors below! Spike grabbed on to the cliff-face. Then Littlefoot grabbed onto him while Cera and Ducky held on just below! The earthquake stopped and Petrie flew down to see if the others were okay.

"You guys alright?" he asked.

"Yeah, just about." said Cera desperately trying to hold on.

"Petrie, fly up, find a vine, tie it to a rock or tree and throw the other end down so we can climb up it." instructed Littlefoot.But then, as if by magic, a vine fell down by him and hung there! Someone had beaten Petrie to it! Then,they all heard a voice speak to them.

"Why make him do all the work when I can?" it said.Littlefoot recognised the voice right away!

"Ali?" he asked caustiosly.

"Yeah, it's me all right!" she replied. To stunned to talk,the others grabbed the vine and started to climb up.

"Woah! Thanks for saving us but what are you doing out here?" asked Cera.

"It's a long story." said Ali.

"We've got time to hear it." said Littlefoot, knowing that the earthquake would've stop Daggerhead too.

"Okay." began Ali."It started when my mother wanted to stop migrating. She wanted to stop moving around because she said she was getting tired of it. So, she told the Old-One who got angry with her and threw us both out of the herd. We decided to go back the way we had come and go back to stay in the Great Valley from then on.

"So,where's your mother?" interrupted Littlefoot,his heart doing somersaults. He had been given another chance and she was going to live in the Great Valley so all he needed now, was for her to feel the same way!

"We were seperated in the big earthshake." she said."Why are you all out here?" Ali said the whole thing was terrible and told Ducky she felt sorry for her after Littlefoot, Cera and Petrie had explained. She also agreed to go with them and fell into line just behind Littlefoot as they started out again.

They were making good time, so Littlefoot let them stop early for the night. They could make up for lost time tomorrow. There was a small tree with tree-stars still on it near by as well as a stream so they got themselves comfortable for the night while Petrie foraged some food for them. When it got dark, they all started to go to sleep except for Littlefoot as he had volunteered to keep watch for Sharpteeth the whole night. The only thing he was interested in watching though, was Ali. He felt a bit bad because it was kind of like he was stalking her but he soon forgot all about that. He still couldn't believe that he had been given a second chance. But he had the one problem of how to tell her. He decided to wait until they had got back to the valley and settled down unless he was given some other opportunity.

Altough she had her back turned to Littlefoot, Ali was very much awake. She was actually thinking about Littlefoot and wondering if he loved her the way she loved him! Ever since she had left the Great Valley four years ago, she had thought about nothing else. She, like Littlefoot, wanted just a small relationship and nothing too serious. But she was also unsure of when to ask him and decided it would be tomorrow when they had their next break. She also wondered where Littlefoot hadd gotten his bruise and cuts from as they all forgot to tell her about that part.

Ducky was also awake thinking about everything that had happened. It had been horrible to see an old friend again and not even been able to say:"Hello". She wondered if she would ever get her voice back too. It was just lucky for them that Daggerhead had never inherited the Rainbow- Face's ability to teleport from one place to another as they did, according to Littlefoot. She also couldn't believe that her friends were willing to throw themselves into danger to help her. Even though Petrie already was her best friend, she had liked him even more ever since he had vowed to go where ever the others went. All of them had their strong points.Littlefoot was the smartest. Ali was the kindest. Cera was the strongest. Spike was the most caring. Chomper was the most forgiving and Petrie was the best at being a friend. She didn't know her talent but the others all agreed that she was probably the bravest. With that, she drifted off to sleep...

When the Bright-Circle rose the next morning, a tired Littlefoot was jolted wide-awake when he heard the fearsome roar of a Sharptooth! He quickly shook the others awake and warned them about what was happening just as the Sharptooth(one of the big green ones)rounded the corner behind them! They started running but found that they were too slow to get away!

"Split up!" yelled Littlefoot hoping the Sharptooth would go after him and leave the others to find Ducky's voice and get home even if it meant he never would. But the Sharptooth chased Ali instead! Feeling courage rise within him, Littlefoot change his direction and started to tail the Sharptooth! He cut across a hill hoping to head them off. When he got to the top, he saw Ali was about to fall off a cliff so he pushed a large boulder lying near him toward the Sharptooth! It hit and nearly sent the beast over the edge! But it was still there and was about to strike Ali but Littlefoot gave it a hard shove which was just enough to send it over! The Sharptooth plummeted down and hit the bottom! Because of it's size, it didn't die, it was just knocked-out. Ali was about to give Littlefoot her thanks when a smaller Sharptooth appeared over the hill and charged toward her!

"Look out!!"yelled Littlefoot running for her! Littlefoot manged to push her out the way of the Sharptooth which fell off the edgd taking him with it!

"Littlefoot, nooo!!!"screamed Ali. She started to climb down the side, praying in her heart that Littlefoot would be okay. He was lucky. He had fallen on top off the big Sharptooth which had cushioned his fall. The other Sharptooth however, had died on impact.

"Littlefoot, you're alive!!"Ali cried with joy. Littlefoot scrambled down and ran up to her. He knew that this was the time to tell her. But she beat him to it.

"Littefoot," she began,"I almost lost you so I'm going to say this now instead of later in case something else happens." Littlefoot looke at her with a smile on his face.

"I...I love you..." she trailed off, afraid that he would reject her.

"I love you too Ali." He whispered, still smiling. The two of them kissed.

Meanwhile, the others had gotten back together and were searchin for them.

"Littlefoot!" shouted Petrie

"Ali!" called Cera. At last, the two came running over to them.

"Is everyone okay?" asked Littleffoot.

"We fine. Where Sharptooth?"asked Petrie.

"Don't worry." Said Ali."He won't bother us again." But she was wrong, because in the pit, the Sharptooth was starting to wake up...

The grouped stopped again that night but later than before because they were trying to make up for lost time. When everyone else had gone to sleep, Littlefoot and Ali cuddled and agreed to keep their relationship a secret for as long as possible. Over the next few nights, the two enjoyed eachother's company just talking and laughing, each having exactly what they had wanted for so long...

About a week after the Sharpteeth attacked, the group were walking along as normal when there was a loud explosion!

"What was that!?"cried Littlefoot.

"Smoky mountain! Look!" yelled Petrie. Everyone looked over and saw the large volcano spitting out gallons and gallons of lava heading straight for them! Terrified, the kids ran in different directions until they moved to higher ground. Littlefoot reached a high rock and helped Ali onto it. Cera, who had also reached high ground, noticed them acting so strangely about eachother and made a mental note to find out about it later if they ever lived through this. Petrie and Spike had also made it onto high rocks but Petrie had to go back down to air-lift Ducky up.After seven hours, the lava finally subsided and the six stiff, but still alive, dinosaurs climbed down.

"Oh no!" cried out Ali when they got back down.

"What's wrong?" asked Cera.

"The fire-water (dinosaur word for lava) has covered the tracks made by Ducky's dad. We'll never find him now!" the others could tell she was right. The tracks were gone and the children were without a guide...

The friends travelled on finding that they were in luck because the track was straight. As long as Daggerhead had kept to the path, they would be okay. But no-one wanted to ask anyone else the question:"What if he didn't follow the path?". Cera was still thinking about what was going on between Ali and Littlefoot. She had actually seen them together one night. Not kissing or cuddling but just acting very close to eachother. She had to wait for the right moment before asking them and it soon came along! They were walking along when Ali tripped on a stone. Littlefoot helped helped her to her feet and for moment, they just gazed into eachother's eyes.

"Why you two keep looking at eachother?" asked Petrie. The two turned away from eachother blushing.

"Okay, the game's up." Said Cera. "I've seen you two acting weird together and I want to know what's up!"

"I think it's time we told them." Ali whispered to her future mate. Littlefoot nodded and took a deep breath.

"Well........here's the thing........this is the thing........the thing is........"

"What is the thing?!" Cera cut him off getting annoyed.

"Ali and I are kind of........you know........t-t-together or........a-a-a c-c-couple." stammered Littlefoot turning a deep red which almost made the cuts on his face blend in! Although she was also embarrassed, Ali couldn't help giggling at the sight of him.

"That so great for you two!" chirped Petrie.

"Yeah, I agree!" declared Cera. Ducky and Spike nodded in agreement as well.

"Well I'm glad you guys took it so well!" laughed Ali. But their happiness for the new couple was short-lived as a deafining roar filled the afternoon air!

"Please tell me I didn't hear what I thought I did!" moaned littlefoot. The Sharptooth rounded the corner. Not hungry for food, but hungry for revenge! The kids ran along the path scared beyond belief. As they ran on, they spotted a cave that the path continued through. The six entered the cave which turned out to have an entrance just a bit too small for the Sharptooth! They ran still because they knew the Sharptooth would soon break the rocks and pick up the chase once more. After a while, they slowed to a halt to take a quick rest. But the shadows, they saw a strange yellow glow. It Daggerhead with Ducky's voice!

"We found you!" Littlefoot yelled at him. Daggerhead faced them.

"What do you want?" he said quietly.

"You have something that belongs to Ducky!" shouted Cera, "And we're here to get it!". With that, she lowered her head and charged toward him! She headbutted him in the stomach hard and he dropped the orb in surprise! Spike leapt into the fight and grabbed the orb in his mouth! The Sharptooth pounded in and knocked into Daggerhead knocking him into a huge chasm. Ducky watched him fall to his death with tears of hatred in her eyes. He was the first person she had ever hated. Meanwhile, the Sharptooth was coming after her!

"Ducky!"

"Watch out!"

"Get out the way!"

"Run!" Ducky turned to see the Sharptooth coming towards her! She screamed even though she made no sound! In a desperate attempt to help her, Petrie took the orb from Spike and threw it at her! It touched her and started to disapear while she started to glow yellow again! Suddenly, the cave was filled with the scream of a familiar voice!

"That's Ducky's voice!" yelled Littlefoot. The cave was starting to crumble so the kids started to run! They just made it out before the cave collapsed but the Sharptooth wasn't so lucky...

Outside, Ducky and the others were celebrating the return of her voice. She was able to thank them all for their help and wish the best for Ali and Littlefoot.Then, they started to sing:







If We Hold On Together written by James Horner and performed by Dana Ross,



Cera+Petrie:Don't lose your way,

With each passing day,

You've come so far,

Don't throw it away,

Cera(solo): Live believing,

Dreams are for weaving,

Wonders are waiting to start,

Petrie(solo):Live your story

Faith, hope and glory,

Hold to the truth in your heart,

All(minus Ducky+Spike):If we hold on,

Together,

I know dreams,

Will never die,

Dreams see us through,

To forever,

Where clouds roll by,

For you, and I,

Littlefoot+Ali:Souls in the wind,

Must learn how to bend,

Seek out a star,

Hold on to the end,

Littlefoot(solo):Valley, mountain,

There is a fountain,

Washes our tears all away,

Ali(solo):Waves are swaying,

Someone is praying,

Please let us come home to stay,

All(minus Ducky+Spike):If we hold on,

Together,

I know are dreams,

Will never die,

Dreams see us through,

To forever,

As clouds roll by.

For you, and I,

Ducky(solo):When we are out there in the dark,

We'll dream about the Sun,

In the dark we'll feel the light,

Warm our hearts, everyone,

Ducky(solo):If we hold on,

Together,

I know our dreams,

Will never die,

All(minus Spike):Dreams see us through,

To forever,

As high,

As souls can fly,

The clouds roll by,



Ducky(solo): For you and I...



Epilouge:

After returning to the valley, they had to explain what had happened to Daggerhead to Ducky's mother.After twelve of the cold times had passed, Littlefoot and Ali had children and the others found mates. Littlefoot's wounds had turned into scars, making him look a bit like Doc. Spike had started talking and found a mate called Spear. Cera had curbed her temper and found a mate named Sam. Petrie had stopped speaking in the third person and found a special someone called Pauline. Ducky learned to stop repeating herself and found a mate named Nat.



And thus another hoop of the circle of life was complete. Sadly, the circle would stop spinning for the dinosaurs one day and they would leave this world in body, but never leave our minds........







Well that's it! Hope you liked it!