Author's Note: For anyone who has read this story, I know it's been years since I've managed to update it. However, I've come back now and should be doing so rather frequently. You ought to go back and read the rest of the story again because I rewrote a significant portion of it. The reason is simply that I started it years ago and have other intentions for the direction of the story now. I hope you all enjoy and hopefully there will be a new chapter in a few days!

~Star

What a dream. Oh, so sore. Where am I? What happened?
I would have snapped my eyes open, but my eyelids were swollen and felt like they were made of lead. Seconds passed until my eyes could focus on anything. The room was strange: looking as if it had been carved from stone. Sluggishly, I looked around, trying to take in everything. But nothing was registering. Dinosaur, no such thing, dream… just a dream. Room, strange room… But so sore. How? My eyes flicked around the room. I spotted a set of small figurines sitting on a shelf. Dinosaur statues, dinosaur… how?
Nothing was getting through, nothing making sense. My thoughts were jumbled and sporadic. I shut my eyes, blocking it all out. Maybe it will all go away.
I opened my eyes again… and it was all still there. No, this isn't happening. It can't be. I heard a giggle on my right. Startled, I snapped my head around which caused my vision to swim slightly. Once I was able to focus again, I saw a little girl peering over the edge of my bed and a small scaly, horned head poking up next to hers. I stared at it and groaned. Oh no, it was real. Oh no oh no.
There was a series of grunts beside my ear and I looked over again in complete shock. It was talking. My jaw hung open. That's it, I've gone insane. It was the heat, or the shock, or… but then, shock at what? Being almost eaten… by a dinosaur? But… dinosaur, what's happening?
Then the little girl answered her companion in the same grunts.
As I watched them, my mind raced for an explanation: I collapsed in the desert and now I'm lying in the sun and this is all a hallucination that's a result of sunstroke and fatigue. I just have to wake up. No dinosaur attacked us and no dinosaur is sitting here staring at me right now. I just have to wake up.
I pinched my arm hard. It felt real enough, but when I opened my eyes again, both the small figures at my bedside were still there and peering at me inquiringly.
"Uh… hi."
The girl looked at me in confusion, "Uh hi."
I laughed in spite of myself and then felt slightly bad. I shook my head; it was completely ridiculous feeling bad about laughing at some figment of my imagination. Still, no harm in being polite, I suppose. I pointed to myself. "Susan."
She smiled and pointed to herself. "Reatha."
Then the dinosaur piped up. "Dinsoth."
I giggled at its high-pitched grunt. It must have been a young dinosaur. They seemed to understand that I wasn't meaning to be rude and they laughed too. At this, I seemed to have passed some sort of test and the little girl clambered up onto my bed, followed by her dinosaur companion. Although the shifting of the mattress caused my limbs and muscles to scream, I tried not to make any sound. Reatha began to speak animatedly and Dinsoth bounced up and down by my feet, still admitting its funny, wheezing laugh. Then Reatha reached up and touched my face with a look of pity while Dinsoth rubbed my hand with its nose. Their touch felt real enough, and I was starting to hope that it wasn't an illusion... I liked these two. I patted Dinsoth, reaching up with the other hand to where Reatha was still tracing some line along my cheek. Scars stretch across my face, deep scoring marks along my cheeks and down my neck. Alarmed, I looked around for a mirror. Then I realized: Of course, the dinosaur.
Before I could move toward the mirror that I'd spotted on the wall (indeed, I didn't know if I would have had the strength to make it there), the door opened and a short, elderly woman hurried in. Reatha dove behind me and Dinsoth cowered behind my leg. The woman looked rather put-out and when she began to tell the two children off, I figured that they had been told to stay away.
"No please, it's alright."
She regarded me and then glared at the children again. It was rather comical and I would have laughed if I hadn't felt it improper. Looking at me then, she spoke. "How thee feel?"
Her English was rather broken and archaic, but I still understood it and that was enough.
"Alright, most of the pain is gone."
She stepped forward to examine my scarred face and nodded in satisfaction before stepping back. I was grateful to be alive, so the scars weren't bothering me unduly at that point.
Jill. The thought hit me like a million tonnes of bricks and I couldn't believe that I hadn't thought of her before that.
"My friend, how is she? Is she alright?!"
The woman patted my shoulder. "Thy friend lives, fear not. Wait moment."
I relaxed as the woman slipped out the door and Reatha put her small hand on my arm, using it to push herself into a sitting position. She looked up at me and gave a mischievous grin; I laughed and put my arm around her: she'd known perfectly well that she wasn't supposed to be in my room. Dinsoth bounced along the edge of my bed and plopped down next to Reatha's leg.

By the time the lady re-entered carrying my breakfast, Reatha and Dinsoth had jumped down and were dancing while I watched and laughed. It hurt a lot; I was pretty sure that I had at least two broken ribs. She scowled, although I could see the sparkle of hidden laughter in her eyes. However, both children cowered under her gaze and fell silent and still. I felt a little hand grasp mine where it was lying on the sheets next to me. I squeezed it and smiled down at her.

The breakfast was great. Not quite pancakes and bacon; in fact, no meat at all. But it was still very good. There was a soft bread that tasted like honey and flowers and some sort of tangy fruit. The drink she brought me was the most energizing liquid I'd ever tasted. I took a sip and gasped as it slipped down my throat, temporarily robbed of breath.
"Wow…"
Grinning, the lady pushed the flask closer to me. I took another sip and this time it affected me less. It tasted like fiery flowers. A few seconds later I felt a invigorated as I rarely had before. I breathed deeply and glanced at the woman. She was watching me with a bemused expression. Then she stood and beckoned to me. "Come now."
I looked at her in surprise; I didn't think I would be able to stand. But she just took my arm and pulled gently, and I trusted that she knew what she was doing. She helped me out of the bed and I stumbled down the hall with her supporting me. It felt like the longest hall I had ever been in, although we really walked only a few yards until we reached a door which she opened.
"Jill."
The lady helped me stumble forward. My friend was asleep, or perhaps still unconscious, but she was breathing and she looked healthy other than the scars. I gripped her hand and gratefully nodded to the lady as she pulled up a chair for me.
"Has she woken up yet?"
The lady looked at me for a moment before shaking her head slowly.
"Nay, not woken. Soon."
She patted my shoulder and exited the room, leaving the door open. I was worried by how cold she was and how many scars she had. I tried to remember; it looked like the blow that had knocked her down had been to the head, perhaps a concussion then. Hopefully nothing was wrong with her neck. I took a deep breath and tightened my hold on her hand.
"Come on, Jill. I know you can do it."