Chapter I: A Friend in Need, Makes a Friend Indeed

In which friends are left, and a friend is made.

The brilliant star known as the bright circle had been up for quite some time. It wasn't yet evening, but the day had already passed its brightest point. It was a warm day, and a cool breeze roamed through the trees. They began to dance back and forth, and a single leaf, called a tree star, broke free from its high branch and began drifting down slowly to the Earth below.

It was rather beautiful, with its deep green coloration and the way it fluttered about as gravity called it down. It teetered back and forth as it neared its destination, and drops of dew on its blade began falling off, like it was crying. It was almost like the little leaf was afraid of some impending danger, as it trembled through the air. As it neared the ground, the final contribution of its life became clear.

Chomp!

"Spike! It Ducky's turn to get first tree star of day!" Petrie exclaimed.

"Oh, that is alright. It is. It is. Spike is probably much hungrier than I am," Ducky reasoned.

"Uh huh," Spike agreed with a nod while chewing. He finished then knocked against the tree his snack had fallen from, causing many more to fall down, resulting in a pile big enough to fill the whole gang.

"Okay guys, let's get some tree stars too!" Littlefoot exclaimed to the others.

"I'm gonna get some, but not because you told me too," Cera responded.

"Huh? Did I say something wrong?" he asked her, confused.

"You're not our boss. Whether I eat or not is not your decision."

"Uh, it was just a suggestion; I wasn't ordering anyone to eat," he shot back, getting a little worked up.

"Sure didn't sound like a suggestion."

"Two berries say Spike finish off that bush before they stop arguing," Petrie whispered to Ducky.

"You are on." Turning to her brother, she said, "There is plenty Spike. You do not need to rush."

"Hey, that no fair!" Petrie huffed. Ducky just giggled.

Spike simply continued eating, wishing that everyone would just get along.

"Would you like me to say 'Okay guys, I suggest we all get some tree stars, if that's okay with all of you?'" Littlefoot asked, getting quite angry.

"Sounds good to me," Cera replied with a shrug. "You just solved your own problem."

Littlefoot sighed, knowing that this could go on all day if one of them wouldn't be the bigger dinosaur.

"I'm sorry for starting this argument. I'll try to be more careful in the future with what I say," he said meekly.

"Uh, good," Cera replied slowly, a bit taken back at his surrender.

Petrie picked Ducky two berries.

"Hello my friends, my friends hello. What is up besides what is normally up?" a familiar voice called as its owner approached.

"Oh hi, Ruby," Littlefoot said. Seeing her alone, he asked, "Where's Chomper?" When Ruby's around, Chomper tends to be also.

"He's still back at the Secret Caverns; he isn't feeling well."

"Huh? Is he okay?" Littlefoot questioned her, quickly concerned.

"Worrying is something you don't need to do." She sighed. "It's his teeth again."

"Did he lose another one?" Cera asked.

"No, Chomper didn't lose one, two is how many he lost. That is not a bad sign though; it shows how much he's maturing. He even said he'd be okay by himself and that I should go ahead without him. Sometimes I wonder if he even needs me to look out for him anymore," she finished with a low tone. "Even though it wasn't yesterday that his parents asked me to take care of him, it certainly feels like it."

"Do not worry, Ruby. Chomper will always need you. He will. He will," Ducky added in a comforting voice.

"Thanks Ducky, but Chomper becoming independent is not a bad thing, but a thing that is good. All Sharpteeth, actually, all dinosaurs, one day learn to take of themselves. It's part of the great circle of life. Still, it will be sad for me when he's ready to be on his own. He may even end up leaving the Great Valley. That's why I want to enjoy him as much as I can while I know I still can."

Chomper had gotten used to his most recent mouth trauma and had headed toward the others. There was now only a short distance and a small bush between them.

"I wish Chomper's parents had let someone else be his caretaker. I certainly don't feel comfortable doing it, even after all this time."

Chomper froze. He had done so right behind the bush, so no one had seen him yet.

"Ruby doesn't like taking of me?" he said to himself as a small tear formed in his eye.

"I still regret agreeing to look after him."

That was all Chomper needed to hear. He quickly took off, running back down the hill he had just climbed up, all the while wiping away tears.

"You see, I really care about Chomper, so I just want him to have the best care, and the best care is something I don't think I can give."

"Don't say that Ruby! You've done so much more than just keep an eye on him, and even with that you've done great!" Littlefoot exclaimed. "Remember the first time he lost a tooth? He was so depressed but you were able to cheer him up when we couldn't. You have done so many things for him, and so well, that I can't think of a better dinosaur to be his caretaker."

"Me think so too. You do whole bunch of good for Chomper, like how helpful you been when he and Ducky trapped with Thud in Mysterious Beyond," Petrie chimed in.

"Or the time when Chomper flooded your guys' old cave. You did not get angry with him like many would have. Oh no," Ducky added. "In fact, Chomper tolded me later that you were still nice when he broke those stone teeth, and that made him feel much betterer."

"Thanks guys, to all of you I thank," Ruby told the group. "Well, I'd better go see how he's doing." She stooped over to pick up a crawler she had spotted, explained "In case he's hungry and his mouth is feeling better," then headed back to her cave.

xxxxx

"I guess I'd better go back to my parents' place. I'll just tell them I was ready to go home. I don't want them to think badly of Ruby," he thought to himself as he trudged off into the Mysterious Beyond. "Maybe I'll get lucky and see Elsie again." He slid down a small decline that led up from the valley then continued his somber trek.

He was a bit nervous. After all, last time he came out to the Mysterious Beyond on his own he was nearly killed by some other Sharpteeth. He wished that he didn't have to walk all by himself, but he didn't know anybody way out here; his far-off parents were it. However, that was about to change…

Dark clouds had begun looming overhead. The sky puffies bulged with the large horde of evaporated water they had collected. They rolled in from all directions, shielding the Earth below from the warm, brilliant rays of the bright circle. It had been a while since it had rained, so plant life was sure to appreciate such an oncoming event. Chomper, on the other hand, would not be so happy about it.

The winds began to pick up slowly, but gained speed as the minutes passed by. The trees swayed back and forth, while smaller plants like grass and flowers shook violently. Flyers in the area sought land as the skies became unsafe for travel. The clouds wasted no more time and small droplets began to descend upon the land.

At first, Chomper was too fixated on the news he'd stumbled upon earlier to care about the bad weather very much. As things continued to worsen though, he came to his senses and looked for shelter. Try as he might though, he could not. A tree, having had its support uprooted by the strong winds fell over, nearly hitting him.

"Wah!" he exclaimed as he jumped out of the way just in time. More and more trees began to lose their hold and come crashing to the ground. They were fairly small, barely big enough to scratch a full-grown Sharptooth, but to a very young one…

"Look out!" a voice roared through the air. Chomper turned around and stood dead in his tracks. Another tree had lost its grip and was about to crush him when he was knocked back a good distance. The tree crashed to the ground and splintered off into several pieces- a safe distance from him. He looked up to see another Sharptooth, black, and about twice his size. He seemed to be around Littlefoot's age and stood just a bit taller than him.

"Who're-?"

"No time. Come on!" the mysterious Sharptooth ordered. He grabbed one of Chomper's arms and raced towards a large rock formation that towered high up and over at an angle. He got underneath, pulling Chomper in with him. "We'll be safe here. It would take a lot more than wind to knock this place over," he roared gently but loudly enough to be heard over the storm.

"Th-thank you," Chomper roared to the stranger as he shivered.

"You're welcome," he answered. Then he noticed Chomper's discomfort. "Hey, you're gonna freeze like this. You don't have enough fat to keep you warm at your age. Come 'ere," he offered, holding out his arm. Chomper happily obliged and huddled in close to be somewhat protected from the chill. He had been much afraid, but with this new Sharptooth, he felt at ease.

Despite it not yet being even midday, Chomper was exhausted. The combination of traveling and his emotional trauma had drained him. It wasn't long before he fell asleep, leaning against the stranger.

The storm raged on for a while, but fleeted as daylight took its rightful place. The bright circle broke through the clouds and one of its rays shined directly onto Chomper's face. "Ungh," he moaned while shielding his eyes with an arm. He didn't stir right away, but when the realization of the day sunk in, he awoke with a start. He looked around, but he saw no one; the Sharptooth from last night was gone.

He got to his feet and walked out from under the rock formation. There were several small trees scattered across the ground, but the area didn't look too bad. There was a squishing noise as he walked on the soggy grass while he got his bearings. While he wasn't very far from the course he had been on, the fallen foliage completely threw him off.

"Where am I?" he wondered aloud.

"Not far from where you were before," came a voice.

"Wah! Oh, it's you!" Chomper said, relieved at the sight of the Sharptooth from earlier. "Where did you go?" he asked him.

"I'm sorry for not telling and startling you. You seemed very comfortable so I didn't want to wake you. I was just getting these for us," he replied while revealing a large, folded leaf he was carrying. Opening it, Chomper's eyes fixated on a wide selection of buzzing buzzers, none of which flew away.

"Wow! These are for me too?" he asked as he began salivating.

"I said 'us,' didn't I?" he answered with a laugh.

"Oh boy, I love those! But, how did you get them to stay on that leaf?"

"Ah, that's one of the tricks I've picked up in my travels. A buzzing buzzer nest is full of a sweet-tasting liquid called honey. I'm not keen on eating that stuff, but it works wonders on catching these delectables. You take a large leaf, break open one of their hanging nests, get the goo all over the leaf, then when these little guys fly in to attack you, you start swatting the leaf at the swarm, and there you have it- they all get stuck to it," he explained.

"Wow, you're so smart!"

"Heh, I've just been around, that's all," he replied, handing the buzzer-covered leaf to him. Chomper took it with a hearty round of gratitude. He picked some off and munched on them gingerly, so not to aggravate his mouth pain from earlier.

"Anyway," the stranger continued, "if you don't mind my asking, what's someone as young as you doing out here all alone?"

Chomper had been warned by his parents against telling too much to strangers, but he had really warmed up to this one. He had saved his life after all. "I just found out that one of my best friends wished she'd never met me, so I ran away," he replied gloomily.

"Oh, I'm so sorry. That's just awful. I shouldn't have asked such a thing. How about something more pleasant, like, what's your name?"

"I'm Chomper, but I don't mind talking about what happened. I was just about to meet up with my friends when I heard one of them say that she isn't comfortable looking after me."

"Oh my, that must have really hurt." He paused, trying to think of the best thing to say next. "You know, Chomper, that story sounds pretty hard to believe."

"What!" Chomper asked incredulously. "It's all true! I'm not lying!"

"I dunno. You seem too mature to need someone to look after you."

Chomper now turned red at his outburst. "Oh, uh, thank you. I didn't mean to-"

"Don't worry about it," the stranger roared gently. "I should have said that in a better way."

"May I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"What's your name?"

"Oh, you're right. It was rude of me to ask about you without introducing myself first. The name's Dusk."

"Will you be my friend Dusk?" Chomper asked him.

"No, I will not be your friend because it looks like I already am," he replied with a grin.

"Thanks," was all that Chomper could think of to say.

"Anytime."