I'm BAAAAAAAACK! By the way, i haven't mentioned this for a while, but I don't own rudy or buck, all their things go to Bluesky studios. Anyway, enjoy. this isn't a particularly thrilling chapter, but hopefully the next one will be.

"You must be feelin' better." Buck said with a yawn.

"Much." Beast said as she shook the water out of her fur. "I think those healers did their job well."

"Yeah well if they didn', their pay should be cut." Buck munched into a bit of peach, leaning back on his other arm and looking at the trees around them.
It was a warm day, and they'd been lounging on the rocks next to the stream all morning, eating fish and fruit. Beast had woken early that morning, feeling better than she had in ages. The stiches and patches in her sides hurt, but the infection had cleared up overnight. Lucy had checked it this morning and changed the rough dressings made from tree sap covered over with woven water reeds, and they stretched with Beasts' movements, allowing her to swim in the stream, and the sap was hardy enough so that it didn't come off from the water.

Beast was feeling better, but she looked a mess. She had large patches of fur that's been cut short to the skin, and her long fringe was a tangle. Buck had promised to comb it out later, and suggested cutting it back a bit.
Beast came up onto the rocks, and laid down on her belly. In this heat, she'd usually roll onto her side, but she didn't want to get sand onto the patches, and it would hurt a little.

"By the way, I saw a dinosaur yesterday." Beast said, looking down at Buck.

Buck laughed, and said, "Ya believe me now?"

"No."
Buck and Beast looked at each other with grins, and then they started to doze comfortably in the magnified sun from above the ice.

Later, Beast awoke from a scent carried on a cooling breeze. She sniffed again, and sneezed, as if trying to get the scent out. Soon after, Regal Red and Jeremy appeared across the Stream. They took a drink, then stared up at Beast. Beast felt her skin warm up under her fur with anger, and she pulled her lips back into a snarl. Regal pulled the finger at her, then wandered back into the jungle towards the village. Beast's tail was flicking in annoyance, and she was irritated long after Regal was gone. Buck woke when Beast accidently flicked him with her tail, and he sat up rubbing his eye.

"What's up?" he asked.

"That weasel." Beast growled. "Regal red. What's his problem anyway? He seems to have something big against you."

"Yeah, he's been hatin' me since we were kits. He killed my brother."

"What!?"

"Accidently o' course." Buck said casually, shrugging.
Beast looked at him sceptically, but didn't say anything. Buck was still relatively a stranger to her, so she had to be careful how deep their conversations got. She'd have to eventually leave this place and make her own way in this strange world. She had no interest in once again going to the freezing tundra above, when the hunting down here would be easy if she chose right. She could not only eat fish, but the fruit down here was not only tolerable, but delectable, not like the harsh, tasteless fruits she'd occasionally have to scrounge on above.

Once again, Beast caught a scent on the breeze that had not been there before, but this time it was not one that made her cringe or lay her ears back in annoyance.
Lucy appeared across the stream, with her blonde friend instead of her red boyfriend. At the sight of the two females, Buck waved with a smile. Noticing them, Lucy and the blonde hopped over the stones connecting the two shores over to them. Lucy approached with confidence, but the blonde hung back at the sight of Beast, eyeing her with concern.

Maybe it's my tangled fringe, Beast thought, and was tempted to laugh quietly, but held it back instead.

"Hey Buck, Beast." Lucy said.

"Hi," Buck said cheerfully, "What ya up to?"
Beast rolled her eyes. We saw her only a couple of hours ago. Jeez what could have happened in that time? She became a super-weasel and is now living in a 5-star burrow?

"We're just getting some more water for Oma. How are your cuts Beast?"

"No change. Hopefully it'll stay that way." Beast said with a toothy smile.

"Hopefully they start t' heal." Buck grumbled with humour.

"Who's your friend Lucy?" Beast asked.

"Oh," Lucy said, "This is Sasha. Sorry, I thought you'd know her. Clearly I'm already used to you being around. Sasha, come on."
Sasha tried to look casual as she tentatively came over, but Beast could see it in her fur, her movements, her eyes… she could even smell it on her. A fear that not many had on them while Beast was down here. Maybe it was her weakened state when the weasels saw her, or even their confidence in Buck, but they just didn't seem to think she was a threat. Sasha was the first.

"I don't bite weasels." Beast said with a smile, "They have a tendency to bite back."
Sasha managed a timid smile. "I've just never seen something like you before. I wasn't sure if…"

"If I was dangerous." Beast said with a nod. "Even if I was normally, I wouldn't be much of a threat in this state."
Sasha seemed to relax at this.

"What do you plan on doing after you're healed? Is Buck going to take you back?" Sasha asked.
Beast shook her head. "I'll just stay down here, travelling around to see if there's anywhere I like in particular."

"What abou' the dinosaurs an' such?" Buck asked with a grin, throwing his knife into the air and catching it.

"They don't really bother me. There's man above ground, and they're far more annoying." Beast growled, thinking about all the damage they had done in the past. Maybe my parents were killed by men.

"Urgh, with the way they dress in dead animal skins?" Sasha shivered at the thought.

"And how they sometimes make that loud noise when they sleep?" Lucy made an imitation of a snore, which very few animals did, and it was mostly if they were sick or too fat.

"And even worse when they occasionally abandon their kids 'cause it's sick or somethin'." Buck spat, disgusted.

"Point is, they're back there and I'm down here. Besides, it's bloody cold above ground." Beast said.

"I can tell ya where all th' dangerous spots are if ya wan', so ya can avoid 'em." Buck said.
Beast laughed a little. "Where's the fun in that? I'll figure it out as I go."
Sasha and Lucy looked at each other for a moments, and then started laughing. Laughing very extremely loudly for an extended, almost ridiculous amount of time. Buck frowned and looked at Beast, who shrugged, just as confused as her one-eyed friend.

"What are you two crackin' up abou'?" Buck asked. That only made them laugh harder. After they managed to recover a bit, Lucy, chuckling while she did, explained.

"You do know who you sounded like, right?"
Beast and Buck once again looked at each other, and grinned.

"Crazy and crazy seem to go together." Sasha said.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ One month later ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lucy removed the last of the patches, and then stood back to admire her work.
Beast turned around on the spot, her tail flicking every now and then, happily.

"You've completely healed now. You'll have some serious scarring, but for some reason, I don't think that's going to bother you." Lucy said with a smile, and Beast nodded, too stunned and happy to say anything. She had lost almost all of her winter coat, and now had a shorter, sleeker coat, and Buck had cut her fringe . Standing in the sunlight, she looked extremely healthy, helped by her good mood.

"How dya feel?" Buck asked, pacing around her to inspect how much better she looked.

"Almost like my old self. Actually," Beast ran towards a tree, and at the last second, leaped upwards, then kicked off the trunk and landed gracefully, "I feel better than I have for years. Thanks again, Lucy."

"No problem." Lucy gathered up the remaining healing equipment, said her goodbyes, and made her way back to the village.
Beast, who was still running around, was ecstatic about finally healing.

"Now I can go have a good look around this place." She said, already thinking about all the cool places she could go running, or hunting, or sleeping or swimming…there was endless possibilities.

"Ya have t' remember what Lucy said about yer muscles. Don'-,"

"Break them in too fast. Yeah I know, I know. Don't do anything too fast because I've been lying around and my muscles have deteriorated and blah blah blah. I'll be fine."

"Ya wan' me t' come with ya?" Buck asked. It was up to her, but secretly he'd prefer to go with her. They'd grown close over the weeks she'd been healing, and he didn't want her getting herself killed or hurt again. Besides, he wanted to see how fun it would be to go adventuring with her. Beast was very much like him. Possibly a little easier to anger, and very much a sarcastic being, but in terms of values and idea, they were quite similar.

"Um, maybe next time." Beast said, looking a little guilty. "I think I just want to test this place out for myself first. You never know, maybe I'll find somewhere that even you haven't gone."

"Well now I have t' come with you." Buck said.

"No way. You're not going to take the credit for anywhere that I found."

"Do I get t' name it?"

"Nope." Beast shook herself out again, then turned and started to make her way into the jungle. Buck followed her for a while.

"Can I get a bit o' credit for it?" Buck asked.

"Not a chance."

"You'd be dead withou' me an' Lucy! We at least ge' to have a claim."

"Then talk to Lucy about it, but otherwise, seeya later."

"But-,"

"Goodbye Buck." Beast laughed.
Buck stopped on top of a mossy rock, and watched Beast's spotted hide continue down the path and out of sight. Buck sighed, and stayed on the rock long after she was gone, pondering at how strange it was without her around. He had grown so used to her company, and he was still worried about her getting hurt, or maybe even lost.

No, stop worrying you idiot. She's gonna be fine.
Even so, Buck considered following her. It took him a while to decide against it, eventually just shaking his head at himself with a smile. He needed a distraction, just like whenever he felt a bit off.

She's gone east, so I'll go west. I haven't been that way for a while, Buck thought. He usually didn't go that way because there was only a narrow path that large dinosaurs could get through large jagged mountain ranges, named Crags Ranges, so Rudy only went that way for the mating season in the grassy valleys beyond. And Buck didn't usually bother him during mating seasons. He didn't want to make the big guy look bad in front of the ladies, did he? Being beaten by a weasel must be humiliating as it is, but doing it in front of potential mates would be infuriating, and unfair. Buck hoped that some of Rudy's offspring would come this way one day, so they could test their tempers and skills at trying to get Buck, like their permanently pestered father. So, making sure Rudy had a fair go at the fights against other Baryonyx males was all Buck could do.

But the Crags were a good idea. Usually infested with raptors or other biped dinosaurs that could manage the very steep and difficult terrain, the place was usually filled with small but exciting dangers. Small waterfalls that sprang from the sides of the mountains fed the soil all along the sides, so the vegetation was thick and luscious. But, this also meant the plants had additions to them that were a little dangerous. Usually they were just toxic fruits or vines that would move overnight and strange something warm. Dangerous, but lazy. . Of course it wasn't as treacherous bloody Canine Mountain ranges, or the jungle of Misery with its extra-temperamental plants but it did have its fun little irks.

The waterfalls running from the mountain all met and converged as streams at the bottom, which then flowed into the biggest river Buck had ever come across, The Silver-Streak. It continued west to those mating plains, and then became huge lakes which the females nested around. After they've hatched their eggs, they'd all head back to their original territories, including Mamma T-rex who came back to Lava falls.

So Buck's only choice for a little danger was to annoy as many raptors as he could on the Crags. Each species had its own areas and clans that had very strict borders, so making one species trespass into another's territory, there would be civil wars this way and that. Buck smiled at the thought. Maybe that particularly big one he fought sometimes was back. The one with the huge scar down his side from Buck's knife.

Unlike other raptors, that one, and two or three of his comrades and mates, travelled over the whole Dino world. Buck ran into them again and again, and Buck had pinned the reasoning down to the fact that sometimes food must get scarce on his part of the mountain.
Buck, a couple of years ago, had checked it out. Turns out this big raptor had the worst spot on those mountains, where there was barely any jungle and little water, so prey rarely ventured into the dangerous rocky grounds. No wonder this particular raptor was permanently crabby.

So, west it was.

The day was still early, so he'd go and say goodbye to Lucy, then make his way along. There was a swamp on the way, and a small desert and a jagged rocky plain and a dead lands where the very ground burnt the fur off your ass, and further on was a river with crocodiles and piranhas in it.
How boring, Buck thought with a groan. I hope Beast doesn't find something too exciting to do. It would be sad if she came back with great stories and I didn't come back with barely any at all.