CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX: AGATHA COMES TO THE GREAT VALLEY
"You don't see what happened to your dad?" Littlefoot asked Ptero. Ptero shook his head.
"I didn't see it happen. Mother did." Ptero affirmed.
"I wonder if your dad knew who attacked him." asked Littlefoot.
"I doubt it." said Ptero. "Unless...unless..." he said. He paused, recalling something. He'd forgotten it all of these cold times. Sydo hadn't just yelled for him. He now recalled one word that he'd overlooked all of this time, as his worry over his father and later his grief over his death had made him forget it. "Traitor!" Sydo had known who had killed him. "I think he did know who did it. He called them a traitor." said Ptero.
Littlefoot gasped. It seemed awful that poor Ptero's father had been murdered by someone that he had trusted. Ptero felt uneasy. This new revelation about his father had caused his grief, never fully gotten over, to come washing over him again. "I need to be alone for a while." said Ptero. Littlefoot understood and left. Ptero wandered away from the others. He went into a sparsely occupied part of the Great Valley.
Meanwhile, Agatha flew into the Great Valley. Her search had been fruitless. This place kept drawing her eye. She was going to give it a more thorough search. She spotted a young Swimmer boy. He was wandering all alone. Agatha licked her lips. "Lucky for me. Unlucky for this poor sap." she laughed. She moved downward. It looked like a young Swimmer wasn't going to be going back home to his parents.
Ptero saw Agatha coming. He felt slightly conflicted on what to do. However, he soon acted. He dove at the Swimmer himself. He grabbed the creature and took off with him.
Hey, that's mine! she cried angrily.
Agatha was at first annoyed to find that another Sharp Beak had beaten her to it. But then she recognized the Sharp Beak: Ptero. She grinned. Her boy was hunting Flatteeth. That meant that her plans were nearly complete. He wasn't likely to find out what she'd done now. But then she saw something that made her want to yell. Ptero had released the Flattooth some distance away. "You're safe now." said Ptero. The Flattooth thanked Ptero and then went off on his way.
"Glad to have done good. I..." said Ptero. He paused as his mother landed next to him.
"Well, well, I'd never thought I'd see this!" said Agatha icily. She was very angry and also very frightened. Did Ptero's new kindness toward Flatteeth mean that he knew the truth about Sydo's species?
"Mother, please..." pleaded Ptero.
"You saved a Flattooth! Did you forget what they did to your father?" she asked, glaring at him.
"But Flatteeth are nice. You were wrong about all of them being evil. I've got Flattooth friends and they are really nice." said Ptero. "I think Dad knew who did it though. He called them a traitor." said Ptero.
Agatha was nervous. Ptero seemed to be really close to finding out her dark secret. However, she was wily. "Ptero, oh, this is going to break your heart. You have Flattooth friends? Oh, you poor dear. Poor, poor dear." she said, hugging him.
"What is it Mother?" asked Ptero.
"Your father had Flattooth friends for many cold times. Your father, bless his soul, wanted to be friendly and even learned the Flattooth language so he could talk to them. Your father later taught us it too, which is why we speak it in addition to Sharptooth. Your father was such great friends with them. He got you to learn Flattooth as well as the Flatteeth. You still like to speak it so that is why you and I speak it so much in addition to your our language. But, alas, for your father, it was all in vain.
Eventually, your father decided to tell them the truth that he was a Sharptooth. He noticed a change in them and eventually realized that he was in danger. They murdered him. I tried to stop them, but they got away. I'd known this all along, but I thought the sad truth would be too much for you at your tender age." lied Agatha, trying to talk in a sweet, but comforting tone to lure the boy to her will.
Ptero felt as though he'd just been dealt a blow to the stomach. Was that what his new friends were going to do to him? "But my friends are nice." said Ptero.
"But they don't know what you are. Your father's friends were once 'nice' too." she replied.
"I have a Flyer friend named Petrie who knows." Ptero countered. Agatha was horrified by this, but, with difficulty, kept her shock from her son.
"Yes, the Flatteeth, who were Flyers, knew what you father was. They got him to let his guard down." Agatha lied, hoping to get her son to doubt Petrie. "Besides, the others don't know about you." Agatha added.
Meanwhile, Littlefoot was growing worried about Ptero. "He's not back yet." he told the others.
"Where he go?" asked Petrie.
"He's upset about his father's death." said Littlefoot. Spike shook his head.
"What happened to his dad? Did he ever say?" asked Cera.
"He did. But he told me not to tell you." replied Littlefoot.
"Why not?" Cera inquired.
"I promised I wouldn't tell. It's kind of personal. I'm keeping my promise not to tell. If you want to know, you can ask Ptero, and, if he's ready to tell you, then he will." said Littlefoot.
"Poor Ptero. He has no dad and he does not get along with his mother. He just needs friends. He does. He does." said Ducky.
"Yes, and we are his great friends." Littlefoot said.
"Yes, Ptero me best friend!" said Petrie proudly.
Meanwhile, Ptero and Agatha continued to argue about Flatteeth. "Ptero, you have no father, sister or brother. I've always told you to listen to mother. I've told you that Flatteeth are really bad. They went and murdered your dad. I'm not a smother Ptero. I'm your kind loving mother. Flatteeth are evil it's true. I just want what's best for you." sang Agatha.
"It can't be so. These Flatteeth are different I just know." sang Ptero, hoping that his mother was wrong.
"Oh there's only one reason they let you go this far. They don't know what you are. I've lost your father and I won't lose another. Listen to me Ptero. Listen to your mother." sang Agatha.
"I don't know Mother. They seem to be good guys.
All of your claims about Flatteeth seem to have turned out to be lies." sang Ptero argumentatively.
"Very well I guess you'll have to learn.
Tell them the truth and watch how fast they turn.
We hunt them because they are cruel and not nice.
Ptero my son listen to my advice!
Flatteeth are selfish creatures that don't care for any other.
They could never replace your kind adoring, caring, amazing, fantastic, strong, loving mother!" sang Agatha.
"Ptero, here's a test. Tell them what you are. Once they figure it out, I trust they'll turn mean. Then you can fly off. You can get my help if you need it." said Agatha.
"All right." said Ptero. He felt nervous. He'd have to tell his friends. He needed to know.
Agatha smirked as she watched him fly out of sight. Sydo's friends had deserted him when he'd married her. These Flatteeth would do the same. Ptero would be crushed and he'd never question her again. Her secret, so dangerously close to be revealed, would be safe forever. Perhaps all of this would work out for the best for her.
"Oh Sydo you're going to lose.
The boy is going to fall for my ruse.
I remember what your so-called friends did to you.
These Flatteeth will do that to Ptero too.
Then this will be the last time he defies me. There will never be another.
He will become just like his mother!" sang Agatha, laughing and grinning.
Ptero, meanwhile, flew up to Littlefoot and his friends. They could all see that he was really nervous, as if something was really troubling him. "What the matter Ptero?" asked Petrie.
"I have something to tell you all." said Ptero.
"What is it?" asked Ducky.
Ptero was nervous. Finally, he said "Remember how I can do a good Sharp Beak impression , can fly really well, have great reflexes, and am so good at Sharptooth Attack?" he said.
"Yeah. That Sharp Beak call was great!" said Cera.
"You're the best at Sharptooth Attack!" said Littlefoot.
"You have really good reflexes. Yep, yep, yep, you sure do." said Ducky.
"Well, there's a reason for all of that." said Ptero very nervously.
"What?" asked Littlefoot.
Ptero trembled. Finally, he said "I am a Sharp Beak."