Category: Land before Time
Rating: T
Couples in Series: Littlefoot/Ali, Cera/OC, Ducky/OC, Petri/OC, Spike/OC
Couples in this installment: Petri/OC
Warnings: AU
Chapter: 3
Copyright: © characters and places by United Pictures; © Plot and OC by me
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The Bright Circle burned in the sky, only a soft gust giving some reprieve of the heat. Not a single Sky Puffie floated overhead. But Petrie paid the heat no mind, only 'waiting' on the white sand of the beach. He had managed to claim a piece of beach in the center of the flock, where – as his mother and uncle had told him – were the best spots. He had no time to see where his brothers were, having to focus on the females flying overhead.
He faintly saw his mother making slow circles higher up. They had talked long about it, but in the end he and his siblings had told her that if she wanted a new mate, they wouldn't mind.
His jaws started to hurt, but he ignored it. A particular gust of wind hit him as a Flyer landed in front of him.
The female was smaller than he, and with a beautiful dark-red shade. "Wanna fly?" She asked, tilting her head a bit and spreading her wings.
"Ladies first." Petrie smiled, watching as she took to the skies and following her. The Courting of Flyers was simple really. Most other dinosaurs had complicated dances or rituals, but not the Flyers. The female simply needed to know if the male would be loyal to the end. If he would risk his own health for hers or their hatchlings'.
Had any other Dinosaur been watching, he would have declared Flyers to be mad. He'd think they lost all sense of self-preservation.
They flew up, carried by the currents, Petrie following the dark-red female. They glided away from the general tumult above the beach and turned to the Big Water.
"My name is Rana." She introduced herself.
"I'm Petrie." He answered her, smiling. "Think this is high enough?"
She looked down, measuring the distance to the waves below. Then she nodded, grinning a bit. He grinned too, ignoring his thundering heart as he flew forward and then turned to meet her head-on.
Their claws locked in each other. The next thing he realized was that they were falling. Their wings folded at their sides nothing kept them aloft, sending the two crashing down to the blue expanse of the Big Water.
The wind howled in his ears and every instinct told him to let go and spread his wings to stop his descent. But that would mean giving up and Petrie would not give up. Rana looked at the white foam beneath them, then at him. She nodded.
They let go, breaking their descent just a Threehorn-height above the water. Petrie flew to Rana, running his beak along her spine.
"How about a little show?" He asked, grinning.
"Certainly." She smiled at him. They spend the rest of the midday flying around one another, cork-screwing down to the waves or just gliding on the currents.
The beach became empty as more and more flyers found their potential matches.
Petrie found a patch that was modestly private and invited Rana over.
"What would you prefer? Coming with me and what remains of my family, or have me join yours?" He asked, resting on the green grass.
"You'd actually leave your family?" She asked surprised. "I watched you yesterday and you were so close with them."
"Yeah." Petrie nodded. "But what kind of potential mate would I be if I just told you to come and not consider your feelings?"
"I'd like to come with you." Rana told him. "I don't have any proper family to return anyway."
"Oh, I'm sorry." Petrie apologized.
"They're not dead." She quickly assured him. "I just… don't have a good relationship with them."
"Well, I'm sure my mother will like you." Petrie smiled. "She and my uncle when probably beseech you to keep me out of trouble; they never quite forgave me for getting into many, many troubles when I was a hatchling."
"Your uncle?" Rana asked.
"The older flyer you must have seen yesterday too. My father is dead, killed be a Fast Biter." Petrie smiled wistfully. "I do not even remember him anymore. He died just a few Night Circle Changes after I and my siblings hatched."
"Oh…" Rana tilted her head. "You look a lot like your uncle."
"Yeah, I heard that quite often when growing up." Petrie grinned. "Littlefoot once wondered how it was possible I did."
"Littlefoot?" It did not sound like a name any sane parent would give their child.
"A friend of mine, a Longneck." Petrie grew amused at her face. "My friends are a bit… mixed in that regard."
"Okay…" She blinked a few times.
"All in due time I'd say." Petrie gestured to the forest. "Shall we go look for my family so you can meet them?"
"Yes." She agreed.
As he led the way into the sky, she turned to look to a spot further down the coastline. Then she followed him, not looking back to where her parents were.