Stories of the Valley

by Angelwriter84

Littlefoot and gang learn the stories of their loved ones and what they went through before finding the Great Valley. Hyp learns of his father's hardships and is affected by the story. Chomper's parents become the first sharpteeth in the valley, Pterano returns and finds his place in the valley, and more. But soon, old enemies arrive for revenge. Will they see a happy ending? Enjoy

6. Chapter 6: The Ghost of the Twin Peaks

…Hi everyone. Just to let you know, this chapter turned out to be longer than I expected, so I decided to wait until the next chapter to finish the full turn out of Pterano's return to the Great Valley. But we have Pterano here, so that you guys can see how he is doing. I'm sure you are worried for him and would like to see how he is doing.

There is a lot of important stuff in here you might find interesting/want to see for minor backstories, so if you might like to try to stick with the whole chapter. I apologize that it is so long. I actually decided to break this one up into another chapter. Hope you don't mind!

I won't keep you long because the chapter is long enough, but I want to thank you again for all the kind reviews, follow, and alerts and hope you enjoy engaging in the story. I hope to hear from you in regards to this chapter. Thanks again for the reviews and I am so glad to see that all of you are able to sympathize with the characters. Have a great week!...

Chapter 6 The Ghost of the Twin Peaks

Pterano

The journey to the Great Valley was long and trying. Physically. Mentally. Emotionally. Every way. There was no one to talk to, not for him. And somehow, he figured it would be the same if he did reach the Great Valley. For a moment, he wondered which was worse. Being isolated with no one to talk to, or being surrounded by happy families and still no one to talk to. They'll never understand….

The breeze was warm and humid, rushing about his wings as he effortlessly flapped them up and down, down and up, up and down, and down again. Usually Pterano never spared a thought toward the various patterns of flight. He knew them all on impulse. Some patterns were suited for strong winds, other for light wind…so many things a flyer could do on impulse that required a great deal of learning and experience.

Up and down, down and up, up and down, and down again. His thoughts unconsciously became the warm, soft spoken voice that once sent a whole group of friends tumbling at laughter of what the saying meant. Pterano closed his eyes a long moment before opening them again. The old rhyme that Tess had once used to teach her babies to fly caused him misery. His little nephews and nieces would laugh as they used to, but he couldn't. And the sky was that same perfect pink. Wonderful.

He flew on with a heavy heart. The Great Valley eventually came into view, but sights could fool a flyer. There was still a long way to go yet. Ever since he stretched his wings and started his journey that morning, he wondered if he shouldn't just land on the ground and wait for a sharptooth. If he weren't so afraid of them, he might. He knew he could never do that. But yet…he didn't know what he was anymore. If he couldn't be a husband to the one he loved, if he couldn't be a leader, if he couldn't be a being with magical power, then what was he? What was his purpose? Could there be anything left for him anymore?

Up and down, down and up, up and down, and down again…

…The whole class of young flyer slowly erupted into laughter at the sight of their teacher repeating the old hatchling's rhyme for stronger wings and flapping her wings as she broke it down for them. Tim, of course, had started it. Pterano just stared at the teacher, wondering what her reason was for basically insulting them. They were supposed to be taking some sort of test he had spent quite a lot of time preparing for.

Pterano could see Tim out of the corner of his eye, and narrowed them as he kept his eyes to the front because he knew his best friend well enough to know he was up to something. Tim was apparently taking it as an insult as well because it was a concept hatchlings could demonstrate. Tim waited until Britta sighed lightly and turned her head halfway to him as she tried to do a stretch the teacher wouldn't notice. Tim got her attention and made a humorous "duh" face that caught her off guard. The corners of Pterano's beak turned up slightly when Britta had to double over to muffle her chortle. Tess just managed to silence her giggle by putting a hand over her beak.

That did it, though. Pterano couldn't see Rinkus and Leah without turning his head, but Sierra and Jen were just in his field vision because they were just behind Tim and Tess. Jen had seen Tim and Britta and was trying to suppress her silent laughter by shyly burying her head in Sierra's shoulder. Hmm. Pterano might have offered Britta a shoulder, but he knew that would only make her laugh harder. Then it happened. Somebody snorted. It's all about chain reaction. Giggles began to float here and there until everyone was snickering. At some point, Sierra directed an obvious whistle at Tim, who smirked and shot him the "I know" look.

It was the kind of whistle that, in this situation, would say "that was a dumb thing to do". And it was, because their teacher noticed and stopped what she was doing.

"Tim, is there a problem?" Everyone held their breath for him. Ms. Ria, as they had always called her, liked Tim's good nature, but saw it as much her duty to correct him as he did to be a nuisance. Usually, he could reason with, or "sweet talk", her.

Tim sighed and lifted his head. "Mrs. Ria," his matter-of-fact tone set everyone back into giggles, "why are you telling us this? I got this herb test thing I prepared for when I could've been doing other stuff…."

"Like what?" Ms. Ria crossed her wings.

Tim looked toward Pterano out the corner of his eye for help, but Pterano gave a shrug. Tim just started naming things. "You know. Eating…sleeping…." More thought before catching sight of Tess. "Dating…"

Ms. Ria caught the error before everyone else and smile in amusement. "You put that in the same category?"

Tim's eyes open a little wider when he caught the damage as he turned to Tess. Now it was Pterano who chortled at the angry look his sister was shooting Tim.

Tim rushed to his love interest and tried to grab her hands as she turned away, pretending to be upset with him. All the females smirked because they apparently ran into this sort of thing with their love interests all the time, while all the males looked away awkwardly out of pity for Tim.

Pterano felt especially bad for Tim because he knew both him and Tess very well, and Tim would be devastated if he thought he hurt Tess' feelings. He looked to Britta, briefly remembering the time they got in an argument and he had made her cry. They made up right then, but he felt guilty for a week despite Britta's reassurances.

Since he didn't get her hands, he gently touched the bend in her arm. "Tess, baby, I'm sorry….you know I didn't mean it tha-"

Ms. Ria has triumphed, so she tried helping Tim out. "Is that the exact order of your list, Tim? Or did you speak falsely."

Tim got it and jumped excitedly. "Yes! I mean, no! Okay, Tess… You are the first thing on my like list. It goes Tess, food, sleep." He gestured with his hands for emphasis as he spoke, hoping to catch Tess' attention.

Jen, who was one of the few females who actually looked like she felt bad for Tim, tried to help out when she spoke to her friend in a soft tone. "See, Tess. Isn't that sweet? You're the first on his like list."

Tess turned back to Tim with a smile and grasped his hands. "I guess…."

Britta narrowed her eyes mischievously. She and Tim were apparently on bad terms over something simple like who got the last tree stare, so she felt little empathy for him as of now. "What about me? I help you study."

Pterano nudged her playfully with his beak. Tim, who had just relaxed at getting a brief hug from Tess, whirled around to snap at her. "I have a very long like list, but the point is Tess is at the top, okay?!"

When Ms. Ria finally called her class back to order and Tim finally began to sit down quietly, she asked him to remain standing.

Poor Tim was in torment. "Aw…Ms. Ria, I will be quiet during for up down, down up lesson…." A few others chuckled at his childish drawl.

Ms. Ria nodded and crossed her arms because her mind was already made up. "Yes, and you will be the example so that everyone will understand."

Pterano, feeling somewhat insulted that their teacher was reteaching them hatchling rhymes, spoke up politely. "Ms. Ria, might I ask why you felt lead to remind us of how to fly in the strong winds? I don't understand…we've known since…."

"You were hatchlings, yes. But I have seen almost all of you flying against the strong wing in the wrong pattern. You keep coming to our sessions worn out, and it bothers me that you aren't using your methods. That is why I am reminding you today."

Tim broke his promise upon feeling insulted. "Ms. Ria, the only reason we are tired is because the winds blow against us. Not because we don't know how to fly them."

Ms. Ria turned to Tim. "Yes, but the majority of you doesn't even realize that you let your technique slowly slip into a new one as you fly because you do not remember. I was just trying to remind you for your own good."

Tim crossed his wings, determined to deny this statement. "I don't come to sessions worn out because I know how to fly the winds." He wasn't being rude, just obnoxious at the most. But, as always, Pterano felt sure he would suffer for it somehow.

Ms. Ria only nodded. The kind of nod one gives just to get another to be quiet so they can get their point across. "Tim, are you familiar with the Ghost of the Twin Peaks?"

Everyone including Tim took a glance at the Twin Peaks, which were two tall peaks that stood right across from where their sessions met. The Twin Peaks were simply two tall pointed rock formations that stood right next to each other, going up and up until finally shaping into a sort of triangle. For some odd reason, however, there was an old tale that the ghost of an ancient flyer haunted the area between the peaks. If he deemed a flyer unworthy of passing through the peaks, which bore a strong wind current on breezy days, he would keep them from passing somehow. And this included a flyer who didn't know the correct flying patterns to navigate the day's winds.

It was a hatchling's tale, of course. No one would admit to believing the tale except for young hatchlings and the superstitious. It was only a tale used to encourage the young flyers to pass their first flying test, which was to sail through the pass applying the techniques they had learned to the kind of wind. It was a simple test, really. But yet, even nearly grown flyers their age avoided the pass by flying around it because it had a certain eerie feeling to it, like it belonged to someone else. And the wind currents flowing through the pass were much harder to fly than the wind outside of the pass. In a way, it was worth the extra few wing flaps to fly around.

Pterano caught a slight glint of hesitation in Tim's eyes before they melted back into determination again. He clenched his fists determinedly and stood up straight. Pterano shared a knowing look with Britta and Tess because anyone could see what Tim was getting himself into.

Tim sounded as confident and sure of his words as ever. "Psshhhttt…. Yes, I am. And if he was real, which he's not, he would be happy to let me pass because I know my flying patterns."

Ms. Ria gestured to the Twin Peaks. "Well, then…. Show your classmates what they are doing wrong."

Tim shrank back from the Twin Peaks at first, and then clenched his fists in determination once more. "Alright, I will."

He started to fly off the peak and then turned around with a look of uncertainty. "Aren't you going to bring everyone to watch, or…."

Ms. Ria stood up straight. "We can see just fine from here."

Tim hesitated. "Okay…." He looked over to Tess. "I'll be right back, baby!"

Tess crossed her arms and nodded to the peak. When Tim finally left to check out the pass, she turned to Ms. Ria. "The spirit of the pass is said to appear in a dark form, right?"

Pterano smirked at Britta because he knew exactly where this was going. Ms. Ria smiled knowingly. "Why…yes, Tess. I supposed it does. Why don't you fly low and keep to the shadows to make sure nothing happens to Tim. The wind should do the rest for you."

Tess looked over her shoulder. "Up down, down up for stronger winds?"

Ms. Ria looked proud. "That is correct."

Tess nodded and flew low to the ground using trees and foliage to hide herself from being spotted by Tim. Pterano, Britta, and some of the other young flyers knelt over the edge of the ledge to get a better view.

Tim had long reached the entrance to the pass and was flying back and forth, as if trying to decide whether or not it was safe to enter. Tess had reached the pass too. She had just managed to get past Tim while he was distracted and fly behind some stone within the pass. Britta, apparently having run out of patience, called out to him from over the ledge. "Are you going to go or not?"

Tim called something that sounded like "I'm practicing" over the winds, but Sierra didn't seem to fall for it, either. "Thought you didn't need practice!" he replied.

Tim shook his head and, at last, entered the pass with the strong winds. Within a few wing strokes of fighting against the winds of the pass, Tim was out of sync. He seemed to be doing taking the "down up, down up, down up" approach many of the younger flyers used which, to a near adult, would be tiring.

Just as Tim realized his error and was about to try to correct it, a dark shadow swooped beneath him. Tess used the flying technique and the wind to her advantage, and swooped under Tim in such a fast blur he would never even know what was there. Pterano dared to think that, if he were in Tim's place, she would have succeeded in scaring him too.

Tim reeled and tumbled in the wind currents, eyes widened in surprise and beak hanging open because he couldn't find his voice. Pterano put an arm around Britta, who was already starting to giggle. Tim spent some time clinging to the side of one of the peaks, frantically turning his head this way and that to look for "The Ghost of the Twin Peaks". In some ways, Pterano wanted to save him from something he would never be able to able to live down, but the outcome was looking like it would be too funny a memory to change.

After some time, the "ghost" made another swoop and just missed Tim's left side. Suddenly, he decided he had seen enough. They all erupted into snorts, snickers, and giggles when Tim leapt into action and scrambled against the side of the peak. The wing blew his wings in the opposite direction as he clawed along the side of the peak in an attempt to come out where he had entered from. Since he never got far anyway, he soon reached the entrance. Just before he could pull himself out of the entrance to take flight, a shadowed figure dove beneath him once more. And that was enough for Tim.

"OH, HECK NO!" He struggled to heave himself out of the strong winds of the pass and took flight as soon as he was free. "AAAAHHHHH!"

Everyone looked at one another in silence for a long moment because the "Great Tim" had the most surprising reaction. They were actually trying to decide on where to classify the pitch of the scream and Tim flew wildly back and forth in a panic. Pterano guessed it could be a male's scream, but it that was stretching it. Soon enough, everyone burst into laughter.

Tim didn't seem to know which way to go. He flew in a straight line from here to there. "AAAAHHHHH!"

He had flown past the entrance to the pass again, not even spotting his lover, who was now practically rolling on the ground in plain sight just outside the entrance to the pass.

Ms. Ria was the first to recover because the young hatchlings that were having class with their young teacher nearby were staring scene in bewilderment because, like they did with Pterano, they all adored Tim.

Ms. Ria decided that she had done her job for the day. "Alright class," she managed through small bursts of giggles.

"AAAAHHHH!" Tim had passed by again.

Ms. Ria had to stifle another laugh with her hand before continuing over the roaring class. "I believe we have done enough for the day. Class dismissed. Test postponed until the next session. Be mindful when you fly!" And then she flew to explain everything to the curious members of the herd who were watching nearby.

The class was still huddled on the edge of the ledge, unable to fly and still rolling over one another as they recovered from scene still taking place ahead of them. Pterano guessed he was one of the very few who had actually heard Ms. Ria because her was one of the very few who actually cared about the work of the sessions. Since the same teacher usually stayed with the same group of flyer until they had learned everything about surviving on their own, she had been with them since they were hatchlings. And, as much as they hated sessions at times, they couldn't deny that she was one of the best. Anyone, even Sierra, could see that she cared about the well-being of her students and would do anything to help them. Even humiliate a brave student to draw attention to the fact that, as bad as it sounded, they had been not been "mindful of their flying".

Pterano doubled over because his sides hurt. Just when everyone was starting to calm down, Tim flew by one more time without giving them a second glance. "AAAHHHH! AH! Ah….Aaaahhhh…"

The screams grew fainted because he had apparently decided which way to fly. Britta was the first to recover from her shock as everyone else stared.

"Really?" Pterano had to put his arms around her with a smile when she smirked. The two watched with their friends as her screaming brother flew for the horizon.

"…embarrassing! We are done. Oh, girl. It is over, we are so through!"

Everyone smirked at their partners as they all watched the stars from the favorite ledge downriver. Tess was giggling and shaking her head as Tim let her have it for scaring him. Sometime during his flight, Tim thought it might be best to go back for his family and friends, only to find the whole herd laughing jokingly when he returned. It had taken until sunset for Tim to gather that the "ghost" was the one he loved the most. So far, Pterano and Britta's special night had been spent listening to Tim's moping as they made their way to their place downriver. Almost to the point that Pterano wished he and Britta had come alone, which hardly ever crossed his mind.

Everything got much better when they reached the ledge, however. It was a ledge that was high enough above water to avoid predators and gave a perfect few of the water and the clear skies. It had been their spot since they found it as young adolescents. Pterano and Britta had come upon it when they used to go on hour long flights, attempting to get to know one another. Tim and Tess fell in love with that little ledge as well, so they all deemed it their spot. Pterano could recall so many fights, confessions, secrets, memories, laughs, cries, and make ups that had been shared in their spot.

Right now, it was looking like there would be one more "make up" tonight, but not with him and Britta. They had been so happy recently; so happy Pterano could hardly believe such happiness was real. Pterano grabbed both of Britta's hands in his to get her attention. Before either of them could say anything, Tim's angry, frantic voice interrupted their thoughts.

"…..sorry! Britta? Pterano!" Pterano cast a confused look at Britta because that was all he had heard.

When Britta just breathed laughter quietly and shook her head, Pterano hesitantly shifted his gaze to Tim. "Hmmm?"

"I said say you're sorry!"

Another confused glance at one another. Britta was the first to speak. "What for?"

Tim spread his wings in frustration. "For letting that happen at all!"

Britta kept eye contact with him. Pterano smiled at how spirited she could be when she wanted to. "We didn't do anything. You were the one talking back to Ms. Ria-"

"Oh, you didn't DO anything!" Tim paced around. "That's exactly it. Britta, how many times have I looked out for you? And Pterano…we are supposed to be buddies. You just let me lose my dignity back there!"

Pterano sighed, gave Britta a quick nuzzle, and stood to face Tim with a smile because he did have a point. Pterano could have helped him out, but he chose to let his friend learn the hard way. Now to face the consequences.

"Ah, Tim. Dignity is not lost through learning, as they say," he stated confidently with a smile.

"As Ms. Ria says! Don't give me any of that right now. I'm just looking for an apology here. I think you guys at least owe me that one. Tell me I'm wrong."

Pterano sighed. What was the quickest way to get out of this? He had it!

"No… You're right. I was wrong. Please forgive me." He threw his arms around his best friend in a dramatic, mocking way to make light of having to apologize.

Tim returned his hug as a gesture of forgiveness, but wasn't fooled. "Yeah, right. Okay, sure. You're forgiven."

Pterano knew very well he had been forgiven long before he apologized to Tim, so he wasn't listening. While hugging Tim, he gave his sister his best "this is how you make up with your boyfriend look" to tease her.

Tess gave him a cold stare because she knew he knew she was too stubborn for that kind of thing. "Kiss up," she stated begrudgingly as she crossed her arms so that he wings covered the majority of her tiny frame.

When Pterano left Tim to go back to Britta, Tim got on her case next. "Britta," he prompted.

Pterano gave her a look asking her to just get it over with and apologize so they could get back to their ruined date, but Britta was too stubborn for that too. She snickered and turned from dangling her feet over the edge to Tim. "You know we go you pretty good, right?"

Tess laughed and, as if on cue, the girls mimicked Tim with screams that were too high pitched to belong to them and fell into a fit of laughter. A few guffaws escaped Pterano just because it was funny.

Tim was obviously in the forgiveness stage, but was still not amused. "Yeah, you informed me already. I think an apology is in order now."

When Britta proceeded to ignore him and turn back to Pterano, Tim startled her. "Britta!"

Britta huffed dramatically and turned made eye contact with her brother once more. "Fine," she said begrudgingly, "sorry."

"You bet your wings!" As far as Tim was concerned, they were as forgiven as they could be for a flyer who had just been embarrassed in front of his herd.

Tim turned away so they could finally have some space, and shared a long hard look with Tess as he passed by.

Tess was the first to speak in her sarcastic tone. "Can we get back to our date now?"

Tim turned to her in a melodramatic fashion. "Oh, girl. We have to work this out on a whole other level. You know what? Talk to the wing." He spread a wing to keep her from approaching as he walked to the opposite corner of Pterano and Britta.

Pterano could tell his sister, like them, didn't think her lover was serious. She sighed, not moving from her perch on a small stone. "Tim."

"There's the wing!" Tim called. "Talk to it."

Tess sighed and rolled her eyes, making Pterano and Britta chuckle before leaving her perch to reason with her boyfriend of quite a while. Pterano never doubted for a moment that they could get through anything together, as they had loved each other since they were old enough to.

Pterano and Britta exchanged to knowing smile before he grabbed her hands once more. "Where were we?" he asked.

Britta didn't bother to try to recall. "Just start from the beginning."

Pterano thought a moment because he couldn't remember what he was going to say. "I don't remember if I had a beginning to be honest, dear."

Britta giggled warmly and nuzzled him before laying her head on his shoulder. Pterano wrapped one wing around her for warmth as they gazed across the horizon.

Behind them, Tess had gotten Tim to finally drop his act and laugh. He spun her around in a circle until the two became dizzy and tumbled to the ground in laughter. Pterano shook his head with a smile and spotted something familiar sailing through the skies.

"Britta! Britta. Look, dear." The pointed to the star falling from the sky.

Britta gasped in astonishment as she watched it fall from sight. After a few moments passed she bumped Pterano playfully under the beak with the top of hers. "Oh…" Pterano cooed, pretending to rub under his beak as if it hurt.

"Oh, pssshhhttt…." Britta rubbed under it roughly and Pterano turned his beak up to the sky to let her, like a hatchling that enjoyed the attention.

A slight poke to his side made him jump. Britta had poked his ticklish spot in the left side. Pterano retaliated by poking her in the ribs, which made her scrunch into a ball as a reflex. The two laughed aloud and embrace again. Britta abruptly shook his shoulder. "Pterano! Look. There goes another one."

They watched as the second star fell from sight. After a moment of silence, they looked into each other's eyes. Pterano was certain he could melt into those dark, midnight blue eyes. He caressed her cheek just as he found his words. "Do you remember…."

"When you first said you loved me?" Britta had guessed it. "How could I forget? We hadn't been seeing each other long…."

"And we decided to come here to watch the falling stars, and while you were watching them I…"

"St-" Britta broke into a fit of giggles and Pterano smiled because the memory was embarrassing, but couldn't be let go. Britta recovered and finished for him. "Started shaking like crazy and when I asked if you what was wrong, you just spat out that you loved me!"

Pterano crossed his arms when she didn't admit to her part in the story. "And if I recall correctly, my dear, you still asked if I was having some sort of fright attack or something."

"Well, I said I love you too when I made sure you were okay."

Pterano started to say something against her defense, but stopped when he realized she had a point. "True."

When Britta smiled and dropped her gaze to the ground shyly, Pterano lifted her face to look into his eyes. "I love you, Britta the Flyer."

Britta smiled and embraced him. "I love you too, mushball."

As the two of them nuzzled one another, a faint voice sounded from behind them. Tim and Tess had sprawled out in their corner to watch the stars and were eavesdropping.

"At least he remembers." Tess rolled onto her side to face Tim. "Hey Tim, do you remember when you told me you loved me."

Tim shot Pterano a quick look that told him he didn't remember and then turned his head to Tess before she could notice

"Yeah, I do…" Then his head popped up as if he had a bright idea. "You know, I think it was the first time we all saw each other after we'd just hatched….."

Tess swatted him as everyone laughed. Tim had gotten away with lack of knowledge again. Suddenly a greeting screech from another flyer startled them.

"Who do you think it is?" Britta held tight to Pterano because sometimes other flyers meant bad news.

"Sounds like Sierra." Tim left Tess' side and went to the end of the ledge to scan the horizon.

For a while, all was silent. Then Rinkus flew parallel to Tim. "BOO!"

That scared all of them. Pterano just managed to keep Britta from jumping over the ledge by accident while flinching himself. Tim threw himself backward and fell over the rock that Tess had been perched on earlier. Pterano realized that Tess had jumped and was clinging to his arm as well.

Pterano felt enraged. "Rinkus! You nearly made us fall."

Leah, Rinkus'….girlfriend by now, Pterano thought…..answered in his defense. "It was our idea… We didn't mean to startle you guys so badly." She giggled. "Are you okay?"

Sierra swooped down and hovered in the air above Tim. "Still on edge?"

Sierra and Tim were…somewhat friends…..because Tim and Britta lived near him and knew what he had to go through each day with his family. They were both usually somewhat courteous with Sierra. Though they never told Pterano or Tess much, they said enough. Pterano lacked the connection with Sierra that Tim had because, as different in nature as the two were, they were carefree and didn't really care about what other people thought.

But Sierra was apparently still not allowed to tease Tim in regards to the earlier. Tim sat bolt upright and scrambled to hands and knees. "Hey, shut up! You made me trip now. That hurt like a-"

Britta clamped her brother's beak shut with a hand and looked up at Sierra and Rinkus. "What brings you guys out here?"

Sierra landed and rubbed his shoulder, almost shyly. "Well, I was finally allowed to bring Jen on a date again, and….we decided to head a little further downriver. But she…."

"She got a little tired along the way." Leah gestured to what was an unseen Jen, perching on a tree branch just across the river. "Do you mind if she rests here a while?"

"Of course we don't mind!" Tess' response was heard over the immediate agreements of their group. Pterano gave her a cautious stare. She had very little patience for Rinkus and Sierra. When they just looked at her, she waved her hands toward the tree where Jen was perched. "Don't just leave her there. Go!"

When the three went to get Jen, Tess shook her head. "Idiots."

Now it was Pterano's turn to scold his sibling. He made eye contact with her. "Tess."

"What?" His sister's tone warned him not to press the issue.

Tim laid a hand on her shoulder. "Now, baby, they were just asking first. What's the harm in that?"

"She could have fallen!" Britta's gasping tone made everyone glance at her in surprise. "She gets so tired sometimes," she explained.

Tim and Pterano glanced across the river, where Sierra was gently helping Jen from the branch and encouraging her to fly just across the river. Tim glanced back at the two anxious females. "Well, she didn't. Sierra wouldn't leave her somewhere he thought she would fall, so let's drop it."

When Sierra, Rinkus, and Leah managed to Jen to the side of the ledge Pterano extended a hand and pulled her in. Jen was very frail and looked, right now, in bad shape. Britta and her mother had to help her at times. She stumbled and was forced to learn on Pterano and he helped her to where Britta was spreading out some leaves. "Bring her here," Britta gestured to the stone where they could lean Jen.

Jen tried to explain herself. "Sorry, I…I just had to…rest…."

"Of course, Jen. It's no inconvenience. We are glad to have you." Pterano smiled at Britta, who helped him lean an exhausted Jen against the stone. It wasn't an inconvenience, not for Jen. She was the possibly the sweetest flyer of their age. Everyone found it a shock when she and Sierra fell for one another. But she was one of Sierra's few, if not only, spot spots. He took care to watch over her and treated her as good as anyone would. So everyone eventually understood and admired their relationship because it was "such a sweet relationship every flyer wishes they had it", or so Pterano overhead Britta and Tess label it as they talked one day.

Sierra was now kneeling in front of Jen and grasped both her hands in his. "I…sure am sorry, Jen. I guess we should'a stayed a little closer to home, huh?"

Jen squeezed his hands as best as she could. "I felt fine earlier, Sierra. I thought I could….handle it."

Sierra smiled. "You n' handle anything."

While they were talking Pterano, Tess, and Tim all shared a glance with Britta. "What's wrong?" Tim mouthed the question because they were beginning to see something wasn't right. Jen was going out of consciousness too fast to just be tired.

Britta and Tess were good friends with Jen, and they began to worry right away. Pterano gently touched the tips of his talons on Britta's back because he was concerned himself. Something indeed wasn't right.

Britta seemed somewhat alarmed for someone who regularly helped her mother with Jen sometimes. It wasn't usual for Jen to be a little sick, but Britta usually handled it with care in calm way. Such as massaging the pain away from her joints while talking with her about casual things, or gathering a special kind of plant for her. Nothing that anyone made a big deal of for Jen's sake. The cause of her condition was, for the most part, unknown. All they knew was that she had gotten very sick as a hatchling, and had never quite recovered.

"Jen?" Britta shook the purple flyer's shoulder in an attempt to get her attention. When Jen didn't answer, she pushed Sierra aside in a panic and patted her face. "Jen? Jen! No no no…answer me. Stay awake. Jen!"

Sierra was taken aback by the dramatic turn of events and, for the first time, acted out of something other than mischievous teasing or hot tempered anger.

"Jen?" His voice sounded shaky and his yellow eyes grew wide. Tim held him back when he started to take a step forward.

Pterano found himself looking from one chaotic scene to another. Britta ignored Sierra and turned to him. "Pterano…"

Britta seldom sounded anxious, but he could hear that she needed some help. He wasn't a healer, but he knew the basic information they learned in their sessions.

Sierra was panicked now, and turned to Britta. "You're supposed to be a healer. Now you give her some medicine so she can wake up!"

Britta cringed when he managed to take another step forward even in Tim's grasp, but didn't leave Jen. Pterano held out a wing to block him from coming any closer in a threatening glare over his shoulder. "Step back, Sierra."

As he spoke, he realized that his threat had mingled with many others.

Tim pulled him back as many steps as he had come forward. "Get back, man. She's trying."

Tess' tone was more aggressive than bother Pterano and Tim's tones put together. "You better back up off her!"

Rinkus and Leah were more soft hearted, but helped Tim restrain Sierra all the same. Sierra seemed to realize both the error of his way and Jen's condition at the same time, and put a hand over his eyes for composure. Pterano would have guessed that he was trying to keep from crying, but had no time before Britta spoke up, ignoring the entire situation.

"Pterano," her low monotone voice told him she had been affected by Sierra's outburst, "Hold her up and keep her awake, please. She still opens her eyes when you pat her face."

Pterano might have let Sierra step in for that, but Jen's lover was in no condition to do so. He stepped behind her and supported her shoulder with one arms while patting her face with the other from time to time.

"Jen." He kept his voice gentle and clear as possible. When he patted her face, her brown eyes would flutter open and moment. Whenever they started to droop, Pterano would repeat the process. Meanwhile, Britta worked quickly. She checked for fever, signs of life, and signs of illness.

"Tess?" When Tess stepped forward, Britta gently passed Jen's hands into hers. "Rub her hands. Mother says it's important. As Tess did as she was told, Britta gave more orders over her shoulder.

"Someone go get my mom. Wake her and tell her what's happened. No time for Jen's parents. Go, now."

Tim turned to Rinkus and Leah. "You two go. You're both fast. Let me stay with Sierra."

Leah and Rinkus took off, leaving everyone struggling to keep Jen responsive. Pterano grew frantic when Jen's eyes opened less and less with each pat. "She's not responding, Britta."

Britta kept working frantically, but addressed Sierra as she worked. "Sierra, I know this is a shock, but I think you can help Jen because she is more likely to respond to your voice. You have to stay calm, though."

Sierra reluctantly nodded and knelt in front of his only love in Pterano's place. Pterano positioned himself her so he could support her while Sierra tried to keep her awake. When Tim was sure Sierra was calm enough to be left alone, he left to gather water in big leaves to bring to the ledge for their mother to use.

Pterano made sure to keep an eye on Sierra, and was surprised at how much calmer he was. But anyone could see how scared he was as he spoke to Jen. At some point, he managed to get her to make a noise. When she started to go out again, he gently patted and stroked her face. "What's that, Jen?"

Jen mumbled, almost inaudibly, but it was something. Pterano smiled when a ray of hope shone in Britta's eyes. But she kept doing all she knew to do.

Sometime later, Britta's mother sounded a screech in the sky and landed immediately. Tim followed close behind with his father and a second leaf filled with water, and Rinkus followed behind them with Leah. Britta's mother, an older reflective image of Britta herself, immediately gave Jen a kind of herb ground into powder. Jen startled at the bitterness and winced.

"Have her drink this." She filled a smaller leaf with water and passed it to Sierra, who held it to Jen's beak and tried to get her to drink.

Britta's mother turned to her daughter. "What is wrong with her?"

Britta's eyes suddenly welled with tears. "I don't know," she sobbed as she burst into tears.

Her mother's eyes softened because she understood. She laid a hand on Britta's cheek. "There there, dear. You've done the right thing. Go with Pterano a few moments and come back in a few minutes. Let Sierra take your place now, Pterano."

Pterano stood and led Britta to the further corner of the ledge and held her as she cried into his shoulder. He had a loss of words from the past events, and just held her as she cried.

After a few moments, Tim deemed himself useless for the moment and walked over to them. When Pterano pleaded for help with his eyes, Tim leaned close to his sister and spoke in low, comforting tones. "Jen's responding a little, Brit….. Mother says you did everything right. You could have saved her life, you know?"

"I didn't do anything to save her life." Britta leaned her cheek of Pterano's shoulder to face her brother.

Tim looked to Pterano now because he had little knowledge of healing and didn't care to. Pterano smiled and pulled back from Britta to look into her eyes. "You kept her responsive."

When Britta grabbed his hand, he continues. "You made sure to keep her blood flowing. As far as we are concerned you saved her life, dear."

"But what's wrong with her?" Britta's voice was shaking again.

Pterano looked to Tim, who hesitantly shrugged. "We don't know yet. Mother and father are going to try to wake her up so we can get her home. She says all we can do is keep a close watch over her for the next few days."

When Britta sniffed, Pterano nuzzled her and took her by the hands. "Come, dear."

Jen somehow managed to stay awake long enough to support herself as Sierra flew her on his back to the home of Britta's family. Soon after they settled her in, Jen's family received the news of their daughter and came right away.

By now, everyone was too exhausted to keep track of her family's reaction to everything. Britta had helped all she could, and had been guided back to Pterano by her mother. As soon as Pterano put a wing around her and pulled her to rest her head on his chest, she dozed off. Tess had fallen asleep in Tim's lap as well, leaving him and Pterano the only ones awake.

Tim cast a sad, knowing look at Pterano when he was sure the two were asleep. "Maybe you can ask her next time, man."

Pterano looked down at his sleeping love and grasped one of her hands with his free one. Britta was shaken, and would never do anything to make it worse. Pterano responded in a soft tone as he watched her draw a shaky breath in her sleep. "We shall see. Perhaps another time." …

… Pterano shook his head to clear the memory and winced against the setting Bright Circle that had suddenly turned the sky orange without him noticing. When he realized where he was, he used the next breeze to glide low over the Great Valley. He soared about, managing to stay unseen as he examined the land he had not seen in many cold times. The land where the only thing he had left for now awaited him; his family. He sped up when he spotted old Threehorn watching over a pink baby threehorn. Don't tell me he had more children….?

Pterano shuddered and was careful to remain unseen as he passed the empty nest where his sister raised her children. He wasn't ready to face them just yet. He wanted Petrie to see the strong, confident uncle he had known before and….Pterano just didn't feel capable of that right now. Perhaps a little rest might help.

He nearly lost his nerve when he spotted Mr. Longneck grazing in the waters with his wife. Pterano never wanted to disturb their peace because, unlike Threehorn, the longnecks were kind. But he wouldn't be allowed to land in the valley until he announced his return. Better sooner than later. Pterano sighed, drew a deep breath, and landed on a nearby branch still searching for words.

They spotted him at the same time, and he felt his heart drop at the look in their eyes. He couldn't even read their expressions. Was it dread, surprise, realization that a predication had come to pass? He didn't know, but it was his place to say something.

"Mr. and Mrs. Longneck, good day to you."

When they nodded without saying anything, he decided to go ahead and take care of business. "I was only wondering if I should come before to council to announce my return?"

The elder couple tilted their heads at something with confused expression. Pterano was fairly certain it was his voice. He must at least sound more timid and quieter than they remembered. The truth was that Pterano would have to regain his voice because it was never used much. He had spoken with other dinosaurs, that much was sure, but not every day. How had he not gone crazy? Or had he? Was it that obvious?

The longnecks didn't seem threatened, only cautious, which for some strange reason brought him relief. Mr. Longneck was the first to speak. "Yes..." he stated cautiously before turning away, "I will…ahem….gather the others and come get you when they are ready."

When Pterano watched him go with a hesitant expression, his Mrs. Longneck answered the question her husband forgot. "It would be better to remain nearby and close to the trees.

Pterano thanked her and turned to take a few of the greenest tree stars he had ever seen. He had only eaten a few when his sister landed in front of Mrs. Longneck unexpectedly.

"Grandma Longneck, I was only wondering if Petrie was still staying with Little-" she trailed off with her beak slightly open because she had seen him. Pterano stared back a moment before gliding down and landing in front of her, almost involuntarily.

When she said nothing, he tried to gather his words in a soft, timid voice to show her he meant no harm. "Tess, I…"

He stiffened when gently wrapped her wings around him in a hug. It was as if she thought he were frail, or something. He gradually returned her hug, still surprised that she would even look at him after parting with him on such bad terms.

He noticed a slight smile on Mrs. Longneck's face before pulling back and making eye contact with his little sister for the first time. "Pterano," she spoke softly, "It's good to see you."

Pterano was taken aback because he was sure her voice would at least have an edge to it, as it had to last time he visited the Great Valley. He wondered if something had happened. "It's good to see you, Tess. Thank you."

Tess rubbed her shoulder, searching for words. "You, ah, look terrible."

Pterano flinched and took a glance at his reflection in the water. He really did. He had lost much of the weight that kept him strong, and he looked pale. Pterano sighed, and startled when Tess splashed water into his tired looking eyes. He sputtered as he wiped the droplet from his face, feeling insulted. "Well, I managed to at least keep clean, Tess!"

He thought he saw her smile a little. "Petrie…will be thrilled to see you."

Pterano spread his hands in confusion. "You would let me see him?"

"I think he would find you sooner or later, so there's no use in trying to keep him away. He's missed you. All the children have."

Pterano was touched…and confused. "But why would they?"

Tess didn't seem to have an answer herself, but gave her guess. "Because you are all the family we have. And they love you."

Pterano sighed and glared at the reflection in the river once more. "I was hoping they wouldn't see me like this."

Tess thought a moment. "I don't think….that will matter to them."

It matters to me. Before they could say anything else, a dark brown blur tackled him.

He just managed to catch his nephew as he stumbled back a few steps and fell into the water. Water!

Lucky for him, they were close enough to the shore for the water to be shallow. He thrashed around until he found his footing and leapt from the cool water, drawing deep breaths on his hands and knees. Tess and Mrs. Longneck were laughing, and Petrie was still clinging to his arm as if nothing had happened. Could they not see they almost drowned? Yes, I have a lot of strength to regain.

"Uncle Pterano!" Petrie was blubbering with joy. "Me knew you come back!"

Pterano sighed and cupped both hands under his nephew and nuzzled him with his beak. "Petrie…"

Petrie finally pulled back and looked him from head to toe a few times before turning to him with an indifferent expression before looking him in the eyes again. "You lose weight," he proclaimed.

Pterano directed an exasperated sighed at his sister before smiling at Petrie. "Still easily distracted, are we?"

Petrie didn't listening because he was watching his mother. Pterano caught her signaling to Petrie out the corner of his eye, but couldn't tell what she meant because she moved too fast. Had she told his to be quiet? Why?

Suddenly, Petrie turned to him with a blank look. "What?"

Pterano pretended to go along with it and chuckled before being caught by the surprise of Mr. Longneck's voice. "Pterano, we are ready for you."

…..Gosh! Sorry for the long chapter. I decided this was a good place to stop and pick up next time because this chapter already has a lot. Enjoy and hope to hear from you. Oh, and sorry for any mechanical errors. I hope to fix them sometime. Until next time!...