MEETING THE HERD
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Scooting back on his backside Gus was alarmed by the dinosaurs that stood before him. In fact, they towered over him. Lost for words and unable to speak, Gus did the thing only a seven year-old could do; he dived for cover.
He jumped into a bramble bush and ducked down into it as best he could.
But that didn't deter the dinosaurs from finding him.
Gus felt the brush around him shake. Then he felt something suddenly grab him by the seat of his shorts, lifting him bodily up and out the bramble bush.
"Ahh!" Gus screamed, flailing his arms. "Put me down! Let go of me! Stop that!"
Gus's whole body was lifted into the air and dangled like a doll. When he saw how high he was though, he stopped struggling.
"Come now," said a gentle female voice close to him. "We won't hurt you."
Gus lifted his head in surprise. The one who spoke was the dinosaur. But that was impossible. Dinosaurs couldn't talk.
"D-d-did you just say that?" he said, straining his head to look back at the Apatosaur.
"Of course I did," said the dinosaur again in her gentle voice, though she said it through clenched teeth. "Now, I'm going to put you down, little one."
Gus was lowered back down and gently released by the dinosaur. He stood up, dusted himself off, and readjusted his shorts. When he finished he stood back so that he could get a good look at the dinosaurs. In his dinosaur book back home he'd read about these sort of dinosaurs with long necks. They were called Apatosaurs. He knew that they weren't Brontosaurs because they were not shaped right.
The two other dinosaurs now bent down to smell Gus. Their massive forms towered above him, but he tried not to cringe. With them was a young Apatosaur who was just as curious. All three of them examined Gus, taking in his appearance and odd skin-coverings.
Gus shrunk back a little. They were big, but he tried not to show that he was afraid. These dinosaurs didn't look or acted scary like in his book.
The young Apatosaur came up to Gus and began to circle him, eyeing him curiously.
Gus noticed that he and the young dinosaur were almost the same height, if it weren't for the neck. But the dinosaur's head was just a few inches taller then his own forehead.
The little dinosaur nudged Gus in the belly, tugged at his hair and smelled him all over. This made Gus giggle a little, and also feel a little uncomfortable as well.
"W-what are you?" the little Apatosaur asked as he stood back with his family. "and who are you?"
Having no other choice, and because they seemed nice enough, Gus told them.
"My name is Gus," he said in a small voice that didn't sound big. "and I'm a human."
The elder Apatosaur was a little puzzled. "A human?" he said, his deep voice sounding like an old man. "I never heard of such a creature before."
"Quite so," said the other elder Apatosaur who's voice was like an old grandma.
"Are you all alone out here by yourself?" asked the mother Apatosaur as she bent her head down to Gus's level.
Gus nodded and there was a slight panic to his voice. "I got separated from my parents and little sister, Rosie. I don't know how to get back to them. I don't know what I should do."
Feeling sorry for himself, Gus sat down, hugged his knees and whimpered. It was sort of the truth. He really didn't know how he was going to get home. Or if he was ever going to see his family again.
The mother Apatosaur gently nudged Gus so that he looked up into her gentle eyes.
"Don't be sad, little one," she said. "why don't you come along with us."
"Really?" Gus said, looking a little more hopeful. "I can come with you? To where?"
"Why, to the Great Valley of course!" said the young Apatosaur. "That's where all the herds are going."
Gus gave it some thought. It was best that he did go with them. After all, this valley could have a lot of Star-leafs in it. And this prehistoric world he was in was probably swimming with meat-eaters. He shivered a little at the thought of meeting up with some monster in the night that could eat him. Going off on his own was stupid. He had no idea where he was. He could get, if he already was, more lost. This world was not Central Park or New York city.
Beside, these dinosaurs could protect him. And they were friendly too. Plus they knew where they were going. He didn't. Being with them would be safer.
"I think I'll tag along with you guys," said Gus softly.
"All right!" exclaimed the young Apatosaur with happiness. "By the way, my name is Littlefoot."
Gus stifled a giggle. What kind of name was that for a dinosaur? But then again not every dinosaur could be called Stanley or Rosie, could they?
After Gus retrieved his Radio Flyer wagon, a truly interesting contraption to the dinosaurs that had never seen anything like it, the small group continued on their journey westward.
Gus was offered a ride on Mama Apatosaur's back and the backs of either Grandma and Grandpa, but he decided not to. The height of the dinosaurs made him a little frightened of falling off. But he did find a solution with the help of Littlefoot. Instead of him pulling his wagon, Littlefoot would pull it with him in it. All he had to do was wrap his tail 'round the handlebar and that was that.
As they set off toward the setting sun Gus was both thrilled and overawed to be traveling with an actual dinosaur herd. The Apatosaur's legs were huge pillars and they didn't walk clumsily at all. They were graceful and moved like a herd of elephants would.
Littlefoot traveled within the shadow of his mother. Grandpa and Grandma brought up the rear. Gus sat in his wagon with his backpack and with Littlefoot's Star-leaf. Though it was called a Tree star to the dinosaurs. He didn't much care if it was called that just as long as he could use it to get home. Speaking of which, Gus decided it was best to keep his green thumb a secret for now. Littlefoot had already bombarded him with a lot of questions about where he came from and what-not. The last thing that would make things really confusing was explaining magical green thumbs and trolls to the young dinosaur.
Gus decided he wanted to know what happened to the land and all of the greenery around them, just to change the subject a little. He always imagined the world of the dinosaurs with a lot of jungles and forests with towering trees with plenty of leafy greens. The trees that they now went by barely had anything on them that was edible.
"The land has been changing," answered Mama Apatosaur. "That is why my family have been walking each day so we can reach the Great Valley."
"What's so great about this valley-place anyway?" asked Gus.
Mama Apatosaur chuckled and told him. "The Great Valley is filled with green-food, just like the Tree star Littlefoot has. More than a herd could ever eat, and fresh cool water. It is a wonderful, beautiful place where we can live safely and happily with many more of our own kind."
Littlefoot turned to Gus. "Mother told me the same thing yesterday." he said.
"So when do we get there?" asked Gus. The chance of getting to this place soon had crossed his mind.
Littlefoot said, "We have to follow the bright circle. It will pass over us many times, and we have to go where it touches the ground each day."
Littlefoot's mother turned her head and smiled. Her son was learning.
But Gus didn't smile at this. He thought that what Littlefoot just told him was vague. What if the five of them were going the wrong way or worse?
But there was nothing he could do about it. He would have to put his trust in this dinosaur herd to get home. And back to his family.
The red setting sun, or bright circle as it was called, told the herd that night was coming and that it was about time to find a place for the night to sleep. Gus was all for it. The wagon ride wasn't as smooth as he had thought it would be since the ground had a lot of bumps, holes, and the unpleasant rock or two. Even Littlefoot seemed tired of pulling the wagon around. His tail needed a rest.
The herd had found a nice place to sleep for the night. Well, nice for them at least. It was a glen with plenty of shade near a swamp. The Apatosaurs fed on reeds, a few leaves that were still on branches, and Gus ate one of his sandwiches that was packed in his backpack by his mother. He didn't eat one of the apples because he wanted to save them for later. His juice-box was next. He drank it down all in one go, knowing that he'd probably should have drank it slower. But he was thirsty and the wet, sugary fruit juice was refreshing.
When he had finished he heard Littlefoot give out a tired yawn. Gus yawned as well. Both kids needed a good nights sleep.
Littlefoot clambered onto his mother's neck and nestled himself near to her head, using his tree star as a pillow. Gus had decided to sleep on Mama Apatosaur's back, just at the base of her neck and shoulders. It wasn't as comfortable as his race car bed back home, but it was better than nothing.
The dinosaurs, much to Gus's surprise, sort of slept standing up. Mama was leaning her large body against a pair of trees, placing her head on her father's broad back. Grandma and Grandpa both took a large boulder as their sleeping spot to rest their heads.
As the dinosaurs slept Gus remained awake. His thoughts were on his family and he couldn't help but wonder if he was being missed. His mom and dad would be frantic with worry, that much he knew. And poor Rosie was probably crying her eyes out.
He sniffled but held back his tears. He rubbed his nose with the back of his hand and looked at his thumb. It hadn't glowed even after he had snapped his fingers.
"It's the real world now, Gus," he said to himself as he yawned. "Just as well to get use to it."
Somehow he had to get to the Great valley.
The herd, Littlefoot's family, were his only hope.
He yawned once more, placed his head on his backpack, and drifted off to sleep.
It would be another three hours before the sun was truly up.
But hours didn't matter to a kid with a full bladder!
Gus awoke, feeling like he was about to burst. He quickly scrambled down mama Apatosaur's back and slid down her tail. He nearly tripped over his wagon as he made a mad-dash to the nearest bush.
Though he was still a bit groggy from sleep, and a little tired, Gus was able to relieve himself.
After he was done he went back to the Apatosaurs, feeling much better. But when he got there he saw that Littlefoot was also awake. The young dinosaur was following after what appeared to be a frog of some kind. Curious, as well as concerned, Gus hurried after him.
He soon found Littlefoot in a cluster of rocks that led into a decaying hollow-tree.
"Littlefoot, what are you doing?" Gus called to him. He was uneasy with the fact that they both had wondered away from the herd.
"I'm following after that hopper," Littlefoot replied as he climbed up and into the tree. He called after it, "Hey hopper come back!"
Gus looked around nervously before joining him. This was not such a good idea. And deep down he knew that something bad was going to happen.
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Important note: Yes, I know Gus is a new kind of creature, so the rules do not apply to him. Plus, Mama and the others can plainly see that Gus is a child and lost alone.
