Chapter 4: Dawn of a new lifeA few days later, the adult longneck was still with Shorty and the hatchlings. They had been making good progress on their path, however it was a mostly quiet journey, both the adult and the child keeping to themselves, only the hatchlings occasionally crying or playing. Somewhere deep inside Shorty was really glad not having to watch over them himself now but still that grown-up longneck puzzled him. He may have told him briefly what he was doing out here all alone but it still raised suspicions in the young boy.
The day was reaching its peak and the heat was particularly excruciating that day with not a single cloud on the sky. The adult was walking at a whole different speed than what he had been journeying at with the hatchlings. He carried the smaller children most of the time since they were no match for his speed but Shorty was sturdy enough to keep up if he walked fast. As the day progressed, his legs had gone more and more tired and his walk was slumping more and more, his breath going at a noticeable speed. They weren't taking any breaks while walking uphill, about to reach the peak of the mountains they had to cross in order to reach better lands, and slowly but surely Shorty was reaching his limit... not that he'd ever admit such a thing. His exhaustion wasn't lost on the brown longneck and when Shorty started lagging behind, he decided to stop and bring it up, though quite aware of the little boy's distrust and pride.
"If the walk is too hard on you, I can carry you for a while too," he spoke casually, sending a look of understanding in the little child's direction. Shorty, though, sent a gruff glare back.
"Thanks, but I'm not a weak hatchling anymore. I'm fine!"
"Well, I'm not gonna slow down so you gotta keep up with me," the adult explained calmly. "If we get down these mountains before dusk, there's a chance we'll get a refreshing drink or even a meal today."
As much as Shorty wanted to rest, his pride and his life-long goal to be the strongest and the best at everything kept him from saying that out loud. Moreover, the thought of riding on a stranger who he hardly knew and trusted even less gave him chills. Heck, he didn't even know his name though, to be fair, he hadn't let the stranger on about his name either.
"I'll be honest," Shorty suddenly announced sharply, deciding to bring his misgivings to the surface. "I might not be able to... keep your speed - I'm much smaller after all, it's no fair!"
"Did you consider this a challenge? A competition?" the adult interrupted wondering, trying hard to remain serious and neutral but he couldn't help but chuckle slightly at the boy's antics which reminded him so much of his younger self.
"S-sorta, I guess..." Shorty shrugged, seeing the knowing glance of the adult but decided not to give it any thought. "Anyway, to be honest, I still don't feel comfortable around you."
"Blunt but honest..." the stranger mused, again recognizing himself in the little boy.
"For starters, you never told me your name, stranger."
"Neither did you tell me yours or the names of the little ones up here," the grown up replied, raising one eyebrow. "Well, let's get that of the way shall we? They call me Bron." Bron offered a friendly smile which was met by the boy's squinted glare.
"I'm Shorty... but don't you dare..."
"No worries, I'm too old for teasing people's names. One can only muse what some dinosaurs are thinking when naming their offspring sometimes." Bron mused. Hadn't he given his only son his silly childhood nickname?
"So, how about it, Shorty? Feeling a little less strange around me?"
"Not really," Shorty spoke a little coldly. Bron looked slightly disappointed.
"Kid, I don't know what you've been through before and I'm not gonna ask but it's not very convenient to be distrusting of those you travel with. I guarantee you I wouldn't bother to put up with you and the little ones if I didn't have something to gain. These years have been very lonely and it feels good being able to help someone." Bron's expression changed into a friendly smile.
"Don't worry, I don't bite. You can talk about anything." Bron cast a glance ahead of their way. "But we've gotta get going again for now so what about it now? Need a lift or not? It's no problem for me..."
Shorty pondered hard, torn between taking the offer and getting a little respite from the tiresome ascent and keeping his pride. In the back of his mind, he also hadn't forgotten his father's words. But Bron was acting rather kind and, slowly, the boy began to believe him more than his father.
"Only 'till we've reached the top..." Shorty eventually gave in reluctantly. As he allowed the adult to lift him using his tail, he added. "But don't think I'm doing this because I'm too weak to carry on, that's not it!"
"Alright," Bron exclaimed. "Let's get this over with, this is good exercise!"And with that he entered a pace Shorty would have never been able to keep up with even if he jogged along. Shorty noticed the change of attitude in the adult who was now far more outgoing and lively. Admittedly, it didn't support his objections against him at all and it was getting harder to sustain them. It was even kind of a cool feeling just being carried around like that. He'd had to walk himself wherever his family had been going for as long as he remembered.
Bron reached the top soon, allowing Shorty who was now in much better shape to continue the trek on his own. And their long necks perked up when they saw the distant river, clearly carrying less water than during better times but supplying some green here and there along its path.
"It's worse than I remember but better than I feared. Let's head for that small pond right at the base of the mountains," Bron suggested, leading the children to their first food in several days. By the time they arrived, the sky was slowly switching to its evening palette.
The pond was small but its water was clean and not too warm. Greedily they drank, the water moistening their dry throats. Then they turned their attention to a few dozen trees that were growing in the vicinity. Bron took a few bites out of the greenest they could find, dropping the food on the ground for the children to eat. Nobody said anything as they ate many days worth of food - the only way to restore their strength even if it put a strain on their stomachs. Eventually, the last light of the day slowly fading, they were all stuffed and tired, the hatchlings soon sleeping tight as Bron was watching over them with a slight smile. It was a sight he'd wanted to see for years, although the fact that he wasn't watching his own son sleep somehow didn't sit well with him. The adult longneck's glance wandered a short distance away to the spot Shorty had chosen for the night - it seemed that the boy was rather reclusive. However, when he looked his way, Bron couldn't see him.
"Hmm, did he give me the slip?" The grown-up pondered about this. Maybe this boy was only looking for someone to take care of the hatchlings because he couldn't take care of them himself? Then again, he was awfully lost and probably wouldn't get very far before he'd perish one way or another. Even though he'd never admit it, obviously, Bron just couldn't believe that so he started scanning the area for any signs of the green coloured boy, only the light of the Night Circle supporting him in his quest. And indeed, just a little further away, perching on a rock, he found the child.
"Probably can't sleep either tonight..." the grown-up mused, quietly getting to his feet and sneaking closer to the boy on silent toes - well, as silent as a longneck of his size could operate, after making sure that all hatchlings were sound asleep. Chances were the boy would reject his attempt to talk again but just perhaps this was the perfect time to approach the boy...
"Hey Shorty," he spoke quietly after making sure for his arrival to be heard lest to startle the boy. Shorty didn't turn his face towards him so it was impossible to tell his reaction but his initial response wasn't hostile.
"Hi..." Shorty flinched when he noticed that his new caretaker had figured out that he wasn't at his designated sleeping spot. Would he have to expect punishment? His father would have never allowed such a thing and although Bron didn't seem like the strict type, just his size and muscular build gave him a bit of a familiar resemblance.
"What'cha doing?" Bron asked mildly curious. "I'm not trying to intrude but you really should be resting. I never stay anywhere, you see, and surely you don't want me to carry you again, do you?" A glint of youthful mirth appeared on the adult longneck's face.
"Or course not," the boy answered though not retorting as Bron would have expected. "I couldn't sleep. Sometimes that happens when I have things on my mind. Looking at the blinky lights and the Night Circle helps me think so I went somewhere you can see them clearly."
Bron tilted his head slightly as he listened. He actually knew exactly what the boy was going through, having seen many of these moments during his lonely search whenever his conscience had caught up to him.
"Are you mad? I should've told you I guess..."
"Hey, remember I'm not a parent to you or anything, just happen to have an eye on you kids so maybe one day you can find a place to call home or a herd to belong to. Maybe even a family. It'd only be fair to be given that chance rather than meeting a likely end.”
At this, Shorty visibly relaxed, all tension falling from the child.
“Gee, thanks… I guess?” Shorty muttered awkwardly.
“So looking at the blinky lights, are we?” Bron picked up the conversation again. “Hatchlings are sleeping so... if you don’t mind…” A questioning smile underlined his unspoken request. Shorty understood and, to his surprise, nodded.
“Sure… since we’re now travelling together and all… there’s something I’ve been curious about anyway…”
“Same here, same here…” Bron admitted as he took a seat next to the boy. “First of all, do these hatchlings have names to go by? They’re too young to talk, can’t be older than a season, maybe.”
“Dunno, I just gave them nicknames based on how they look and act…” Shorty answered, shrugging. “No clue what their actual names are… the black girl for example, I call her Shadow because she looks so ugly…”
“Not very nice, are you?” Bron chuckled while Shorty merely shrugged. “If it’s okay to ask… how’d you come to care for them, being only a child yourself?”
“Only?” the green longneck snorted, “Well, I sorta ran into them. They were all alone and began following me. Had no clue what to do with them half of the time but it sorta worked out until now.” It wasn’t the full truth but Shorty really didn’t feel like telling how it really happened…
“Fair enough,” Bron acknowledged. “Although you really don’t seem like the type of dinosaur to be selfless like that…”
“Well, they are orphans too,” Shorty pointed out. “Just didn’t feel right.”
“Yes, I completely understand… for I have agreed to travel with you for no other reason than that…” Bron suddenly became very contemplative and Shorty also seemed to be reminded of something unpleasant.
“Hmm, how about it, Shorty? I’d like to know a little more about you and I think same goes to you. Seeing unspoken questions on your lips there.”
“Mhm… yeah,” Shorty admitted reluctantly.
“Still doubting me?” Bron inquired though with an understanding look. “I can understand and maybe I’ll be able to understand you even better once I’ve learned about your background.”
“My background?” Shorty wondered.
“Well, yeah. Things you’ve been up to before you became an orphan… some info about your folks, your family.” When Shorty gave him an odd look, Bron quickly added. “I will tell you more about me as well, let’s be fair there.” A quick twinkle of his eye took the hesitation out of the boy.
“Oh alright… I guess it doesn’t hurt… not too much,” Shorty sighed, giving in reluctantly. “But you go first.”
“Can be arranged,” Bron replied. “Let’s see… where do I start?” Truth be told, Bron had met so many dinosaurs on his journey whom he’d tell his story in order to get information which almost nobody possessed - how could they after all, the world was so big that even the oldest farwalker hadn’t seen it all, that he knew all the words by heart but time and again it hurt so much to go through these darkest moments of his life again…
“So, I already told you I had a family once. A mate… and an egg that would hatch eventually. Together with my parents in law, we were a family.”
“Sorry to interrupt…” Shorty spoke up but he had a burning question on his mind. “What are parents in law? I’ve never heard my dad using that term…”
“No worries, I’ll explain,” Bron stated kindly. “It’s what you call the parents of your mate, of your partner who you chose to be together with. Not many are living with their in-laws since every so often children leave their families when they find a partner for life or explore the world when they’re grown up. Or, simply put, some just don’t survive long enough to witness the hatching of their grandchildren. Does that explain it?”
“Yeah, I think I’ve understood, thanks,” Shorty spoke, continuing to listen to the adult with mild interest.
“So, a family we were. My mate and I already settled on a name for the only egg that came out intact, prospering. If you’re curious, we called him ‘Littlefoot’.”
“That’s a silly name,” Shorty couldn’t stop himself from chuckling. “Though, to be fair, mine ain’t any better.”
“Well, especially my mate thought it was a cute name so I gave in.” Bron smiled. “Anyway, look around us. The drought isn’t just chasing us here, it seems to reach as far as word can spread. My family knew that Littlefoot wouldn’t be able to grow up nicely in the environment we lived in which was suffering under the drought just as much as this place. Migrating with a hatchling to lands unknown seemed too risky for us so I offered to go on a long journey to find us all a new home.”
“Have you found such a place?” Shorty inquired with some curiosity.
“I regret to say this but… I haven’t.” Bron frowned. “Even during these years wandering about, even though I was looking for a specific place rumoured to exist far away in the west where the Bright Circle leaves the sky each day… I never found what they call ‘The Great Valley’ nor any similar place that might sustain my family in the long run. But having walked so far, I didn’t want to return without having accomplished something so I kept on searching. Everywhere I was going, the land was changing, the drought advancing, fear and despair spreading. It took very long until I realized how much time had passed and that I’d been gone for more than two full season cycles. Took me many more seasons to find my way back to lands that I’d been to before and even then I lost my way many times. When I finally found the place we used to live at, all that greeted me was a crack in the ground as wide as the broadest rivers and deeper than the eye could see. As I learned later, a terrible eathshake unlike anything anyone had ever seen split the land in half just where we used to live. That crack stretched on much farther than the most distant mountains and there was no way to get across. I doubted that my family would have waited all these years for me so I started walking into the direction my mate said she’d be going if ever something forced them to leave before I could reunite with them. So I began to follow the Bright Circle to the place she touches down each day, asking anyone I could find about their whereabouts. After a while, I got a few clues and changed my course. It still took me many many night circle cycles until I finally found someone who knew…” Bron’s neutral narration suddenly took a sharp turn when emotions meddled with his voice.
“Knew what?” Shorty immediately caught a touch of anger and grief, assuming that he was about to learn about a tragedy. Oh how right he was.
“That day I learned the terrible truth!” Shorty wasn’t sure whether grief or anger were stronger in the brown longneck but he decided not to interrupt him for now, unsure about how he might react.
“They must have walked very far from our home by then because so had I. The stranger gave me directions, apparently just a few days of travel until I’d reach the dreaded crack in the ground that spread even to places so far away. And before I went, he told me what had transpired there only a mere season ago… after hearing that I… I wasn’t sure whether I wanted to go anymore…”
“What did he tell you?” Shorty asked carefully.
“On the day that the earthshake struck, a gigantic Sharptooth appeared, chasing Littlefoot. I was glad to hear he had survived for so long but…” Bron was struggling to go on. “His mother, she… she died trying to defend him. As they fought, the earthshake happened. She was injured but, according to the eye witness I met, she did save Littlefoot, pushing the Sharptooth into the abyss when it was forming. But… she had obtained a terrible injury during the fight and… she died…”
“Oh no… I’m sorry to hear that, Bron…” Shorty immediately stated as Bron regained his composure.
“Thank you, although I’m used to dinosaurs not caring… So, Littlefoot was saved but nobody had seen him again either. Did he end up perishing in the earthshake? Did he remain with his mother until some other sharpteeth found the corpse… or did he bravely wander all alone to find his grandparents who had apparently survived, though they were on the other side of the crack that split the lands? I really don’t know what to believe, Shorty, but unless I hear otherwise… he might very well be alive, wandering around like you did, all alone. I have to find him if he’s still there somewhere…”
“But where? He could be anywhere!” Shorty realized.
“Or dead… if he died alone, nobody will ever know… Shorty, I don’t know how long I should keep this up…” Deep regret and pain was apparent in the adult. “I’ve been doing nothing but wandering around for an eternity… but what good did it do? I literally amounted to nothing and lost my only family too along the way…”
“A-are you asking me for advice now? H-how should I…” Shorty was confused about Bron’s sudden outburst who soon explained.
“No, it was more… thinking out loud. These things are what often keeps me awake at night when my conscience haunts me again. But that should be enough about me. Feel like you know me a little better?”
“Well…” Shorty pondered. While Bron shared his tragic story with him, his sympathies for the adult grew a thousand-fold while his doubts shrunk. Lonely for so long himself, save for the hatchlings, Shorty could finally relate to the tall longneck… especially when he considered his own story…
“I think I no longer doubt you… not really anyway. Thanks for telling me, Bron. I guess that makes it my turn then?” Shorty shifted around uncomfortably.
“I suppose so. Unless you’ve decided otherwise of course.”
“I suppose it doesn’t hurt too much…” the green boy shrugged. “Though my story ain’t pretty either…”
“Thought no less than that,” Bron commented. “Well, I’m all ear then.”
Shorty took a deep breath and recollected his thoughts though even then he had no clue where to start.
“Unlike you, though, I… haven’t told anyone this story before…”
“I see, then how about your family, or your herd if you were part of one? Tell me about them,” Bron asked in an attempt to help the little longneck. Apparently, he was being helpful enough.
“Well, it was just my dad and my four siblings. Never got to know my mother, dad only said she was tall and beautiful…”
“Any clues why you’ve never got to know her?” Bron questioned.
“Well, yeah. Dad said she’s just been stupid but personally I’m pretty sure dad just pissed her off. He’s a jerk, I should mention.” Subdued anger and disappointment began heating his emotions up.
“Hmm, you say a jerk… what did he do to earn such a title?” Bron inquired with curiosity but also with concern, seeing as the boy’s family life clearly hadn’t been very healthy.
“Whacked my siblings and me when we misbehaved, never showing any affection or the like. He treated us terribly and to top it off he’d been addicted to a certain kind of leaves. Whenever he had it, he was totally crazy and whenever he didn’t, he was violent and aggressive. He hadn’t found any for several seasons and things just got worse and worse. One day I couldn’t bear it anymore and ran away…”
Bron didn't comment on Shorty's story immediately, considering his word choices carefully.
"I can't even begin to comprehend the stupidity of your actions, Shorty. Why run away from your family? You could have gotten yourself killed..."
"You don't understand..." Shorty pleaded, attempting to explain. "You don't understand until you've met my dad. Before I ran away, I almost got beaten to death if it weren't for my siblings pleading for him to stop! I ran away as soon as I was able to walk again..."
"Still..."
"I was gonna die there sooner or later..." Shorty snorted.
Bron gave a loud sigh.
"Alright, it's not my right to critisize your decisions. I'll believe your story. You got really lucky though to have met me."
"Thanks," Shorty sighed with relief, the memories messing with him. "What I still don't quite get though... why would you protect me?"
"For the same reason that you were protecting the hatchlings, Shorty. Only unlike you I'm quite capable of doing so." A slight grin flashed across his face. "Or do you think I survived all these years through sheer luck like you?"
"Proooobably not..." Shorty replied with an unreadable expression. Bron chuckled.
"Well, I'll go back to the little ones, you don't stay up too late, alright?"
"I..." the boy hesitated.
"Yes, Shorty? Speak your mind, it's okay." Bron was curious. He'd noticed that the boy's guard was dropping more and more which meant that he trusted him by now.
"Well... I'll sleep with you guys anyway... I'm actually a little sleepy now..." As if on command, a hearty yawn escaped from his mouth.
"Alright," Bron replied, smiling at the child. Having earned his trust meant a lot to the brown longneck and, somehow, it felt like a new episode of his life was about to begin. That night, for the first time in ages, Bron didn't have any nightmares, watching Shorty and the little ones sleep huddled close to each other for a while before he, too, allowed himself to get some rest.
~~~~~
I daresay this is a lot better than their original chapter 
Shorty and Bron begin to connect and, as you should know, they eventually form a loose father-son relationship, albeit one with many faults. I feel making Shorty a lot more hesitant while also making him act more mature and reasonable was very important and I hope you will agree. At any case, let me know! ^^
~~~~~
Oh, I like this!
My favorite part is the gang four-in-one cornering after Littlefoot baited Cera with the sleep stories. That was written so fluidly that it was almost like the interaction came out of a legit film. 
Not sure if you've ever seen the 10th film but that was actually taken almost 1 to 1 from the 10th movie 
Anyway, thanks! 
That moment between Littlefoot and his friends felt just like a typical scene from the movies. You can't go without their all-so-familiar, cute, funny and friendly conversations with occasional teasing. It's the perfect way to start Littlefoot's story. He is having these strange visions, and yet his friends suspect nothing coming. Now, like I said, I only watched the tenth film once, so I feel as if I'm seeing something new all over again, since I remember almost nothing about it. I felt the scenes with the Gang were cute, and I can't wait to see more!
Thank you very much, glad to hear that I delivered 
To be honest, this chapter didn’t leave me with a whole lot to review. You managed to retell the tenth film’s opening parts quite effectively and I liked the way you described these familiar events unfold. I especially liked the tag scene as I found it to be written rather effectively and it shed some light into Ducky’s thoughts. The Gang’s discussion with Cera was also done quite well even if the retelling didn’t add a whole lot to that scene. Overall, this chapter followed the film from start to finish which isn’t a bad thing but I hope there will be some new stuff in the next ones. Your use of “terra incognita” also caught my eye as I’m not sure if such phrases fit LBT too well. But other than that, you opened Littlefoot’s story quite nicely.
Thank you very much!
Yeah, I figured it'd be best to follow this great opening sequence for his introduction. Don't worry, there will be some additional content for sure in both Littlefoot's and the gang's parts 
I think the decision to not deviate much from the formula of an opening to a LBT film was a good call for this chapter. Though the already effective flow of the film was retained in this passage, the thoughts and perspective of Ducky were much better conveyed as is possible through the medium of the written word. The introduction of Littlefoot here was also well done, as he is presented as he typically is in the films, carefree and joyful. In establishing him in this manner his experience serves as a contrast to the hardships of Shorty and Ali. And it gives us, the readers, a better feel for the clash of experiences that is to come. Nicely done!
Thank you very much, rhombus! Of course I had to introduce that flatheaded goofball properly The next chapter that features Littlefoot might not be as light-hearted as this one though.Thanks for the reviews everyone, really pushes me to try stay on schedule (or at least close to that lol).
In the next chapter, we'll see Ali standing up to her views. Is she going to get into trouble? I'll hurry so you won't have to wait
