The Cold Time

[Malte279]

Chapter LXXXVIII

“Tell me again you would be a coward!” called Littlefoot to Petrie. “That was splendid Petrie!” First now after the eggeater had fled the fear seemed to come up in Petrie, for he trembled all over, appeared pretty pale and his knees were so soft that he had to sit down as soon as he had landed on Littlefoot’s back. “Goodness my!” he stammered and had to trouble to breathe calmly. “But your throw was splendid too Chomper!” praised Ali. Chomper looked down abashed. “We have repulsed them!” he mumbled quietly. “Once more”, said Ducky earnest. “For now we have nothing left to throw.” She was right. On the whole shelf laid only a handful of stones and some snowballs, which wouldn’t have been enough to stop the eggeaters, even if they would have had more of them. “Maybe we should try to flee up the slope swiftly”, said Ali. “Or at least get new stones and boulders”, suggested Chomper. “Do you think the both will let us enough time?” asked Littlefoot doubtfully. “Maybe”, answered Chomper shrugging. “It depends on how bad it has hurt the one eggeater. Who knows how long they’ll stay in there”, said Ali and pointed with her head at the gorge. “Not bad enough! Not long enough!” said Ducky shaking her head. “Oh no, no, no, no, no! There they come!” Indeed Ozzy stepped just closely followed by Strut out of the gorge. His left eye watered, he blinked very frequently with it and his whole face looked evilly scratched. Ducky and Chomper snatched the last remaining stones immediately, Petrie jumped up and made ready to fly. He seemed to have forgotten his fear with the fright. And Littlefoot, Ali and Spike felt very useless since they couldn’t do anything at all. But for their surprise Ozzy and Strut stopped after a few steps in a safe distance and Ozzy called: “Ho there, can you hear me?” They exchanged a very amazed look among each other, then Littlefoot answered: “Distinctly.” “What does he want?” asked Ducky Chomper quietly, but he shrugged and answered: “No idea, but we should at all events be careful and keep our eyes on him.” “Good”, answered Ozzy Littlefoot. “Then listen carefully, for make you an offer. You can save your lives. Everything you…” “No further step!” cried Ducky and lifted one arm to throw. Ozzy had while he had spoken advanced some steps nearly imperceptible. He made a disconcerted face and the next moment he laughed, made an allaying gesture with both hands and fell back some steps. “You have become very carefully, haven’t you? Alright , calm down!” They weren’t sure if Ozzy had tried to divert their attention and to approach them then or if he had stepped forward unconscious himself, but at all events they kept a sharp eye on him and Strut who stood further back. Ozzy continued: “I admit that we have undervalued you; several times. If that wouldn’t be so, then none of you would still be alive. But I take you also for judicious enough to assess your situation rightly. You can’t escape us anymore. We are faster than you and you are trapped.” “Be quiet!” hissed Chomper at him, but Ozzy gave him a scornful look and said: “Afraid to face the truth?” Chomper prepared for an angry answer, but Ducky said: “Hist. Let us hear what he wants to say.” Chomper obeyed not at least for everything the eggeater has said so far was the truth. Ozzy continued: “Anytime you’ll run short of stones up there.” Littlefoot thought relieved that the eggeaters down there could apparently not see how hopeless their situation already was now. Ozzy’s voice sounded nearly patronizing when he continued: “Still I and Strut are not keen on more scratches and bumps. Therefore we make you an offer. You may go. The warmer regions can’t be far away anymore. So we are not dependant on eating you anymore. A gleam of hope enlightened their faces, but Ali asked mistrustfully: “And what do you demand to have therefore?” “The sharptooth!” answered Ozzy jejunely. Littlefoot cast his mouth open to reply anything, but Ozzy was faster and said hasty: “I want to revenge for my nose and you shouldn’t refuse my offer flatly. Consider, you are all practically in our hand. Basically I renounce something I have already from which I’m separated by only a few more scratches. I don’t take the live of the sharptooth, but I offer it to you five.” Everybody on the shelf fell into affected silent.
“He is right!” mumbled finally the only one who dared to pronounce that. Chomper himself. “No Chomper, that doesn’t work!” said Ducky. “They’ll kill you or even worse.” “But they’ll anyway even if you refuse their offer.” Nobody knew really what to reply up on that. “I do it!” said Chomper quietly but determined, but his voice trembled a bit. “No Chomper!” said Littlefoot. “But why not?” asked Ozzy to whom the consultation of the leafeaters and the sharptooth couldn’t go fast enough and advanced a step. Then he looked at Ali and asked: “What about you? Are you really ready to throw your live away and those of all of your friends? And now seriously…”, said Ozzy and winked at her, but maybe it was only because of his hurt eye, “…can a leafeater really be a sharptooth’s friend?” Everybody expected Ali’s answer and this came immediately. “Of course! You bet! You won’t get him!” Chomper seemed to want to raise objections but Littlefoot called: “Apart from that you wouldn’t keep your word anyway!” “Chomper stays with us!” croaked Petrie and swung himself up into the air. “And us stays with Chomper!” “Come and get your scratches and bumps!” called Ducky and raised one fist with a stone in it. Spike grumbled agreeing and pawed with one of his feet over the ground just like Cera would have done at such an occasion and also Chomper raised just like Ducky a fist with a stone and he grinned suddenly so broad that his teeth blinked in the sun. Seemingly Littlefoot’s words had convinced him that there was no use to go to the eggeaters. Ozzy acted as if he hadn’t heard their words and asked threatening: “My patience it at its end! Do I get the sharptooth now? Yes or no?” Strut gesticulated already all the time fiercely behind Ozzy’s back, cut faces, tried to call Ducky’s attention at himself and to make her accepting Ozzy’s offer. “No!” called Littlefoot, Ali, Petrie and Ducky like out of one mouth and Spike stamped determined. Strut sighed, stopped gesticulating and let his arms and his head hang. “How touching!” said Ozzy with feigned sentimentality and a smiling curled his mouth. Nevertheless he couldn’t conceal that he was surprised. “So I’ve undervalued you the last time. But why do I actually ask if I get the sharptooth? Yet I have him already. And don’t believe that you can frighten me away with a few stones. I can throw with stones too!” while he spoke he had slowly gone down on his knees and with his last words he had snatched up a stone, had jumped up and had hurled it before they had found time to take cover. Chomper at whom the throw was aimed jumped to the side but nevertheless the stone hit him so forcefully at the shoulder that it tore him from his feet. “Forward Strut!” cried Ozzy and rushed off. Ducky threw hasty the two stones she held in her hands, both missed their target, while the others flocked around Chomper worried. “It is alright ”, he moaned, set up and grasped at the stones he had held until Ozzy’s stone had torn him from his feet. Ozzy and Strut had reached the slope and rushed up to the left and right of the shelf. Littlefoot looked around feverishly for anything he could throw at the eggeaters. He found nothing because there was nothing anymore.
“Halt!” cried a voice that was well known to them, from the gorge. Everybody including the eggeaters was so amazed that they obeyed to that order immediately and stopped in their movements. “Cera!?” She came run through the gorge whereby she limbed very much, but she struggled visibly to make a good figure and she succeeded in that despite the limping. “Cera!” snapped Petrie. “How you’ve come here?”
Cera didn’t seem to have heard his question, at all event she didn’t answer, but went with threatening lowered head and grimly look towards the eggeaters. “Scram!” she snarled. “Scram and don’t show up again or you’ll feel very sorry!” For some instants Ozzy was far too amazed to speak, but then he burst in guffaw and slapped on his thighs. Cera stared at him grimly but didn’t say anything and Strut didn’t seem to have the slightest idea what to do. It lasted for long until Ozzy had calmed down so far that he could say: “About you I can be only speechless continuously!” We had already forgotten you, but you can’t do better but hobbling after us and you even seem to believe that you could stop us. You are all crazy or megalomaniac!” By his last words every trace of a laughing had vanished from his face and he sounded very angry when he said: “I hate that!” By all respect for her self confident and brave appearance Cera’s friends up on the shelf couldn’t conceal that Ozzy was right. How could Cera expect to frighten the eggeaters off all alone? How could she assume to threat them? And how had she made to catch up with them despite her obviously injured leg? Cera stepped menacingly towards the eggeaters and hissed: “I advice you the nice way. Run! Get away or…” “Or you’ll become really mad! Won’t you?” said Ozzy and concealed with feigned fright his face behind his hands and stepped around Cera so she was now between her friends on the shelf and the eggeaters while the eggeaters had the gorge in their back now. Strut followed Ozzy but seemed to be completely irresolute. Cera stood in front of the shelf as if she alone could prevent the eggeaters from getting near it. Ozzy eyed her scornfully and said, now with an angry voice: “There is no need to square your shoulders like this! We’ll see if it will be of any use for you or your friends!” While he spoke Ozzy stepped towards Cera, who fell back going backwards until she touched the rocky wall of the shelf with her back. Cera cast a short glimpse back. Ozzy made use of that short inattention immediately. With one leap he stood aside Cera and before she could react he had given her such a kick in the side that she tumbled and landed on her back. Ozzy was immediately over her so she didn’t find any time to stand up again. “Cera!” cried Littlefoot, Ducky, Petrie, Ali and Chomper frightened while Spike howled up loudly. With a malicious grinning Ozzy bent down to Cera and set his claws to her neck. “Anything left you have to say?” asked Ozzy spitefully and he didn’t see that Strut behind him covered his eyes with his hands. Petrie swung himself up into the air and wanted to dive down upon Ozzy to maybe rescue Cera, but then she did something that surprised himself and everybody else, including the eggeaters, so much that he forgot to dive down. Cera bawled. But it was no usual bawl but far more a roaring like of a sharptooth. But although the roaring was very loud it didn’t really sound threatening, but nearly gentle. It was probably mere surprise that let Ozzy jerk back. Her friends on the shelf looked at Cera open mouthed, but nobody seemed nearly as surprised as Chomper whose name Cera had uttered in the tongue of the sharpteeth. “Cera?” he stammered completely amazed. But Ozzy grinned already again. “How cute!” he said ironically. “Am I expected to be scared now?” Suddenly they felt a slight trembling of the ground. Then Littlefoot, Spike, Ali, Ducky and Petrie cried out loudly, up on the shelf. Strut looked back and shrieked: “Oooozzzyyyy!” Ozzy jerked round and grew pale. Two sharpteeth had appeared from behind the turn of the gorge and now rushed with long steps towards them.



Chomper snarled something that sounded very pleased. Both eggeaters shrieked and rushed up the slope leaving Cera simply behind. Chomper threw his last stones after the eggeaters without hitting either of them. Within a few moments they were past the rocky shelf and rushed on up the slope. Now the two sharpteeth had left the gorge behind and ran after the eggeaters past the shelf up the slope. Chomper snarled something after them. Then he looked at the others and burst with laughter by the sight of their horrified looks.

Chapter IXC

Yet Littlefoot and Ducky seemed to have concluded the right immediately from Chomper’s reaction, namely that the two sharpteeth were Chomper’s parents, but by the sight of two assaulting sharpteeth they were still like being paralyzed with fright too, gritted their teeth and starred with wide opened eyes at the ravine from where the sharpteeth had come. Petrie had forgotten to flap with his wings and had precipitated. Ali concealed her head below her feet and hardly dared to breathe and Spike had dug his head as deep as possible in the very last rest of snow that still lay here on the shelf. “That are only my parents”, said Chomper finally with exaggerated equanimity. “You know them already. Only you don’t Ali.” And then Chomper rejoiced: “We are saved!” “What an idiot I am!” called Littlefoot and slapped with one of his forefeet against his forehead. “What’s the matter?” Chomper asked surprised. “I… I mean Ali and I have seen your father; or was it you mother?; already three days ago.” “What? When?” Chomper asked surprised. “When it had burned in the valley Ali and I have fled on your rock and when one of them appeared we’ve jumped from up there into the water.” “Why that?” asked Chomper now completely bewildered. “Well”, said Littlefoot. “We hadn’t… I hadn’t recognized him or her. And we had already so many problems that I didn’t want to frighten you additionally with that. I haven’t thought that the sharptooth Ali and I had seen could catch up with us, when we hurried.” “Pshaw frighten!” called Cera up to them. “Who is frightened of sharpteeth? So that was your secret you never wanted to give away. And that was why you were suddenly in such a hurry Littlefoot?” “My goodness Cera!” called Littlefoot. “Are you hurt?” And he ran followed by the others as fast as he could down the slope. Cera just stood up when they arrived down there. Her left foreleg trembled. “Has the eggeater hurt you?” asked Ali this time. “Nonsense!” growled Cera a bit rough. Everybody looked at her doubting and eyed her many scratches, black and blue marks and above all her left foreleg. “Oh that…”, said Cera and tried to give her voice an incidental tone. “That has happened yesterday when I’ve tumbled down the slope.” “Does it hurt very much?” asked Ducky pitiful. “Bosh!” snarled Cera. Ducky fell back some steps and looked at Cera insulted. Cera fetched deep breath, swallowed then and said: “Sorry. No, it doesn’t hurt.” Cera shook her head, distorted her face and sucked air in between her teeth hissing. “Well, maybe a bit”, she admitted with repressed voice. “Why haven’t you searched for me at all?” asked Cera. “The eggeaters were after us and had almost gotten us. Moreover we’ve send Petrie out to search for you”, answered Littlefoot defending himself and the others. “Yes”, croaked Petrie. “But me no found you. Was dark, far too dark. And very, very creepy!” he added quietly. Cera felt first unwillingly, then nearly gladdened how the fury that had come up in her during the last few hours cooled down. During her ride on the back of the sharptooth she had asked herself again and again why the others seemed to do nothing at all and if they had had forgotten her completely. And then finally they embraced and greeted each other exuberantly, not only because of the reunion, but also because of their anew rescue. Ducky cast a look up the slope and saw relieved that the sharpteeth wouldn’t catch up with the eggeaters. The eggeaters had nearly reached the crest while the sharpteeth had lagged behind already a respectable distance. Might the sharpteeth be faster than the eggeaters in plain terrain, certainly they weren’t uphill. Maybe it was also because the snow below the sharpteeth’s feet slid away and they themselves slid a half step down for nearly every step they made up. They began their ascend themselves now, but progressed even far slower since it was really hard for Cera to deal with her leg uphill. But she refused all of her friends’ offers of help determinedly. Ducky continued watching the sharpteeth and the eggeaters. When the eggeaters reached the crest they stopped for a moment before they ran on and disappeared behind the crest. “Farewell Strut”, thought Ducky. “And thank you for everything”. On their way first Littlefoot, Ali, Chomper and Petrie told Cera alternately what they and then Cera told them what she had experienced in the meantime.
Chomper was fascinated when Cera told how she had made to communicate with his parents. “You say my name already very well”, he remarked. “Yet with a slight accent, but distinctly to understand. If you want I’ll teach you a bit more.” The others laughed, but Cera didn’t submit to Chomper’s offer. Instead she said a bit reproachful to Littlefoot and Ali: “I still can’t grasp that you haven’t told us about the sharptooth you have seen. If we would have met Chomper’s parents earlier then a lot would have been spared to us.” Chomper bit himself carefully on the lower lip and said then hesitating: “No, I don’t think so. It is well as it has happened. For my parents… well, they are grownup sharpteeth and they can’t very long err… nourish on lizards and insects and if so many…”, he looked at the others, didn’t find a word for what he wanted to say and began anew. “I’m not sure if I would have been able to keep them back the whole time.” The others shivered. “And now?” Ali dared to ask finally. “Aren’t they dangerous for us now?” Also Cera had become a bit pale and looked at Cera expectantly. Chomper pondered for a moment and looked up to his parents who had stopped on the ridgeline. Obviously they had given up the pursuit of the eggeaters. “No, I don’t think so”, he said finally. “It can’t last long anymore until we reach the warmer regions. They can surely be patient till then. But…” “But?” asked Petrie anxiously when Chomper didn’t continue. Chomper sighed. “But still I think that we have to part now or at least soon.” “What? But why?” asked Ali with sincere regret. “If we go on together to the warmer regions we would lead my parents directly to your herds and families and after the long time of hunger I really can’t forbid them then…” Chomper sighed again. Littlefoot nodded sadly: “You’re right Chomper. But until the warmer regions come in sight we’ll stay together, won’t we? I mean who knows what is still lurking on the way.” Chomper nodded. Meanwhile they had nearly reached the crest too and Chomper’s parents turned round to them and uttered a roaring that let all save Chomper and Cera start back and the two sharpteeth gesticulated fiercely.
“We shall come up quickly”, translated Chomper for his friends’ relief. “Seemingly up there is anything interesting.” “Probably the highest and steepest mountain you parents have ever seen”, sighed Cera and the others laughed, but all of them went faster now, whereby they however went slower than they would have been able to, with regard for Cera. When they finally climbed slowly atop the crest it took away their breath. The rocky ridge stretched to both sides as far as they could see and to their right and left the pretty steep rocky walls vaulted into the direction in which they had travelled since they had left the Great Valley. Huge snow banks had accumulated between the rocky walls to their left and right, had turned to smooth ice below the pressure of the own weight and had formed a huge glacier that stretched nearly up to the horizon. Nearly, because the sun that had just reached its highest point shone not only on the broad, sparkling and exceedingly beautiful ice-rink of the glacier, but also on a stripe of green landscape at the horizon. For minutes during which no one uttered a sound everybody was absorbed in the view. “We’ve made it”, mumbled Littlefoot and he couldn’t take his eyes from the green stripe at the horizon. “Beautiful, really beautiful”, mumbled Ducky and it was not sure if she meant the green stripe at the horizon or the glittering ice-rink in front of them. Chomper sounded a bit sad when he said: “Well, it appears that we have to divide even earlier than I’ve feared. Where will you go?” Littlefoot made a gesture down the glacier. “We don’t know exactly where our parents are, but after they have reached the regions that are warm enough for green food to grow there they will certainly not have gone far farer. Because any time when it’ll be warmer again, then we are going to return to the Great Valley.” Littlefoot sighed quietly by the thought of the Great Valley. “Then I know at least where I can find you if my parents and I want to visit you.” Littlefoot and the others looked at him embarrassed and Chomper burst in laughter. He had only make a joke for he knew very well that his parents would have been a merely less welcome visit beyond the Great Wall. Also the others chimed gradually in in his laughter until Chomper became suddenly earnest, nearly sad again and asked quietly: “But we’ll meet again, won’t we?” “We will!” said Littlefoot. “Yep, yep, yep! Certainly!” corroborated Ducky. “Yes”, croaked Petrie. “Who knows what catastrophe will bring us together the next time.” “Oh no!” moaned Cera. “I’m fed up with any imaginable catastrophe!” With that she went over to Chomper’s parents and stroke around their feet after short hesitating. Obviously the sharpteeth were glad about that. They looked at Chomper and snarled anything. Apparently they had asked something, for Chomper answered with a roaring that sounded pretty threatening. Upon that the sharpteeth bent down to Cera and said anything of which Cera could perceive only the threatening roaring with which Chomper had answered his parents before. A bit unsure Cera asked: “What have they said Chomper?” “They have asked me for your name and say you farewell now and…”, Chomper listened for a moment to the snarling, growling and roaring, “…that they are really glad to have met you and hope…”, Chomper grinned calm and serene as he knew how much the next words would annoy Cera, “…that they haven scarred you too much and that your leg will heal soon.”
“Say them that I’m a threehorn and that I’m not scarred of anything or anybody!” said Cera grimly. Chomper snarled something in the sharptooth tongue that sounded far too less threatening for Cera’s taste and as soon as he had finished Chomper’s parents laughed unmistakable. “They say…”, translated Chomper grinning, “…that they don’t believe you but that you are still a very brave and valiant threehorn.” The others laughed and Cera admitted finally placated by the sharpteeth’s last words: “Well I feared a little bit, I admit that.” Chomper translated Cera’s words and then the promptly following answer of his parents: “They say that it would have been very foolish of you not to fear at all and that they have never taken you for foolish.” Cera didn’t really know what to answer upon that. These sharpteeth seemed to have in several respects completely different ideas than threehorns, but anyhow they were not completely wrong. Finally Cera imitated the, so threatening sounding, roaring with which Chomper had answered his parents before and asked: “This means Cera?” Chomper nodded. Cera repeated the roaring and it sounded more threatening than ever. Cera let it really melt on her tongue and said then: “I like your tongue! I like it really!” Again the others laughed. “And in which direction are you going to go?” asked Littlefoot. Chomper looked around shortly and discovered the eggeaters who had meanwhile stopped running on a slope far away to their left. He pointed at them and said grinning: “I guess that we’ll go that way. My parents have certainly no objections.” Ducky stepped towards Chomper and the both hugged each other. “See you Chomper!” called Ducky and quieter she whispered into his ear: “Please take anyhow care that your parents won’t get the eggeaters. I don’t want that anything happens to Strut.” Chomper nodded slightly and whispered back: “I’ll do what I can. You know Ducky, sometimes I wonder how somebody can be so good.” Ducky smiled grateful and flattered when she loosened the hug and stepped back. Petrie flapped over and embraced Chomper. “See you! Me’ll miss you many much.” “I’ll miss you too Petrie! Very, very much!” called Chomper and threw Petrie a short distance up into the air when he loosened his embrace Chomper drove with the back of one hand stealthy over one eye to wipe a tear away that had formed there. There Spike was already aside him and drove his tongue so exuberantly through his face that Chomper had to sit down not to fall down. There Chomper’s parents snarled suddenly and everybody looked at Chomper expectantly. He grinned: They ask if Spike has any instincts of a sharptooth?” Ducky burst out with laughter: “You can say them that he eats only plants. But of that certainly more than both of your parents could eat up of meat at once.” Chomper had trouble with laughter to translate and his parents chimed in the laughter. These sharpteeth appeared so harmless when they were laughing thought Ali while she stepped forth carefully. She had taken Ducky’s joke a bit vexed and receipted it only with a fleet smiling. “When you…”, Ali hesitated, “…hunt a longneck the next time then please ask before if…” Chomper nodded with earnest mien: “I will. I promise you. But…”, now it was Chomper who hesitated, “…that may still last very long, for actually I hunt only lizards and insects so far, but when I saw you standing there that morning I was really hungry and you…”, Chomper grinned suddenly, “…looked simply good enough to be eaten!” Even Ali who blushed flattered had to laugh and then she hugged Chomper too and it lasted long until she let him out of her hug. There suddenly a loud rumbling and growling could be heard and Chomper looked worried back to his parents. Doubtlessly the stomach of one of the both had growled. “I think it is better when we go now”, he mumbled, turned round and went to his parents of whom one took him carefully by the scruff of his neck with the teeth and set him on the offered back of the other one. “Do well!” he called and his parents uttered a last gentle growling. Then they turned round and ran of in the direction of the slope the eggeaters had crossed in the meantime. Littlefoot, Cera, Petrie, Ducky, Spike and Ali looked after them for long and waved when Chomper looked back to them. But they couldn’t look after them until they had also disappeared behind the next slope for that would have probably last very long. So they turned away after a while. Nobody spoke for long, but finally Littlefoot turned to Ali and asked sadly: “What about you Ali? Will you leave us too now?” “Of course not!” answered Ali immediately. “I’ll stay with you.” I know as less as you where my herd is, but thinking of the fact that we met each other on the way I wouldn’t be surprised when your families and my herd are close together. Littlefoot smiled gladly. “But I feat that we have still a very long way ahead, Oh yes!” said Ducky and pointed at the sheer endless glacier. All had to agree.

[Pangaea]

Two excellent chapters. Great illustration, too. I saw the picture of Chomper’s parents charging towards Strut and Ozzy and as a result, my heart was pounding the whole time I was reading the chapter. Thank you enormously for not letting Chomper’s parents eat my favorite egg stealers (nice to hear that Ducky has similar sentiments ).

I loved the scene where each member of the gang is saying goodbye to Chomper, particularly when it’s Cera’s turn and she learns to say her name in Sharptooth. I suppose that’s how she’s going to introduce herself from now on to dinosaurs she doesn’t like.

I’m a little sad to hear that the story is winding down. You’re a wonderful writer, and I like long fanfics. Whenever I read something really engaging, I’m constantly in anticipation of what’s coming up, and once I reach the conclusion, I can’t help but feel a bit of disappointed. Oh well. All good things must come to an end, I guess.

Oh, and don’t worry about the delay. I’ve been keeping myself busy reviewing Caustizer’s fanfic, “Rise of Storm Tide.” (For a while now I’ve been the only one doing so; if you ever have time to read it, I’m sure he’d appreciate your input. ) As for this story, here’s what I have to offer in terms of constructive criticism for these two chapters:

My patience it at its end!

This is a minor nitpick, but since it’s a typo rather than a translation error, I thought I’d point it out.

“I… I mean Ali and I have seen your father; or was it you mother?; already three days ago.”

I think those semicolons should be dashes (ó), and you’re missing an “r” at the end of the underlined word.

“We don’t know exactly where our parents are, but after they have reached the regions that are warm enough for green food to grow there they will certainly not have gone far farer.

I think “further” is the word you’re looking for.

“…that they haven scarred you too much and that your leg will heal soon.” <paragraph> “Say them that I’m a threehorn and that I’m not scarred of anything or anybody!”

Suggested corrected version:

“…that they haven’t scared you too much and that your leg will heal soon.” <paragraph> “Tell them that I’m a threehorn and that I’m not scared of anything or anybody!”

[babidikrakenguard]

The story is almost over? it feels like i just started reading this story just yesterday! Once again, great chapter

[babidikrakenguard]

Sorry, double-post. you can ignore this one ^^

[Malte279]

Thank you for your feedback. I really appreciate it a lot and I did apply the corrections to the last chapter
Thank you also for the reminder to update this thread; I continuously forget about it
Here come the next two chapters (including the last image of the story):

[Malte279]

Chapter XC

It was an especially for Cera exerting and dangerous climbing down to the glacier for the rocky walls were very steep and you could slop very easy on the snow. Still they reached the brink of the ice-rink without any incident. They stand above the glacier on a large snowfield. Nearby stood some conifers, but the glacier itself consisted only of smooth as mirror ice. Arrived at the brink of the glacier they hesitated. Ducky looked at the ice-rink with big reluctance. “That looks like hard water that is moreover oblique!” “And probably also just as smooth!” said Littlefoot whereby he brought a flat stone with a fierce kick onto the ice-rink. The stone slid away and didn’t come to a standstill anymore until it was out of sight. “My goodness!” said Cera terrified. “Don’t go on there! If once you come to slide there, then you won’t come to a standstill anymore and if you do yet then you’ll brake all of your bones before.” “And there is no other way”, said Littlefoot and pointed at the steep rocky walls that rose directly aside the glacier. “It’s no use”, said Littlefoot. “I fear we have to climb up the rocks again and search for another war.” “Up again?” asked Cera incredulously and lifter up her injured leg. “No, wait!” called Ali. She had looked over to the conifers all the time. “Come along!” she called and ran over to the trees. “Do you want to eat now?” asked Littlefoot bewildered. “A good idea!” called Ducky. “Yep, yep, yep! A good idea! We haven’t breakfasted at all!” “Neither have I!” called Cera and followed Ali as fast as her injured leg permitted. Also Littlefoot to whom the idea to eat now seemed to be very reasonable too suddenly followed Ali together with the others and said with an ironical smiling: “Enjoy it! Maybe we don’t won’t have to eat needles for a long while.” But Ali didn’t seem to think of eating at all for she had headed for a trunk that lay on the ground. The trunk seemed to lie here already for long, for all branches that had to have been at the trunk had rotten off, the wood was decayed and slippery and the bark had apart from a few pieces loosened from the trunk. “What do you intend Ali?” asked Littlefoot frowning. “I have an idea how we can maybe come down here unhurt.” “Aha. Maybe”, said Cera sourish. “And moreover very fast”, said Ali with increasing enthusiasm in her voice. “You mean…”, said Littlefoot who seemed to guess Ali’s idea with a look at the rotten tree-trunk. “Yea!” Ali interrupted him. “When we all set onto this trunk and slid down this smooth slope on it then we are down right away and we don’t even have to footsore.” “Do you really think that works?” asked Ducky doubting. “Why should it not?” asked Ali. “Well, I don’t know…”, mumbled Littlefoot and bit himself on the lower lip. “We don’t have made good experiences concerning the travelling on tree-trunks”, said Cera. “When we wanted to flee from Chomper’s island over the Big Water on a tree-trunk we were attacked by a swimming sharptooth.” “Do you see a swimming sharptooth anywhere around here?” asked Ali slightly offended. Nobody answered, but Ali continued finally: “Otherwise we can only walk down there on foot.” Ali pointed with her head at the glacier. “What I take for even less save or we can climb back up the rock to search for another way.” Cera moaned: “Everything but that! You have convinced me!” Ducky shrugged the next. “Everything seems to be better to me than to walk on foot on the hard water.” Petrie and Spike nodded quietly and also Littlefoot agreed after short hesitating. “Alright, let’s try it!” together they shove the tree-trunk to the brink of the ice-rink where the slope began to become steeper. “And now?” asked Littlefoot Ali unsure. “Now we’ll all sit on the down on the trunk, push off and then we’ll slid down the slope on the trunk”, explained Ali impatiently. “Well”, said Littlefoot. Nobody did anything. Nobody seemed to scramble for sitting at the head of the tree-trunk. Finally Ali saw that that it rested with her to do anything, eventually she had persuaded her friends to do this. So she sat down at the head of the trunk and clung to it with her forefeet as well as she could. Littlefoot sat down behind her and held on as well as he could too. Cera didn’t want to appear as if she would be afraid, although she had to admit to herself that she had a very uneasy feeling by this whole thing, and so she took hasty the next place behind Littlefoot. She could only with difficulties hold on to it as she could hardly burden her left foreleg. Spike set Petrie and Ducky carefully behind Cera, took seat himself on the tree-trunk then and tried to hold on not only himself but also Petrie and Ducky as good as he could. The place at the end of the tree-trunk seemed to be as little desirable to him as those at the head. “Are you ready?” asked Ali with a look back. Littlefoot nodded. His face looked strangely cramped. Apparently he gritted his teeth convulsively. “I hope so”, mumbled Cera and tried to let her anxiety appear as grumpiness, but Ali heard the slight trembling of her voice. “Yep, yep, yep”, mumbled Ducky without a trace of her usual enthusiasm in her voice. “Petrie ready”, answered the little flyer who seemed to be far less worried than the others. Ali could see neither Ducky nor Petrie since they were completely covered by Cera. Spike grumbled anything and nodded. “Okay”, said Ali. “Then push all off with your hind legs by three. One…”, Ali turned her eyes forward again. “Two…”, strange, a short while ago the slope had appeared far less steep. Ali felt as if she would jump in an abyss instead of just sliding down a slope by three. “Three!” she counted on without thinking and she was completely unprepared when the tree-trunk slid forward suddenly. She uttered a surprised cry, but the trunk came already after a short distance to a standstill again. “Is everything alright Ali?” asked Littlefoot worried. “Yes, everything is perfect”, answered Ali and heard herself how much her voice shook. But then she took herself together, concentrated only on the tree-trunk and not on the slope ahead of it and called: “Once more!” One, two, three!” This time Ali pushed off with her feet too and the trunk made a start forward, but it became slower again quickly and seemed to come to a standstill again. But then Ali noted that the tree-trunk ceased suddenly to become slower, kept its speed and glided down the slope lightly.

Chapter XCI

Ali looked back and smiled at the others encouraging, just not to have to look ahead anymore. Suddenly Spike howled up. “What’s the matter Spike?” asked Ali frightened. Ducky answered for him: “We have forgotten to eat something up there.” Ali sighed relieved. “Well if that is Spike’s only worry…” There ran suddenly a so fierce shook through the trunk that Ali had almost lost her hold and would have fallen down. Littlefoot, Ducky, Petrie and Spike shrieked frightened and Ali looked jerky forward again. The trunk must have slid over any bump or another obstacle. Frightened Ali noted that the trunk had become faster and still became faster and faster. “Slow down! Slow down!” Ali heard Littlefoot cry behind her. “How?” she called back without turning round. Littlefoot moaned quietly and looked back. Cera was the only whom hadn’t cried but Littlefoot recognized with one look that it was not because she was not afraid. Her eyes were as big as plates; she gritted her teeth convulsively and seemed to have forgotten how to breathe. “Cera, breathe deep!” called Littlefoot. In every other situation Cera had certainly given an angry or offended answer, but now she simply starred at Littlefoot and gasped by jerks for breath. Spike seemed to be vacillated between the desire to press his hands against his eyes and to cling to the trunk as firmly as possible. They became faster and faster and Petrie, who clung to Cera as firmly as he could, recognized that he could not even in a dive reach such a speed. But the worst was still to come.
“Look out, hold on!” cried Ali. Everybody followed that order there and then. And Littlefoot cast his head forward again. An icy-cold wind caused by their huge speed hit him in the face, made it impossible to breathe and drove tears in his eyes so he couldn’t recognize what of Ali had warned. Even before his eyes had accustomed to the wind the loud crunching that had been audible uninterruptedly during the whole glissade so far, fell silent suddenly. Littlefoot felt how they became even faster, suddenly he felt extremely light and perceived a pretty pleasant crawling in his belly. Only a split second later he became aware that they were flying. They had to have slid with huge speed over a ground wave or something similar and been catapulted into the air along with the tree-trunk. Littlefoot cried out and so did everybody else including Cera. It was strangely lightening to cry now, as if they would have a lot of surplus energy. But also apart from that they had all reason to cry for the tree-trunk inclined again and towards the earth, in unusual steep angle as it appeared to Ali, and they had the feeling that the tree-trunk sagged away under them while they themselves flew on through the air. Cera had to claw with all might to the tree-trunk not to be hurled down from it. She ignored the pains the huge burden caused in her left foreleg and she felt how the rotten wood gave in a bit below her hooves. Ducky couldn’t hold herself, was hurled back, bounced heavily into Spike and clung immediately as firm to him as she could. Petrie’s claws dug deep into the wood. Then came the bounce. The tremendous impact took the breath away from all of them and they hit the wood painfully. Fortunately the tree-trunk had at least lost some of its speed by the bounce and it took it up again only slowly. “Are you all still there?” pressed Ali out. “Yes”, gasped Littlefoot. “I am!” snapped Cera. “Petrie not is so sure”, moaned the little flyer. “Neither am I! No, no, no!” answered Ducky. And Spike, on whose neck Ducky hung, whereby she nearly chocked him, howled up. “Anybody hurt?” asked Ali curtly. She didn’t look back since she didn’t want to risk noting any obstacle to late to prepare the others for it. “I guess not”, answered Littlefoot. “Not yet!” called Cera. “Not really”, lamented Ducky. Ali uttered a sigh of relief, but already the next moment her breath stopped. Directly in front of them was a big snowdrift from which for Ali’s fright the sharp edged peak of a rock towered. Probably there was a bigger rock below the snow and when they would collide with it, then they wouldn’t get off with an adrenalin shook and some black and blue marks. She had to find out within the next few seconds how to drive the tree-trunk or they would bounce frontal against the rock and all would be lost. Ali did the only thing that occurred her, leaned to the side and called to the others: “Leaning to the side! Lean to the side!” “What?” called Cera amazed. “Do it!” cried Ali. The tree-trunk lurched a bit, but it kept its direction and would hit the rock in a few seconds. Desperately Ali looked back and saw for her amazement that everybody leaned in a different direction. “Lean all in one direction!” cried Ali nearly hysteric, leaned to the right and looked forward again. Obviously the others had followed her order for only a few seconds later the head of the tree-trunk turned sluggish to the right. But Ali recognized immediately that it was to slow and that they would bounce against the rock nevertheless. “Other direction! And draw on your legs!” shrieked Ali, leaned to the left and drew her legs on. She would have liked to close her eyes firmly, but she had to see what happened. Surprisingly fast the tree-trunk swung around and raced now to the left. Still they didn’t come past the snowdrift completely. The tree-trunk sank some centimeters down into the snow and was slowed down a bit by it. The next moment Ali heard a hideous scratching and felt a trembling that ran through the trunk and out of the corner of her eyes she saw something dark that grazed along the right side of the trunk. She heard an outcry and prayed that it didn’t mean what she feared. The tree-trunk still turned left and suddenly she heard a loud bursting cracking and such a shook ran through the tree-trunk that she would have fallen to the right down from it if she wouldn’t have leaned instinctively against the impulse to the left. Apparently at least some of the others had done the same for the tree-trunk made a jerk leftwards. In the snowdrift the trunk had lost much of its speed and Ali hoped already that it would come to a standstill, there the snowdrift ended. Directly in front of them it went for a short distance almost vertically downwards. “Everybody hold on firmly! Hold on!” cried Ali. Cera wanted to give and irritated answer, as they didn’t do anything else since the tree-trunk set in motion, but she didn’t find the time for it. For the next moment the tree-trunk tilted forward and darted with polyphonic shrieking nearly vertically down a short distance before it came slowly into a more horizontal state again.


In front of them was now a long, pretty smooth slope and Ali risked a look back. The rock they had just passed was not completely covered by snow on this side and it was far bigger than Ali had feared. The almost vertical part they had so to speak fallen down from the rock. “Is everybody there? Are you unhurt?” asked Ali panicky. “I guess so”, stammered Cera finally. She and everybody else had lost the pleasure of jokingly or cynical answers. Ali’s jar sagged down when she saw the tree-trunk behind Spike for there was no tree-trunk anymore! The end of the tree-trunk mast have hit the rock yet and been shaved off by the huge impetus of the bounce for behind Spike was only a tiny morsel of completely splintered wood. And when Ali looked down at the right side of the tree-trunk she recognized a deep crevice that drew along the whole length of the trunk where the rock had scratched past. Everybody had followed her instinctive inspiration to draw on the legs in time; otherwise they would have been simply torn off. Ali looked forward again. “You can let your legs hang again”, she said and let her own legs dangle again she had drawn on so far. Everybody had already sat upright again to the tree-trunk slid down the slope straight again. “Thanks!” said Ali. First now she realized that they had maybe just been nearer to the end than ever during the passed days.

[Pangaea]

What struck me most about this chapter is the incredible amount of detail you used to describe the gang’s downhill slide. If this were a movie, I’m guessing that whole scene would only last a couple of minutes, but you took the time to give it such a vivid description that I could visualize almost the whole thing as if it were a movie. (I enormously appreciate stories that give such attention to detail, given my rather visually-oriented mind.)

Speaking of visuals, the illustrations you have included with the chapters have not only been excellent, but also immensely helpful in telling the story. I was sad to hear that this was the last one. Looking back at the previous chapters, I counted seventeen other pictures (one of which, albeit, was only a sketch): that’s an astonishing amount of work you went to to illustrate your fanfic. (Oh, and this chapter’s image itself is very good. )

Also, this part...

Suddenly Spike howled up. “What’s the matter Spike?” asked Ali frightened. Ducky answered for him: “We have forgotten to eat something up there.”

...I found very funny.

As for my proofreading feedback for this chapter, I just have a few observations (involving sentences that I found confusing at first) that probably don't matter much whether you address them or not. The first deals with the numerous instances in which you reference the gang “drawing on their legs”. Whatever convoluted section of my brain I used to interpret that sentence at first assumed it to mean that they are pressing their feet against the ground in an attempt to brake or steer the log. Then I reread the following sentence:

Everybody had followed her instinctive inspiration to draw on the legs in time; otherwise they would have been simply torn off.

...and realized that you meant the opposite; that the gang were pulling their legs onto the log to reduce their chances of hitting the rock. If you were to change it, I would recommend “drawing in” or “tucking in” in place of "drawing on".

“That looks like hard water that is moreover oblique!”

Having consulted a dictionary, I think I understand what Ducky’s saying there (that the snowy slope looks both slippery and steep), but if she said that in the English version of an LBT film, all the others would look at her like: :blink: :huh: .

One more minor thing:

Ali’s jar sagged down when she saw the tree-trunk behind Spike

I’m reasonably sure the word you meant to use was “jaw”.

[Malte279]

Thank you very much for your feedback Pangea
I made the corrections in the version saved on my computer.
I am quite sure Ali would have been unfamiliar with any pottery and in case of the "oblique" (another one of those cases where the words really weren't very LBT like (once I had Cera talk of "insurmountable impediments")) I changed the phrase to:
“That looks like hard water that makes a slope!”
Maybe I will try to find something better for that one as though slope may not be beyond the LBT characters there may be more fitting, more describtive, more duckyish terms
Here comes the end of the story. It is very longwinded and I am really not happy with it, but that's all the more a reason not to split it up further:

[Malte279]

Chapter XCII

“Can’t we stop the trunk anyhow?” asked Littlefoot almost imploring. Ali bit herself on the lower lip, but pulled it immediately back from between her teeth, since the tree trunk slid just over some small unevennessess of the slope whereby her jaws clashed together so she bit more fiercely than she had intended. “We could all together try to brake the trunk propping against the ground with our legs”, suggested Cera.” “No!” called Ali immediately. “By this speed it will only break our legs.” “So what do you suggest next Ali?” asked Cera audibly irritated. “Cera, stop it!” called Littlefoot immediately. “That was as well our decision as it was Ali’s!” Ali acted as if she hadn’t heard Cera’s tone and answered: “Maybe we can really do something. When the tree trunk has turned, there it has become distinctly slower.” “That not only was because of deep snow?” croaked Petrie. “Maybe”, admitted Ali. But I don’t think so. We simply have to try.” For a moment everybody kept quiet. “Well”, said Littlefoot. “Let’s try it or does anybody have any objections?” Nobody said anything. “Okay”, said Ali finally and let her eye travel along the slope. As far as she could see there was no obstacle anywhere. “Everybody lean in the same direction like I! And set upright again when I do it!” Ali waited for one more moment and leaned then as far as she could to the left. Seconds later the tree trunk turned sharp in this direction and while it did so a loud, unpleasant crunching could be heard that became louder and louder. They all had the feeling that the trunk would start to roll and dig them all under, but it slid laterally down the slope without turning around its longitudinal axis. Ali had been right. The tree became perceptible slower and when it lay pretty exactly laterally to the slope Ali set up again. Yet the tree turned a bit further before everybody had perceived that they should set up. The fore end of the trunk slid a short distance up the slope and for a moment Ali believed that they would slide back up the slope now. Then the trunk came to a standstill. For some seconds nobody said anything and everybody clung close to the tree trunk as if they would be afraid that it would set in motion again the next moment. Finally Ali raised her head, sighed relieved and cast a slightly unsure smiling backwards. Also the others relaxed gradually from their cramped poses. “I guess we have made it”, mumbled Littlefoot finally. Ducky let go Spike’s neck finally and climbed over Cera’s back up to her neck and looked over her neckshield forward. Cera was very pale and said finally: “My goodness, am I glad that we’ve forgotten to eat up there!” Ali smiled momentary. “Yes”, she said, “But how shall wee come down the last part of the slope now?” A look to the side showed them that they had already brought more than the half of the glacier behind themselves. Spike opened very slowly his eyes he had kept closed firmly so far. He looked around disconcerted and when he finally grasped that they had come to a standstill and were provisionally in safety he erected jerky threw his forefeet in the air and uttered a cry of joy. The fierce movement let the tree trunk tremble and everybody gasped for breath frightened. Ducky’s hands clinched at Cera’s neckshield and she ducked behind it. Everybody bent forward and clung to the trunk. “Oh no!” called Cera helpless and Ali leaned as far as she could to the side. But she couldn’t prevent anymore that the trunk set in motion again. But this time they didn’t slid down the slope forward, but backwards! Spike howled, Ducky and Petrie shrieked, Cera and Littlefoot cried out while Ali gritted her teeth. She troubled to breathe calm again and looked then back, respectively forward, as you took it. It was a nearly comic view for not only Spike had closed his eyes firmly again but also Littlefoot and Cera, while Ducky who peered carefully over Cera’s neckshield had cast her eyes far open. Now she could do that for the cold wind caused by the high speed came from the back now. Suddenly Petrie began to squeak loudly. “Has something happened to you Petrie?” asked Littlefoot immediately and blinked back carefully. Spike opened his eyes too, to look if he could maybe help Petrie. It was not in Spike’s nature to enjoy another’s misfortune. Especially in a situation like this he tended merely to commiserate himself and the others; but when he saw Petrie, he and Ducky who carried out a really acrobatic sprain for it were the only to be able to do so, something like a mocking smiling passed through Spike’s face for a very short instant. Apparently Spike’s lee wasn’t enough to protect Petrie from the air current. The wind had driven under his wings and vaulted them far upwards. The up draught of the wind had torn Petrie up into the air, but fortunately he had dug his claws already before so deep into the wood that the wind couldn’t blow him away. He oscillated now helplessly shrieking in the air current. Spike forgot almost that he himself was in a dangerous predicament like everybody and he took up as much room as he could to offer Petrie as much lee as possible. Spike was not very slim, but he had moved so far back behind Petrie that his lee was of no use for the little flyer. Spike cast a short look back and uttered a frightened call. He hadn’t noted at all so far that he hadn’t to move back far farer since the rock had topped the tree trunk directly behind him. By this sudden perception Spike moved instinctively forward with a leap, as far as possible without sitting on Petrie. But the wind whistled left and right past Spike and still whirled Petrie around wildly. Spike cling with his hind legs as firm as he could to the tree trunk and dared carefully to rise one foreleg he nudged Petrie who was just whirled up again carefully down; with surprisingly fierce effect. Because of the slight nudge Spike had given Petrie the air current blew suddenly not past below Petrie’s wing, but above them and hurled the little flyer with all might down on the tree trunk. Petrie slapped hard on the wood and remained lying numbed. He could hardly breathe so fiercely he was pressed on the wood by the air current. Spike rose his forefeet carefully and held them protecting around Petrie. Finally the lee was enough to protect Petrie. “Thanks Spiky! Very much thank you!” mumbled Petrie benumbed and wanted to grasp at his head, but he couldn’t do it since he had clawed to deep into the wood. Ducky turned on Cera’s head back to Littlefoot and Ali without letting Cera’s neckshield go for an instant and. With a nodding she gave them, who hadn’t seen anything of Petrie’s problems of course, to understand that everything was all right with him. Suddenly Cera moaned quietly and her head tilted to the side a bit so that Ducky could only with trouble hold on. She had still closed her eyes and was very pale. It was obviously that she was dreadfully sick. “Cera, is everything alright?” asked Littlefoot quietly. Cera opened her eyes, sparkled furiously at him as if all this would be only his fault and said with sharp irony: “Of course everything is alright! I even amuse kinglike! Would you please nevertheless think of something how we can stop or…”, Cera’s voice sounded suddenly very desperate, “…at least slide down the slope in the right direction again?” Ali didn’t take Cera’s sharp words amiss and nodded only. “ If we lean to the side, then the trunk should turn again, all the same in which direction the trunk slides. So let’s lean as long to the side until the trunk slides forward again down the slope. Ducky?” Ducky on Cera’s head looked up. “Yes?” “Please look out for obstacles and tell us if you see anything!” Ducky nodded. “And what are we going to do if I see an obstacle?” asked Ducky. “Despair?” suggested Cera. Ali ignored Cera’s suggestion and asked Ducky: “Is the slope behind us clear?” Ducky looked with a nearly acrobatic turn back and nodded then. “Yes, it is clear. It is, it is.” “Good”, said Ali. “Keep looking out! And Littlefoot, Cera and Spike you lean in the same direction like I!” “Okay”, answered Littlefoot and the next moment Ali leaned to the side. Littlefoot, Cera and Spike did the same and the next moment the tree trunk turned slowly. Again there was a hideous crunching when the tree trunk slid laterally down the slope. “Is still everything free?” asked Ali Ducky without setting up. The trunk continued turning round and slid already almost straight down the slope, as it should. “All is free”, said Ducky. “Oh we’re nearly there! I see a big meadow and there is a river and… Oh no! Look out!” All had raised their heads hopefully and Ali just set up when Ducky’s warning cry sounded. Immediately she looked forward and recognized the still half snow-covered rock that Ducky’s warning call had meant. “To the side!” cried Ali and leaned as far to the right as she could, but it was too late. A scratching sound could be heard when the tree trunk hit the rock, but the fierce impact for which Ali had prepared internally stayed away. Instead she and the others felt again this feeling of weightlessness they had already felt when the tree trunk had driven over a bump far above on the slope. Obviously the rock over which they had driven was inclining and more or less smooth so they had been hurled high up into the air instead of being smashed at it. But this would hardly make a difference when they would impact on the ground now. Ali felt how the tree trunk sagged away below her; she felt how she turned over in the air. Sky and earth seemed to spin around her and she closed her eyes. Then came the impact. It was only a short slap that left an aching feeling behind and then Ali felt for her surprise how she sank deeper down. Had she fallen through the ground? Was this the feeling to die? Ali opened her eyes again. Everything was blurred and there was a strangely dim light that appeared a bit brighter only in one direction from where it seemed to come originally. Ali felt suddenly that she had stopped to breathe and then, the next moment, she became aware of that she was under water. “The river!” it flashed through her mind. Ducky had said something of a river. Ali hadn’t found an occasion anymore to look around for the surroundings or the river, but she was sure to have landed in the river and thus escaped the horrible impact. She rowed fiercely with her arms towards the light and then she broke through the water surface. Ali fetched deep breath, wiped the water from her face and looked around. Spike kept himself above water a short distance away with so fierce movements that it really foamed around him. Littlefoot just emerged not far from her snorting and Ducky swam nearby too. She seemed to be suddenly completely mad with delight and seemed to have forgotten all frights of the glissade at once. “Cera!” called Ali. “Where is Cera?” Ducky forgot her frolicsomeness there and then and dived immediately, probably to search Cera below the water surface. Ali thought of Cera’s hurt leg and that she would have big difficulties to swim with it.
But already the next moment Cera broke not far from the bank through the water surface. Nearby Cera swam also the tree trunk on the water. Ali starred at the trunk. During their glissade the whole lower half of the trunk had been grinded of, Presumably this was also the reason why the tree trunk had never started to roll. Cera moved with jerky movements towards the bank whereby she held her injured leg slightly angled. Ali saw that she bit her teeth firmly together. Ducky just emerged nearby Cera, looked at her relieved and asked: “Can I help you Cera?” “It goes yet”, she moaned and the next moment she felt sandy ground below her feet. Pretty worn out she humbled ashore and let herself drop exhausted into the soft sand. “Where is Petrie?” asked Littlefoot and searched the sky with his eyes. There Spike howled up suddenly, forgot for a moment to row with his legs, sank but emerged again immediately and swam as fast as he could towards the tree trunk that drifted in the water. Also Ducky appeared to be very frightened suddenly, crawled as quickly as she could to the tree trunk and dived. Littlefoot and Ali understood that Ducky and Spike seemed to know more about Petrie’s whereabouts as only they had been able to keep him in sight during the whole glissade. So they swam towards the tree trunk too after a short exchange of looks. Cera who still lay pretty worn out at the bank raised her head, looked back and asked: “What’s the matter?” Ducky emerged again aside the trunk Spike had almost reached too. “He is down there!” called Ducky. “I can’t get him off!” “What?” asked Littlefoot bewildered while he still headed for Ducky and the tree trunk. “Petrie!” called Ducky. “He has clawed so firmly into the wood that I can’t get him off!” With that Ducky dived again. “Come on!” called Ali and reached with a last fierce stroke the tree trunk. “We must turn the tree trunk over! Immediately!” Spike hung himself immediately to one side of the tree trunk and made it swaying very muck. Ali grasped at the trunk too at once and Littlefoot who reached it the next instant did the same. Cera who had also understood what all this was about gritted her teeth, waded into the water and reached the tree trunk that floated already in the relatively shallow water nearby the bank. Together they made to turn the trunk over. Petrie hung visibly limply at the bottom side of the trunk and Ducky, who troubled not to loose her hold by the turning of the trunk hung aside him and tried desperately to pull his claws out of the wood. But the trunk didn’t remain in the state in which they had brought it. By itself it rolled on in the water until it floated again with the grinded of side upside, so Petrie was pushed under water again. “Oh no!” moaned Ali. “Once again!” called Littlefoot. “It won’t be of any use”, answered Ali. “Yet I don’t know why that is so, but the trunk will always turn by itself again.” “Nevertheless! So we deliver Petrie at least for an instant air to breathe.” “Okay!” answered Ali and made like Littlefoot ready to turn the trunk again. “ We could drag the trunk first to the bank and turn it then”, suggested Cera hasty, but Littlefoot shook his head. “Then Petrie will be squashed down there between the trunk and the ground!” he objected and began to turn the trunk. The others grasped at it too and together they turned it over anew. But Petrie didn’t hang there anymore. Where he had hung was only splintered wood. They let the tree trunk go that rolled immediately in its previous position and stirred water waves in every direction like rings by it. They looked searching in every direction. There Ducky broke suddenly through the water surface a short distance downstream. She appeared to be exhausted, but she smiled relieved. “I have him!” she moaned and began to swim troublesome towards the bank. With both arms she held Petrie and troubled to keep his head above the water. With astonishing speed Spike was by them, let Ducky with Petrie climb on his back and carried them the last meters to the bank. Cera waded limping out of the water. Littlefoot and Ali followed her whereby they, without really knowing what for dragged the tree trunk along ashore. Petrie hung limply in Ducky’s arms. He appeared somehow bloated, probably because he had swallowed too much water.  Ducky tried to shook Petrie awake, but the head of the little flyer fell only unsteady to and fro by this. Spike howled up. Ducky tried now to wake Petrie the uncomfortable but very effective way by lifting with her fingers carefully one of his closed eyelids. “Wake up Petrie! You must wake up!” implored Ducky. She let his eyelid go, but it simply flapped down again and Petrie stayed as lifeless as he was. Ducky shook him anew fiercely and called: “Petrie, don’t do that! Oh no, no, no, no, no! Please not! Not now, not here! Not after all we have gotten over. We have already made it yet! Petrie you must wake up…” Ducky’s words ended in an unarticulated whimpering and the tears poured into her eyes. “Let him go Ducky!” ordered Ali suddenly. Ducky looked at her troubled. “Maybe I can help him.” Everybody looked at Ali hopefully with watering eyes what was visibly discomforting for her. “Really?” asked Cera and embarrassed her even more by that. “I don’t know. It is a long time ago when a young one from my heard nearly drowned in a river with a very strong current. When the grownups got him out of the water he was like dead, but the old one had made him alive again.” “How did she?” asked Cera, but Littlefoot interrupted her. “Not now. Can you save Petrie Ali?” Ali bit herself on the lower lip. “I don’t know. It is dangerous. Maybe I can save him, but maybe…”, she hesitated, “…I might squash him by it unintentionally.” Everybody fell into affected silence and nobody seemed to dare to say anything, but then Ducky laid Petrie carefully into the grass and went to Ali. “Do it”, she said. “Please be careful.” Ali had become pale and for an instant it seemed as if her courage had left her, as if she would regret her suggestion. But then she nodded, approached the lying on the ground Petrie and raised one foot. Ducky cast her hands in front of her eyes. Ali set the tip of her foot on Petrie’s belly and palpated it carefully. Finally she seemed to have found the spot she had searched. She fetched breath shortly, pushed her foot shortly downwards and drew it back immediately. Petrie seemed to jerk shortly and a gurgling sound could be heard. Ali seemed to be more determined now and pressed her foot down again and began to raise and lower it in a fast rhythm. Again the gurgling was audible and it endured. Suddenly Petrie twitched and a draught of water splashed foaming out of his beak. He coughed fiercely, tried simultaneously to fetch breath convulsively, opened the slightly glassy appearing eyes and set up. Ducky jumped dreadfully relieved over and knocked Petrie from whose beak another draught of water gushed on the back until he finally stopped coughing and looked around disconcerted. Ali had stepped back inconspicuously and retired a short distance. Littlefoot noticed it and he couldn’t help admiring her for her on shyness bordering moderation and the experience of life she had already gathered in her herd. He went to her and she looked at him. She seemed to be almost even more relieved than the others. “I was afraid it wouldn’t work.” Littlefoot shook very slightly his head and nudged hers gently with it. “Thanks Ali!” he said simply and she blushed embarrassed.

Chapter XCIII

If Ali had hoped to avoid the thanksgivings of ther others by withdrawing inconspicuously she was disappointed. Cera had even forgotten the long list of her complaints about the glissade on the tree trunk when she hobbled towards Ali and embraced her as well as her leg admitted it. Only now they really became aware of that they had made it. Where the glacier ended began a green free of snow meadow that extended up to the bank of the river whose water was yet cold but seemed to be nearly tepid to them after all they had experienced. Beyond the river began a huge grassy plain that stretched, interrupted only by some green woods up to the horizon. And far back they could recognize herds of grazing dinosaurs. “Let’s hope our families are there too, but even if they aren’t they are certainly not far.” “If they are already here at all”, said Ali. “If they aren’t we’ll simply wait”, said Cera. “That really doesn’t make a difference now anymore.” “So upon what do we wait?” asked Ducky. “We should go now, Oh yes we should, yep, yep, yep!”

It was a problem to bring Cera over the river, for with her injured leg she could hardly and only with big pains swim although she denied stubbornly that her leg caused her any trouble. Finally Ducky came upon the thought that Cera could lay on the tree trunk and the others could shove the trunk with Cera to the other bank. Also this idea seemed to embarrass Cera anyhow, but finally they made to persuade Cera whereby their common wish finally really to come into the warmer regions was the main reason. Yet there was no snow on this side of the river either, but on the sandy riparian stripe grew only scarcely grass and they, especially Spike had grazed away these nearly completely. It was an uncustomary feeling to eat green stuff again although this grass differed only unessential from those they had still found below the snow occasionally. Shortly before they had reached the other bank of the river, whose current was fortunately only very slight the tree trunk capsized, turned around its axis and Cera fell into the water. When she finally reached the back with the help of the others she hobbled, when they continued their way after a longer brake through a field of very high grass, even more. So they progressed only slowly. Spike ate a real vista through the grass. Only gradually they became aware of how much warmer it was down here. After the longest cold time of their life they thawed really. The high grass blocked their sight forward and they still orientated at the stand of the sun that had as they noted first now had begun during their whole journey to pass more and more over instead of ahead of them. Nobody thought of sending Petrie ahead to look out for their parents and Ali’s herd. Suddenly the high grass in front of them ended. Yet it still grew here, but somebody had stamped it down roomy, so a free place had been formed. They had done it themselves often in the Great Valley since there was hardly a better hiding place than high grass. The next moment they discovered the creators of the hiding place and the creators discovered them. “Aunti Ceri is back again!” Dinah really pounced upon Cera and Dana followed her there and then. Cera’s left foreleg gave in and Cera fell down with a painful moaning, but the little ones didn’t seem to notice it at all in their joy. Littlefoot, Ducky, Spike, Petrie and Ali, who had never seen Dinah and Dana before tugged the two amazed threehorns hasty away from Cera and prepared for the thunderstorm Cera was used to let come over the twins in such situations, without having ever impressed Dinah and Dana very durably. But Cera smiled only a bit vexed when she stood up, moaned and looked at the twins who looked apologizing. “Yes, aunty Cera is back again. I’m so glad to see you!” And Cera nudged the both gentle. Littlefoot and the others smiled when they saw the slightly bewildered faces of the twins who were not accustomed to such cordialities from Cera, especially not when they had just torn her to the ground. The two didn’t seem to see the reunion as something surprising or special. Probably they had never thought that Cera and the others might not return. “Say, the grownups are surely nearby too?” asked Littlefoot. Not even Ducky could translate the two-voiced prattling that started now, but the both ran as soon as they were ready in one direction so it was clear that the grownups had to be there. They followed the both, that meant they followed the trail the two had left behind in the high grass for the both had run away faster than it could be expected from Cera with her leg. They all apart from Ali, who seemed to be strangely worried, felt urged simply to rush on to be at last back by their families again, but they stayed with Cera who tried to hobble on swiftly. Soon after they had reached the edge of the high grass. In front of them was a large meadow that bordered at several ends to small woods. And on the meadow they were gathered. The whole herd from the Great Valley with their parents and families was busy with searching their lairs and building their nests. Very obviously they weren’t here for long too. None of the grownups paid any attention to the two twins who ran around and called something in their gibberish so loudly that Littlefoot and the others could hear it even where they stood at border of the high grass. They stepped forth on the open meadow, but still none of the grownups had noted them. But suddenly Cera’s father stopped in his momentary occupation and looked at the twins, who had stopped tempestuous prattling in front of him, attentively for a moment; then he raised his head and looked over to the high grass. “Cera!” he said, so quietly that only a few who stood nearby heard it, more to himself than to anybody else. “Cera!” he called now so loud that everybody heard it, stopped and looked over to him. But he had already set in motion and stormed so fast that Dinah and Dana couldn’t keep the pace anymore towards the high grass. “She is back again! They are back again!” called he when he ran past Littlefoot’s grandparents who had chosen their lair a bit apart at the edge of the forest. They looked amazed first down at Cera’s father and then in the direction where he ran like being bitten by a sharptooth. When she discovered Littlefoot and the others a beautiful smile spread all over the face of Littlefoot’s grandmother. “It’s the children!” she mumbled blissfully. “You were right dear; they’ve made it. They’ve come to us”, she said to Littlefoot’s grandfather to whose boundless joy came also the relief that he had really been right. During the last days his conscience had often vexed him and he had asked himself again and again if he had done the right by leading the herd on. But now Littlefoot’s grandparents lost their usually distinguished restraint and ran after Cera’s father that the ground trembled below their feet. Also Ducky’s parents had jumped up and ran towards Ducky and Spike, followed by Ducky’s twelve twins who however couldn’t keep up with their parents anymore. And also Petrie’s siblings lagged behind their mother who headed with mighty flaps towards the border of the high grass. The other dinosaurs from the Great Valley who had shown much concern during the last days followed them in tactful distance when the news spread with lightning speed. Littlefoot, Spike, Ducky and Petrie would have liked to run respectively fly to meet their parents, but with regard for Cera they joined her slow nearly stalking pace with which she tried vainly to conceal her limping. Endless time seemed to pass until the grownups were finally there. Petrie’s mother swooped down at her son with a shout of joy and when his siblings had arrived it was not possible anymore to differentiate from the ground which wing from the throng belonged to which flyer. Spike had not yet loosened from the hug of Ducky’s mother when he already went to the ground under the enthusiastically up-rush of his other twelve siblings, while Ducky’s father held Ducky herself by the hands and whirled her around like in a carousel. Cera was torn between the wish to calm her father concerning her leg and the wish to act a bit important with her leg while Dinah and Dana hoped around her completely beside themselves. And Littlefoot’s grandparents bent their heads at the long necks down to their grandson. They smiled just like Littlefoot’s mother had always done when she had been very glad. Ali felt very uncomfortable between all the unknown grownups and she had shyly stayed close to Littlefoot. But when Littlefoot’s grandmother saw her she smiled at her. “Ali?” she asked. Ali nodded shy. “I’ve recognized you immediately.” Ali smiled embarrassed. “But we could have nearly expect this”, said Littlefoot’s grandfather now. “Why?” asked Ali unsure. “Because…”, said Littlefoot’s grandmother again, “…your herd couches on the other side of this wood and we learned from them that you are missed too.” It flashed in Ali’s eyes; all worries vanished from her face and half backwards half sideward walking she approached the wood but kept her look fixed on Littlefoot and his grandparents. “Then I have to go back to them now”, said Ali who wanted to return to her herd as soon as possible but also wanted to take leave politely from Littlefoot and his grandparents. “Thank you very much!” she said with a kind of courtesy to Littlefoot’s smiling grandparents. “I will come back tomorrow she called already half backwards over her shoulder and then she rushed between the grownups who stepped out of her way towards the wood. “See you tomorrow!” called Littlefoot and looked after her for some moments. Then he turned back to his grandparents who lifted him on their heads. I was so good to be with them again.

Chapter XCIV

The bright circle had passed over them many times since they had reached the warmer regions. Cera didn’t limp anymore meanwhile and it was long ago since Ducky had coughed the last time. Yet they had found a huge amount of green stuff, but they hadn’t stayed the only ones. Every day, for some time even nearly every hour new herds had arrived and just like them this herds had preferred not to move on, but to wait directly here that it would generally become warmer again. Very soon already the edges of the surrounding woods had become nearly as leafless as those they had seen on the way here. Very much for Dinah’s and Dana’s regret the high grass, in which they had mad their hiding places, had seen been grazed away too, but they and everybody else had been forbidden to move away from the herd anyway for they soon had to realize that not only the planteaters had moved to this region. The sharpteeth had followed the herds of the herbivores and only if they stayed close together they were save to a certain extend. Repeatedly single or several sharpteeth had appeared nearby and had tried to scatter the herd with threatening gestures to attack then. The herd from the Great Valley had stayed close together and this was certainly the reason why they had to deplore no victims while every day news from other herds arrived that members who had retired only a few steps from the others had immediately been attacked and most time been killed before they had been able to flee. Sharpteeth were swarming and Littlefoot felt uneasy by the thought that Chomper and his parents were among them and surely were responsible for victims in the herds who couched farer apart. Also a young adult from Ali’s herd had disappeared since he had dared to go deeper into the wood that separated Ali’s herd from those of the Great Valley. The longneck had wanted to search for treestars there that were everywhere already scarce. Littlefoot, Cera, Ducky, Petrie and Spike could see Ali rare and rarer, only if both herds dared to go deeper into the wood foraging for food. If the herds met in the wood there were only a few hearty greetings, since they began to see a rival by the searching for food in the members of the other herd. According to rumors open hostilities had already broken out between two herds of herbivores a far distance upstream. Also the children noticed the increasingly cooler relations between their parents that however couldn’t do any harm to their friendship the slightest; the contrary took place. Contrary to the grownups the common problems seemed to weld the kids more than ever together. Sometimes Littlefoot, Cera, Ducky, Petrie and Spike felt very much remembered to the great time of giving after the burning of the Great Valley. But even with the herd the saurians were not absolutely safe. One time a clubtail was slightly wounded while foraging for food in the wood when he had been attacked by a sharptooth that had lurked there. Only its armor, the quick intervention of numeral other dinosaurs and the immediate flight of the sharptooth had prevented worse. But even in the herd itself was big discontent and secretly things were said about each other that would have caused serious rivalries between the different sorts of dinosaurs in the herd if they would have been said loudly. Littlefoot’s grandfather who held still the role of a kind of leader in the herd saw all this with the biggest worries and he asked the flyers more and more often to fly into the direction from where they had come to check if the time would be ripe to return. And after all the nature seemed to have good intentions towards the dinosaurs, for already soon the flyers could announce that the blanket of snow receded and that partly even with really amazing speed. Simultaneously also the dinosaurs that couldn’t fly and see it themselves, felt that it became generally warmer. Soon there was even an unpleasant sultriness. Upon that Ali’s herd was the first to move back into the direction from where they had come. The farewell was for Littlefoot’s, Ali’s and the taste of the others far to hasty. They had only time to change a few hast words of goodbye and then Ali had to hurry not to loose contact with her herd. Littlefoot looked after the longneckherd for long until it had finally disappeared at the other shore of the river. He was almost sure that they would see Ali again soon. The Great Valley was simply a too beautiful and above all save place than a herd of migrating dinosaurs wouldn’t visit it for a long time. The thought of the Great Valley woke longing memories in Littlefoot. Apparently it was possible to read Littlefoot’s thoughts from his face for suddenly a voice behind him said: “We’ll follow them. Soon.” It was Littlefoot’s grandfather who had despite of his huge size made it anyhow to step aside Littlefoot without startling him immediately. Littlefoot had simply been to absent minded to pay attention to anything or anybody. “Do you think that it will be as before the cold time?” “I guess so Littlefoot. Provided that it had become warmer there too already.

Already at the same evening Littlefoot’s grandfather suggested to return to the Great Valley as soon as possible. The suggestion was accepted enthusiastically. It seemed to cause a real wave of relief in the herd. The mood in the herd, so bad before bettered promptly and the irritation that had threatened to cause a quarrel in the herd always during the last time vanished there and then. It was agreed to set off already in the course of the next day.

Chapter XCV

Already early in the next morning they set out as there was nothing that would have kept them back. How much differed this setting out from the one then when they had moved away from the Great Valley thought Littlefoot. While they had then marched slowly initially and had set a quick travel-tempo only in some distance from the Valley it was exactly the contrary now. It was a hasty, almost flightlike set out and the younger ones who hadn’t found room on the back of one of the grownups had serious problems to keep the pace. Only after they had crossed the river and left it some distance behind they assumed a normal tempo. Although they started as early as then, if not even earlier the sun had already risen completely. Littlefoot cast thoughtful looks up to the snow covered mountaintops. But they wouldn’t have to traverse the mountains again. It would have been hardly possible for some of the grownups. Instead of it they took the route the herd with the grownups had come then in opposite direction. So they spared themselves the way through the pathless terrain, but they had to go a long roundabout way around the mountains. That had also been the reason why Littlefoot and the others had then arrived at the lairs only one night later than the grownups. On their way now they traversed only plains and hilly landscapes at the border of the mountains. Quite contrary to then the mood of the herd was happy and frolicsome. There was not the constant danger of freezing to death or starving, for although the grass of the steppe was even thawed not quite a titbit it filled and was above all available in sufficient quantities. The flyers scouted now and then the area ahead and brought always the same confident making news that it was warm ahead too and that there was no snow lying. The cold time seemed to have ended even more suddenly than it had come. But in spite of everything they were nervous as they all wondered how the Great Valley would be and hoped that it wouldn’t look like then when they had left it. Despite the end of the cold time they couldn’t be sure about that. The farer they went the farer the sun stood behind instead of over them and the more the temperature sank. It was not at all cold, but after they had been so long in the sultry warmness it was an, if not unpleasant, still disturbing change. Several times they passed small woods in the plain that had not survived the cold time. The disconsolate view of tree carcasses, died with coldness added to their fears. Some regions of the land had really been ravaged by the long frost. And the initial frolicsomeness changed to uneasy worry and nervousness.

Chapter XCVI

The day came on which they finally reached the Great Valley again. The flyers had refused to fly ahead that day, worried that neither themselves nor the other saurians in the herd would like what they might come to see in the Great Valley. They didn’t want to be the bearers of the ill news in this case. Nearly as unwillingly as then when they had left the Great Valley the grownups removed the boulders that blocked the gap through which they had left the Valley then. Even after they were done with it they stood unsure around and even Littlefoot’s usually so determined grandfather and Cera’s father didn’t seem to dare to go into the valley and thus maybe destroy all hopes. “So what’s up now?” asked Cera impatiently. They were almost at home and the fears of the grownups shouldn’t prevent them from doing the last steps now. When none of the grownups stirred she turned away and went ahead herself. Littlefoot, Petrie, Ducky and Spike joined her and the twins Dinah and Dana gamboled ahead of them. Finally the first grownups set in motion and followed the kids who had traversed the gap now and stood on the very rocky ledge from where they had then by their set out overlooked the Great Valley. And in front of them displayed the Great Valley, their home, in all its splendor. The jungle pullulated denser than ever before; for long hardly anybody had eaten from the plants so they grew unhampered. The small waves of the river glittered in the sun and when they listened carefully they could hear the roaring of the thundering waterfalls. For an almost devotional moment nobody spoke, then Littlefoot, Cera, Ducky, Petrie and Spike grinned at each other and began their descent down to the Valley.

[Pangaea]

Fantastic. I hardly expected the concluding chapters of this story to be so momentous.

The scene where Petrie almost drowns is, to sum up my opinion, a masterpiece. Everything about itóthe gang’s struggle to get him out of the water, Ducky’s attempts to wake him up, and Ali administering the dinosaur version of CPR to himówas outstandingly written, exhilarating to read, and felt exactly as such a scene in LBT should feel. I found it evocative of the part in the first movie where the gang assumed Petrie to have drowned, but thought it completely original. I regret to say that my sentimental emotions are less easily stirred by this kind of writing than most people, but for individuals whose tear ducts are less stingy than mine, I would be amazed if some of them didn’t cry at that part.

The final chapter is also excellent. I love how you decided to write it so that the dinosaurs are uncertain of the condition of the Great Valley, thereby making the emotional impact of the return all the more significant. I would have loved to see an LBT movie (V or VIII, perhaps) conclude in such a way.

Of course, I have plenty of constructive criticism for these chapters as well. For starters, I would suggest dividing the text into smaller paragraphs (particularly Chapter XCII), making it easier to read.

Second, just a couple of minor typos I noticed:

“But how shall wee come down the last part of the slope now?”

You only need one “e” in that word.

“I guess so Littlefoot. Provided that it had become warmer there too already.

You’re missing a quotation mark at the end of that line.

Finally, there are a few lines that appear to have suffered some speedbumps on the road of German-to-English translation, causing them to sound rather confusing.

He looked around disconcerted and when he finally grasped that they had come to a standstill and were provisionally in safety he erected jerky threw his forefeet in the air and uttered a cry of joy.

This was a sentence I had to read a couple of times before I comprehended the meaning. If I have interpreted it correctly, Spike realizes that the log has stopped, and sort of rears up in a cheering posture (inadvertently jostling the log and setting it in motion again).

“Of course everything is alright! I even amuse kinglike! Would you please nevertheless think of something how we can stop or…”

It’s something of an understatement to say that the underlined portion of this line sounds strange. What does Cera actually mean?

This was truly an exceptional LBT fanfic. Hopefully, someday, we’ll see more stories like this from you.