Petrie and his snuggling stick share a bond together. He would never let anything happen to it...that is, until unintentional greed bites him. Suddenly, he ends up in a place filled with stubborn threehorns, who's world is in danger due to a greedy rainbowface, Mimus, who has never shared anything with anyone in years. As Petrie's snuggling stick is snatched by the rainbowface, Petrie ends up on a big adventure to find Mimus and retrieve his snuggling stick. But can he do it alone? Meanwhile, his friends are also searching for him...
Above is the summary of my long-awaited (?) fanfic that is finally here, for those who did not read my announcement posted here not four weeks ago. This is my first attempt at an adventure story, so please be nice. I luckily did proofread the story, and am hoping not to have made any goofs, plot holes, spelling and grammar errors (except, of course, the necessary ones *winkwinknudgenudge*) and the like. I look forward to hearing feedback from all of you. Note that this story will also be published on Fanfiction eventually...provided that I don't get invaded by Vondon Wiles, whoever he/she is.
That being said, I hope you enjoy the story.
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The Adventures of Petrie in Threehorn Valley
Intro
(Fade in to an orange-yellow background. We hear a feminine voice whistling a tune. Moments later, a figure steps into view. It is Ruby, a very light pink oviraptor, otherwise known as a "fast-runner." She is looking around while taking a stroll. At one point, she directs her face to the camera for a brief moment, which results in a double-take, resulting in the cease of her whistling. Spotting the human audience in the outside and unknown world, she gasps and wanders closer to the camera. Her smile widens with delight as she looks left and right at the people that are seemingly visible; from where, no one really knows, but what difference does it make? Finally, she speaks.)
Ruby: Why...hello my friends, my friends hello! Welcome to the story! We're so glad you came, because if you didn't come...well, chances are, no one would, right? (giggles) Anyways...
(At this point, a small indigo-colored t-rex, or "sharptooth" named Chomper appears.)
Chomper: Hi Ruby! Listen, have you seen Littlefoot? We were all playing hide-and-seek and I can't find him anywhere!
Ruby: No, Chomper, I haven't seen him, seen him I have not. Have you found anyone else?
Chomper: I still need to find Littlefoot, but I found the rest of them.
Ruby: Well, I'm sure he'll turn up eventually. You might not have been looking close enough, so maybe you should look closer than you probably did.
Chomper: Oh...okay. (leaves the screen)
Ruby: (turning back to the audience) Now, where was I? Oh yes! This story you're about to see is all about Petrie! Hey, I think that rhymed quite nicely! (giggles)
(Chomper re-appears, with an "are you nuts?" look.)
Chomper: Uh, Ruby? Who are you talking to?
Ruby: The story audience, Chomper!
Chomper: Huh?
Ruby: (pointing a finger from left to right to present the audience) They're all right there! See?
(Chomper looks directly at the camera, looking confused at first, then gasps. A smile spreads on his face as he looks left and right.)
Chomper: You're right, Ruby! I never thought there were so many...people out there watching us!
Ruby: Yeah! Isn't it amazing?
(A bee, or stinging buzzer, suddenly appears on screen. Chomper quickly catches it and eats it as Ruby appears to be a bit bewildered, even though she should be used to Chomper's eating habits by now.)
Ruby: Ummm...I'll take that as a yes. (turns back to audience) Anyways, in this story, Petrie is going to ask for your help, your help he is going to ask for. At times, he'll want you to talk and play along with him! Sounds fun, doesn't it?
Audience (audio consisting of mostly young children): YEAH!
Chomper: (looking from behind, seeing only the background, then back at Ruby) Umm...Ruby?
Ruby: Yes?
Chomper: How should we start?
Ruby: Easy! Just count backwards from 10, count to 10 backwards! (whispers in Chomper's ear) That's how you start our adventure, Chomper.
Chomper: What adventure?
Ruby: Well...you know what, why don't we let the people out there see for themselves; though I'm sure you'll remember it as well as I do!
Chomper: Umm...okay.
Ruby: (to the audience) Can you all help us count backwards from 10?
Audience: YEAH!
Ruby: Great! Ready? Yell real loud!
(Ruby, Chomper, and the audience count to 10 backwards. All the while, an old-fashioned film leader countdown appears, replacing the orange-yellow background. When the countdown finishes, a black background is shown momentarily before it fades in to a shot of Earth.)
Chomper: Wow! I wonder what that big circle might be?
Ruby: It's our land, Chomper! It's Earth!
Chomper: Really?
Ruby: Yeah! Isn't it a great place to seek?
Chomper: It sure is! (gasps) Speaking of seeking, I still have to find Littlefoot! See you later! (waves a hand to the audience, then exits.)
Ruby: See ya, Chomper! Good luck finding him! (turns back to the audience) As for all of you out there, well (chuckles), enjoy the story, everyone!
(Ruby leaves the screen. Moments later, the camera begins to zoom in closer and closer to the earth. While it is zooming in, the title "The Land Before Time", followed shortly by, "The Adventures of Petrie in Threehorn Valley", appear in bright orange, both fading out almost just as quickly as they had appeared.)
(Note: I am posting the above intro and the first chapter at the same time due to the intro's short length.)
Chapter I: A Flyer, His Friends, And A Stick
Millions and millions of years ago, our world was very different from what it is now.
Before the time came when the first ever human stepped foot upon the earth, the world was populated by breathtaking creatures, all of whom were very much unique, coming in different shapes, sizes, and colors. Of these creatures, the mightiest of them were called...the dinosaurs! For thousands of centuries, these massive creatures roamed the earth. Some swam, and some flew. Some were plant-eaters who enjoyed grazing in the grass, while others, such as the dreadful sharpteeth, hunted for the tasteful flesh of other dinosaurs. At this point in time, the land was changing drastically, the habitats becoming more and more dangerous by the days, the minutes, even the seconds. Fear struck especially upon those who neared the brink in becoming dinner for the sharpteeth. In addition, natural disasters; hurricanes, tornadoes, and the like; occasionally struck, often ending in tragedy.
Still, despite the harsh natural habitats, as well as the dangers and criticized differences in the land, life in the Great Valley remained as it had been for the longest time; the same. It was a wondrous place where food, of which the amount was plentiful, could be enjoyed by the many who wandered across the beautiful piece of land. Here, it was also the place where good friends; like Littlefoot the longneck, Cera the threehorn, Ducky the swimmer, Petrie the flyer, Spike the spiketail, Ruby the fast-runner, and Chomper the friendly sharptooth; could play, learn, laugh, and grow together under the watchful eyes of their families who loved their children dearly.
For the moment, however, the Great Valley seemed to be a desert; almost completely mute, the silence only broken by the everlasting cool breeze and the occasional sound of crickets preparing to depart from the night sky.
As our story starts, the bright circle was beginning to rise up from the sky, which had turned from a very dark blue to a beautiful misty orange color. Shortly afterwards, it had transitioned to a very light blue, with a few light clouds; but then, the clouds didn't really matter at this point, and neither did the weather conditions, except for the fact that it was another beautiful day. By now, Littlefoot and the rest of his friends, along with their families, had woken up as casually as they could and were eating their breakfasts. Afterwards, as the friends would always do, they would have a fun morning together, playing games such as tag, toss the seed, swimmer and splasher, or just about any game that satisfied the rest of them. However, only after everyone had finished eating and were just starting to have fun did anyone notice that a certain flyer friend was still missing from the group.
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In his nest, little Petrie still continued to lay fast asleep, holding a stick directly next to him, a visible smile showing on his face. From what looks could tell, Petrie was having a few great dreams; something he had not had in at least a couple of weeks, because many of his dreams (or rather, nightmares) from those weeks consisted of him getting chased and even eaten by Red Claw or by one of his fastbiter partners, Screech or Thud, sometimes both. Maybe the simple reminder to himself that they could no longer get into the valley had comforted him a little. Or was it the stick that he was cuddling with as he slept? Did it seem...special to him? Maybe the fact that he wasn't holding it right next to him could've caused those nightmares. Whatever the case was, just one little object was surely making him sleep better and longer than he had for a while.
Sadly for him, it wasn't long before his peaceful slumber that had lasted from the previous night was abruptly interrupted by the awake.
"Hey beakhead, wake up!" a voice suddenly shouted, with a slight tone of impatience.
"YAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH-Oof!"
By now, Petrie had been jerked awake and had jumped high into the air until he hit his head on the top of the cave, then had harshly landed back to the ground ("Ouch!"), almost landing right on the stick he had held. Making a shudder and a quick recovery, he sat up and turned around to notice that his mother and (to his slight chagrin) all of his siblings (how many even he didn't know) were already awake. The siblings were all noticeably staring at Petrie, all looking as if he was in a modern-day military camp and had failed to complete a task. If a task was assigned, it must have been to wake up at the same time as everyone else in the family. Luckily, his mother was quite a cause for a case of quick intervention.
"Now, now, kids, don't start arguing with him at this time of day," she said calmly.
"But Mama--" one sibling tried to protest, but--
"No buts. Just control yourselves. Good morning, Petrie," she said, turning her attention to Petrie.
"What so good about it?" Petrie asked rhetorically, obviously irritated.
His mother sighed. "Look, I'm sorry about the behavior of your brothers and sisters this morning. They're still not used to the fact that you sleep longer than anybody else here."
"You not be sorry, Mama. You no do anything wrong. Really, it them who should be sorry! They the ones who--"
"Petrie, calm down...calm down...take a couple of deep breaths," her mother advised her. Petrie obeyed as if he was a trained pet and tried to appear calm as she spoke again. "I saw your actions when all of your brother and sisters woke you up so rudely a minute ago. I guess they just need to learn how to behave better for a change. It's a good thing your snuggling stick didn't break though, right?"
"Yeah, good thing all right," Petrie said sarcastically, still a bit upset, "Me nearly landed on it, and it their fault! Hmph!" Folding his wings, he turned away from the rest of the group.
Petrie's mother turned to the rest of her children, who by now were looking ashamed.
"Kids," she said, "I think you owe someone an apology."
The children hesitated at first, but with an encouraging "go on" gesture, a couple of them managed to approach Petrie slowly but surely. None of them spoke at first. Then, a brother cleared his throat, took a deep breath, and spoke when he was sure he was able to get the words out properly.
"Listen, Petrie," he began with confidence, "We--we may seem like we don't really care all that much about you, but...but deep inside..." He paused to take a sigh. "We really do. All of us."
"Yeah," a sister spoke, "We are your brother and sisters, after all. I guess...I guess we just don't often think before we speak or act." By now, Petrie had finally turned around to face his siblings, his look of displeasure retarding to a look of pleading forgiveness.
"We're sorry for waking you up like we did, Petrie," said the brother, "I promise, Petrie, and I'm sure the rest of us do as well; next time, we'll be more careful and think before doing anything that may upset you. We would never do anything like...break your snuggling stick on purpose."
After a brief silence, Petrie finally spoke up. "You...you mean it?"
"Sure we do--that is, if you love it that much."
Petrie chuckled, to the siblings' relief. "Of course me love it! It my favorite thing in the world! ...Well, 'sides friends, that is."
"We're well aware of that!" another sister said, "Although I can't help but say this..."
"Say what?" Petrie inquired, noticing her attempt to hold back laughter.
"You...you should've seen your face when you jumped into the air so high like that!" she responded, now full-out laughing along with the rest of the siblings. Though Petrie looked discouraged for a moment, he couldn't help but join in the laughter too. When it died down, he approached each of his siblings to give them all hugs, each of them hugging back in return while his mother witnessed this scene with adoration.
"Awww, thanks, guys!" Petrie said as he received a hug from the sibling he had done so last, "You may be grouchy sometimes, but you my brothers and sisters, no matter what. Me forgive you!"
"Thanks, Petrie," a brother said, "We needed that. We all did, really."
A brief and somewhat uncomfortable pause passed before Petrie asked, "Uh, Mama? Friends probably waiting for me somewhere. Can me go play with them now?"
"Um...aren't you forgetting something, dear?" she asked as if he hadn't done something important.
"No, Mom! Me good, really!" Petrie replied. Before anyone else could speak, however, a weird and rather embarrassing growling sound shook the nest. It was his tummy, grumbling as if it were to say "feed me" in a completely foreign language that he somehow understood. "Um...Petrie getting pretty hungry, though!" he chuckled awkwardly.
"I thought so," his mother responded back, "because everyone else has already eaten and you haven't. But then, why would you eat when you're asleep?" This earned another giggle from Petrie. "You wait here. I'll be right back."
With that, she took off. No more than two minutes later, she arrived back with a small pile of treestars for Petrie, who devoured them within the same amount of time.
As he ate, one of his brothers said, "Slow down, Petrie! You don't want to get sick, do you?", but he was so hungry, he was hardly paying attention.
"Whew! That much better!" said Petrie as he finished, patting his tummy, "Thanks, Mom!"
"Don't mention it, dear!" she replied, patting Petrie on the head gently.
"So...now can me--"
"Have fun!"
"YAY!"
With a quick hug by his mother, he flew off. In a matter of seconds, however, he returned, stricken with an idea.
"Me want to take snuggling stick with me to show friends! Please, Mama?"
"Of course you can, Petrie," she said, "just as long as you don't lose it on the way."
"No worry, Mom, me won't lose it."
"Well, you almost lost it when we moved into this nest. I surely don't want you to--"
"Mooooom--"
"OK, I'm done. I know you won't lose it. Now go off and have fun with your friends. I'll see you at lunch later."
"You too, Mom. Thanks!" Petrie said.
He then grabbed his snuggling stick, placed it inside of his beak and flew off, looking downwards to see where his questioning friends might be. As he continued to fly, he was so focused on many happy thoughts of his (perhaps another new adventure was bound to happen?) that he didn't realize he was heading for another direction, which just so happened to be where the camera was, until...
BUMP!
Unintentionally ramming his head into the camera, he shuddered while making a quick headshake. Coming to his senses, he proceeded to look directly at the camera, letting out a scream that signified he was scared of the alien-ish-looking audience that surrounded him. More obviously than not, this had made him drop the stick. He began to fly back to where he had came from, but then it quickly occurred to him...
"Hey! Me lost snuggling stick!"
Luckily for him, being a flyer, he was able to find it very swiftly; it had landed on a patch of unhidden grassy ground. Flying way down in a rapid speed, he landed and grabbed hold of the stick. After catching his breath, he stood up, set the stick aside, dusted himself off, and decided to take another chance and look at whatever he had caught sight of moments ago. Curiously lumbering closer and closer to the camera, he looked left and right to see the strange (rather creepy?) looking creatures that were in fact far away from the actual setting of this story. Though not outright scared of them anymore, he still appeared rather nervous towards them. The awkward silence continued for a while as Petrie continued to hesitate to speak a word; any words; to them, but he eventually did.
"You...you all look so...so strange..." he managed to utter through his visible tenseness, "You...not hurt Petrie, will you?"
To his relief, the audience (or was it the camera?) shook their heads.
"Whew! That good. You may look strange, but you not look like anyone who hurt me. In fact..." Ceasing to talk momentarily, Petrie put a finger to his chin, to think about what he was going to say before making up his mind. "...maybe...just maybe, we can be friends! ...Can we?"
The audience (aka camera) nodded simultaneously in an almost immediate response. Petrie giggled joyfully.
"That great! Me always feel happy when me meet new friends! Well...'cept the bad ones. Me no like them so much. But you no look like bad friends to have fun with! It great to have you all here!"
Just then, a voice was heard shouting from nearby.
"Petrie, where are you?!" it shouted; unmistakably, it was Cera. This was followed by Littlefoot, Ducky, Ruby and Chomper also shouting his name, all simultaneously, plus a grunt from Spike. Petrie had turned away from the audience and was looking towards his right amidst the shouting.
"Oh! That my friends!" he said, turning his head back towards the audience, "Me gotta go! Me hope to see you all later!" He then grabbed the stick from where he had set it last, placed it inside of his beak once more, and began to fly off, heading toward the direction where his friends had called him. He eventually spotted them nearby some bushes, where they had already gathered.
"There you are, Petrie!" Cera said as soon as he approached them, "We've been waiting for you for half an hour!"
"Yeah!" Chomper almost immediately chimed in, "Where were you, anyways?"
"Um...me overslept?" Petrie replied, almost sheepishly. Cera wanted to retaliate, but had to restrain for once because she felt she could not translate what she wanted to say into words.
"Hey Petrie," Littlefoot cut in curiously, "Is that your snuggling stick that you're carrying with you?"
"Uh-huh!"
"Any purpose of why you brought it with you?" Cera inquired, her tone a bit rough.
"Well, me wanted to...wait, how you know about it? You not even with me when me move into new nest!"
"I didn't...at least not until Littlefoot told me and Ducky about it, of course," she responded. She knew that The Days of Rising Waters were occurring when he did move into the nest not too long ago, but as he did so, she, Ducky and Spike, as well as her little stepsister Tricia, were out enjoying the day, while in the meantime, Ducky had tried to teach Tricia how to swim, with humorous results.
"Oh yes," Ducky added, "He tolded us how much you loved your snuggling stick, and that you never, ever want to lose it, oh no no no."
"Which you almost did that day," Ruby said matter-of-factly, "when that landslide came and--"
"Please...no remind me!" Petrie pleaded impassionedly, "Ducky right; me not ever want to lose it again!"
Feeling taken aback momentarily, Ruby regained herself. "I'm sorry, Petrie, sorry I am," she apologized, "You must really care about that stick."
"Me do, because it not just ordinary stick, least to me," Petrie explained, "It very cuddly, and me no can sleep without it. Me not want to lose it...ever. In fact, me not think me can lose it even if me tried!"
"Oh, really?" Cera questioned.
"Oh yes," Petrie replied as he hugged the stick, "Because...we together as one!"
This left Cera confused. "Now what's he mean by that?" Cera asked Spike, who simply replied with a grunt, complete with a tone that simply said, "I don't know." Shrugging it off, the gang proceeded to stroll through the valley, making sure they would avoid any paths that were dangerous; then again, nothing could be dangerous on a calm, average morning like this. As they began their strolling, Petrie started to hum a tune to himself. Sure enough, everyone else began to hear it, glancing and grinning at him. Thereafter, the rest of the gang, minus Spike, added in to the tune themselves.
Mmm-bop, mmm-bop
Mmm-bop, mmm-bop
Mmm-bop-bop, mmm-bop-bop
The gang repeated the vocalization at least twice. At this point, Petrie had filled his head with many happy thoughts and felt like singing to express them. Of course, that was exactly what he began to do, adoring his snuggling stick the whole way.
Well, it's just you and me together
On such a carefree day
Although our fun may not last forever...
Well, I wouldn't want you any other way!
And if I was nervous, you would make me
Feel so big and proud!
With you, my heart is singing out loud!
When we're both together, we always
Play and have lots of fun!
You and me, we'll always be
Foot loose and fancy free
You and me, we'll always be
Together as one!
Gang (minus Spike):
Mmm-bop, mmm-bop
Mmm-bop, mmm-bop
Mmm-bop-bop, bop
Littlefoot:
You two have got a lot in common
As far as I can see
Ducky:
Oh yes!
It is almost like you both are closer than us
But maybe not as close as me!
Cera:
So what? It's just a stick, so why don't you
Get it away from your sight?
Petrie:
Hey, no fair!
It keeps me a-sleepin'
If ever I'm awake at night
At this point, the gang resumed singing backups.
Oh, no matter what can happen to any of us (Ahhhhhh...)
We'll just live it up on the run (Oooooohhh--Ahhhhhh...)
Because you and me, we'll always be (Always be!)
Foot loose and fancy free (So fancy free!)
You and me, we'll always be (To-gether!)
Together as one!
Gang (minus Spike):
Mmm-bop, mmm-bop
Mmm-bop, mmm-bop
Mmm-bop-bop, ahhhhh...
Chomper:
It may not suit you best (Hmmmm...)
But it's enough for you (Ooooohhhh...)
Ruby:
You are right, right you are!
Not only that, (Hmmmmm...)
It gives you comfort, too (Ooooohhh...)
Petrie:
Uh-huh!
Whether it's tomorrow or today (Ahhhhh...)
As long as you're with me (Ahhhhh...)
Our good times won't go away! (Mmmmm...)
(Don't go away! 3x)
Don't go away! (amidst above)
At this point, Petrie, who had been on Littlefoot's back the whole time, began to fly upwards, heading towards the sky and setting his snuggling stick on his back.
"Me be right back, friends!" he shouted. The rest of the gang were struck dumb momentarily, but figuring he would probably meet them back in a minute or so, they forged onward. When Petrie had risen high in the sky (being careful not to go through any sky puffies in the process), he turned his face to the off-screen audience once more and began to speak to them, whilst flapping his wings.
(A/N: Note that the audience is not actually shown; you are the audience. Feel free to pretend being part of it...and possibly forget about your age, too...)
"OK, me want to have a little fun with all of you! Me want you to get up and stand on tippy-tippy toes. Now, start flapping your wings like what me doing now. If you no got wings, use hands...but then, that be all of you, right?" He paused to chuckle. Meanwhile, it appeared to him that the audience was obeying his steps, and certainly having fun doing so.
"Ooh! That very good! Now, can you spread arms out like this?" He demonstrated, and the audience did the same while moving them slowly like a seesaw. "Whoo-hoo! Me amazed how smart you are! Now, can you do loop-de-loop, like this?" He demonstrated, but immediately received a head shake from the camera. "Huh? You no can--? Oh wait...me just remember; you not flyers. Me guess I the only one. Oh well then, me remember next time. Anyway, me better go now before friends shout for me. Me see you later, OK?"
With a "goodbye for now" wave, he flew downwards, quickly being able to see land, and found his friends at a distance from him, all of whom were still enjoying their stroll. When he got to them, he landed and perched on Littlefoot's back, almost promptly grabbing hold of his snuggling stick.
"Hey Petrie. Where were you up there?" Littlefoot asked him.
Petrie did not want his friends to think he was weird if he told them that some unknown creatures were watching them from far away, so he simply replied with, "Oh, me just wanted to see good view of valley from high in the sky, that all. Not much else, really. The view look beautiful from there!"
"Easy for you to say," Cera chimed in, "you're a flyer, after all."
"Oh, you got that right!" Petrie responded cheerfully, "It amazing, but me like me snuggling stick just as much as all of you!"
With that, the gang laughed (even Cera couldn't resist laughing), and resumed singing, Petrie once again taking the lead.
No matter the time, both of us can play (Ahhhhh...)
At least until the day is done (Ooooohhhh--Ahhhhh...)
Oh, you and me, we'll always be (Al-ways be!)
Foot loose and fancy free (Ooh, so fancy free!)
You and me, we'll always be (We'll always be together!)
Together as oooooooooooooooone--Yeah!
As he sang the last long note, and even afterwards, the gang continued to sing their "Mmm-bop, mmm-bop" backups, doing so at least three times, therefore finishing off the song.
Their strolling eventually came to a stop, and the not-so-exhausted gang took a short rest break. Five minutes later, the gang silently met back up again and just stared at one another. A couple of minutes passed before anyone dared to move. Finally, Petrie flew off of Littlefoot's back and at first seemed to be flying away again. Suspicions of this were quickly proven false when Petrie made a sharp turn forward. He headed towards Littlefoot and pecked him on the back.
"Tag! You it!" he called out at once before taking off, hoping not to get caught.
"Oh, I'm gonna get you good!" Littlefoot shouted, and he and the rest of the gang began to chase after him, laughing all the way.
The seven friends continued to have fun throughout the rest of the morning. Their playtime, not dependable on wasting, was very valuable indeed, and the rest needed afterwards was a reward for each of them. Most of all, though, they just enjoyed each other's companies. Little did they know, however, that within the next few hours, more-than-not bizarre and unexpected events were to take place...
