Having survived the massive storm, Littlefoot, Chomper, and all the others were safe. After such an ordeal, Littlefoot remembered who he was always with during bad weather and thought to himself, "Don't worry, Grandma and Grandpa. We'll see each other again. I just know it."
************
"I'm still worried," Grandpa Longneck said. "Did the children even remember the right way?"
"Oh dear," was all his mate could say.
"Oh, don't worry. Chomper lived near the Big Water for a long time. He definately knows how to get there," Ecco said, confidently.
"Hmph! What good is knowing how to get there? There are sharpteeth everywhere in the Mysterious Beyond!" Mr. Three Horn retorted, and everyone began whispering.
Ecco knew that Chomper's uncle was going to protect everyone. That's the problem. If the grownups find their kids trail, a large sharptooth trail would surely be close by and they'll think the worst. Ecco called, "I'll run ahead and see if I can find their pawprints!" Nobody objected to that. Their kids wouldn't be gone if Ecco had told them sooner. Now was his time to make ammends. He ran ahead for a while. Eventually, he did notice very large, deep pawprints, obviously from a full grown sharptooth. Then he was able to make out three sets of pawprints made by four leggers and two by twoleggers. "The others," he thought, knowing Petrie flies and Ducky rides Spike. Then he noticed something else. "Why do they have fast biters with them?" he wondered, puzzled, not knowing of Redclaw's underlings. All the prints went on for a while, very close together. "If the fast biters were going to attack them, they wouldn't have stayed with the others for so long, but instead would have made their move more quickly," he thought, understanding fast biter methods. "Perhaps they're friends of Reclaw? Oh, it doesn't matter. If they see their kids' prints, along with sharpteeth prints, they'll panic. What am I going to do about this one?" he thought, desparately for a while. Then he remembered how things looked toward the left of the way he came and he thought of a very tricky yet honest set of statements that just might work. Running back, he soon met up with the grownups with his report.
"I looked all around for their footprints. I never was the luckiest dinosaur, I guess. The ground is pretty rough up ahead. I would make a course change toward the left a little bit because it's much smoother that way. Then you won't have to worry about all the holes I saw," he explained, knowing everything he said was true.
"How thoughtful of you, Ecco," Grandpa Longneck remarked, not wanting to walk through holes. "Changing direction a little will take us a bit longer in getting there, but rough terrain would probably do so as well. Smooth ground would be easier on all of us. Alright Ecco, we'll veer more to the left."
"You're scared of a few smudges in our path? Just like a longneck to try the easiest way!" Cera's dad remarked.
"Is there a reason to do things the hardest way?" Littlefoot's grandfather asked.
Topsy felt blood rush to his face after hearing it that way. "I'm tough! I can do things anyway I want! I'll just go that way by myself if no one else can!" he yelled. Ecco cringed.
"Now, now Mr. Three Horn. We all know how tough you are so we need you around if the rest of us run into too much trouble," he said, very reasonably trying to keep everyone together.
"Hmph! If you need me so badly than fine! Next time I might not be there though so learn to toughen up yourselves!"
As long as they stayed as a group, the others were happy and didn't argue with him. They proceeded together, more towards the left now. Ecco sighed, relieved, although he did have a headache from doing all that. Hidden speaking of that level can really take its toll after a while. "You guys are now in my debt for a very, very long time now," he thought, painfully to himself.
