Norton was beginning to lose interest in this. It was clear to him that the sharptooth was all bluster and no action, and if he had been serious, he would've done something by now. He figured he'd let the younger ones play out their game with him now, as he had other things to be taking care of.
Littlefoot too was bit uncomfortable with this whole thing, though he had to admit that Chomper's idea had worked. It had gotten the small sharpteeth to finally back down and become a bit more mellow, or at least the one of them. He looked up at Ruby as he started to walk back inside the alcove. It was time for some sleep... or at least in his mind it was. "So... even though I promised Chomper I'd keep it a secret... you really think... that telling the others is for the best? I admit I don't really like lying." he stated, shaking his head.
"But at the same time, the others might... not see it the same way I do. Chomper is Chomper, but he's still a sharptooth, and they know that. I just don't want them hating him because he's... started to eat meat." the longneck explained. "Maybe I should talk to Chomper first, about it." he suggested, wondering if that was the better course.
Norton hopped over to Pterano, Petrie, and Harper. "What a ridiculous bit of drama that was." he stated, smiling at them as he stretched his arms and yawned. "I guess we should head to bed soon, huh?" he asked, scratching his chest.
Pterano nodded, but thought of something. "You... had something you wanted to tell me... didn't you, Norton?" the older flyer asked. "You can tell me... us in fact. We're all family, and if I promise not to say a word about it, my niece and nephew are just as good on their words." he explained.
Oh Pterano... if you only knew about your statement. "We're all family..." Norton repeated, soft and low. "Heh... Pterano... Petrie... Harper... that's so very true." he said, though Pterano only raised a brow. "Pterano." he said, looking right at him. "You're... family... because... you're my..." he stuck a foot claw into the pool, twirling it around again. "Father." he said, looking down into the rippling water.
At first, Pterano didn't react, only shifting a bit as his brow furrowed in confusion. "I... beg your pardon?" he asked.
"Dad... the egg... that your mate said she'd smash... the one that she took with her and you lost track of... that was me. I was that egg. But I wasn't smashed... because your mate recovered from her illness... and I hatched." he said, a small smile spreading over his features as Pterano's face went from firm confusion to complete shock.
"I... how could you know...?" he asked, shaking his head, but somehow, he knew the answer. The coloration on this flyer... his mannerisms... his crest... his... everything. Only someone with intimate knowledge of that day could know any of these details... and thus it had to be true. He couldn't say anything at first, and Norton just stood there, shaking a little at his nervousness. His trembling became visible to the older flyer, and Pterano closed his open beak.
"I don't believe it..." He whispered, moving over to him. "I... AM a father?" he asked incredulously. Norton merely nodded shyly.
"Would make me your cousin." Norton spoke after a moment, looking at both Petrie and Harper. "Your mom was lucky she had such a big brood." he said, smiling again.
Pterano looked the young flyer up and down, taking in everything. He had his crest... his beak... the color was darker, but he could see his mate must've had something to do with that. Such an impressive flyer at that... and suddenly, Pterano's chest welled with pride, and he reached out, pulling the surprised Norton in for a hearty hug.
If the others were paying close attention, they could see Norton's body start to convulse in sobs, his body shaking as his father hugged him. He wasn't sure if his father was good, or bad, but being here with him like this... it felt right.
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Cyrix might have felt the ground shake a little under him as Grandpa Longneck came up from behind. "Hello, Cyrix. I'm not sleeping well myself, tonight." the old longneck admitted. How has Longtail been holding up?" he asked, looking over in the sleeping flyer's direction. "At least he's asleep." he commented with a smile. "I was thinking about letting him look for our children tomorrow... with your permission of course." he politely added, making sure to not overstep the rainbow face's authority.