The Herd

By TabbyBri (#430441) on Lioden

With an elongated, soft bellow of air, Rosa Choque the Parasaurolophus nudged beneath the branches of a conifer, setting her paws with their blunt claws carefully down among the seed ferns. A lovely specimen of her species, her hide was a mixture of black along her back, the upper half of her skull, and her legs and tail; her undersides were bright, pinkish red, and clear white stripes split the black along her shoulders and down the length of her tail. She nudged her narrow muzzle through the ferns, before releasing a soft groan of displeasure at the dry sensation of the ferns scratching against her face. Edible, yes; tasty, no. Shaking her head dismissively and moving forward with new energy, Rosa Choque moved quietly through the dry foliage, hoping to find a lake from which she could drink. Also, it was likely that the flora near a lake would be less dry, more tender than the offerings here.

While Parasaurolophus were naturally a herd species, Rosa Choque, who was almost a full-adult but not quite yet at that point, traveled alone. This was not truly by choice, but the fact was that in this forest and in surrounding territories, few members of her species were to be found. She supposed this was not the case in other lands, as she knew, according to her grandparents, that her species was abundant all around these lands; but as for herself, she had never met many Parasaurolophus outside of her family. During her great-grandparents' time, according to what she had been told by her now-deceased grandparents, who had been children at the time, there had been a stone that fell from the air in this territory - not a terribly large stone, and the immediate effects of its impact were not what had been concerning, all things considered. The impact had destroyed any flora or fauna in its immediate path; but the after-effects, according to her grandparents, had been what had devastated the forest and several of the surrounding territories in which they lived.

The impact had sent shock waves coursing throughout the land surrounding the impact site, toppling trees and cracking the ground many miles away from where the stone itself had struck. Those who had been close enough to safely view the impact, as from a high point, or those who were on the wing at a safe distance, reported that the stone had burst apart in all directions, in a massive boom of energy and force, leaving a deep hole in the ground and thrusting the surrounding rocks and soil upward into jagged, skyward angled points. Dust had choked the air for months afterward and had dimmed the sun and darkened the land, according to Rosa's grandparents. The heat from the falling stone had set off forest fires in several nearby locations, and yet more animals had perished in those blazes. For many days afterward the ground had occasionally been gripped by fierce shakes. Oddly, although the land had abruptly dropped in temperature due to the blocked sunlight, which in turn caused many plants to die, and caused many herbivores to go hungry, according to Rosa Choque's grandparents, the temperatures had then begun to rise far past the temperature their home had held before the stone had fallen. The dust had cleared and plants had begun to grow once again, as her grandparents, themselves, grew into young adults, met each other, and became parents to Rosa's own parents, but the temperatures had continued to rise in their location. This, alongside the initial damage caused by the impact of the relatively small falling stone, had caused many members of her species (and all other species in this location) to be killed – starved or dehydrated, or hunted by the equally desperate predators – or forced to relocate in order to survive. As such, now, decades after the stone had fallen from the sky, little impacting areas far from Rosa's forest home but having devastated this location, few members of her species and others remained.

Long story short, the end result was that, regardless of personal preferences, Rosa Choque now traveled alone. Her grandparents had passed in her youth, and her parents had followed not that long ago – her mother to sickness, and her father to predation.

Currently, she was traveling along the edges of what had been her territory home, as she finally considered leaving the lands for others that were hopefully more temperate, more lush. As she moved through the brush, she paused at the sound of a screech of alarm up ahead; some dinosaur's screech. Rising onto her hind legs and lifting her head to scent the air, pupils widening as she caught the scent of meat-eaters, Rosa shifted from foot to foot, caught between curiosity and concern, and the need to remain safe from predators. Finally, shaking her head and dropping back to all fours, Rosa Choque cautiously padded in the direction from which the screech had come.

Shouldering past a thick bush, Rosa emerged into a small clearing and quickly took in the sight before her; she was facing a dense wall of vegetation, and in the clearing between her and that wall of vegetation was a rush of movement, a confrontation between a group of would-be prey and a group of predators. Rosa snorted softly as she recognized the cornered prey as a family of Ajkaceratops, a very small species of quadruped herbivores who were short in height, small in overall size; with their necks protected by a head crest and with a small, blunt spike on the bridge of their beaked muzzles, the Ajkaceratops were not completely without defense; yet they were far smaller than Rosa's species, with their entire bodies being only around half the length of a Parasaurolophus' skull. Five members of this tiny species were huddled in a defensive bundle, harried on all sides by a pack of seven Aristosuchus, small bipedal predators with long hind legs and a long, feathered tail. Larger than their targets, but still much smaller than Rosa, the predators circled their prey. The hunters snapped their long narrow jaws at the Ajkaceratops sides, trying to shove their teeth beneath the head crests to reach the soft skinned necks below.

With a resonating bellow resounding through her own head crest, Rosa Choque moved forward. “Hey!” she exclaimed. “Why don't you leave them alone? Go hunt some insects, you pests!”

At her words, the Aristosuchae spun around to regard her through sharp gazes that varied from blue, to green, to yellow. One of them stalked forward toward her, hissing. “Why don't you leave us to our meal before we rip you apart, too?”

Rosa hesitated, realizing that while each of these particular predators were around the length of her head, their teeth were sharp, their legs long; they were well muscled and there were seven of them. She was not, in fact, certain that it had been a good idea to challenge them. Regardless, she rose onto her hind legs, lifting her neck further out of reach and flicking her gaze from the frightened family of Ajkaceratops who were still cornered by the other six Aristosuchae, to the leader of the hunters. With a rumbling warning rattling in her throat, Rosa moved forward. “I said to leave them alone.”

Turning away from their prey, the rest of the pack joined their leader in circling the brave Parasaurolophus, hissing, snapping, and biting at her legs, not making contact just yet, but working to frighten and unnerve her. She noticed out of the corner of her eye that the family of Ajkaceratops, with grateful looks her way, fled through the foliage and disappeared. Glad they had escaped but now uncertain how to escape her own circumstances, Rosa backed up a step and swung her tail in a warning swipe at the nearest predator to her side, hoping to scatter them and deescalate the situation before it got out of hand. As she swung her tail, however, and swiped one hunter off of his feet, causing him to roll to the ground with an indignant squawk, another of the pack took the opportunity to spring onto the base of her tail, hooking his hind claws painfully into her back in order to hold on. In a flash, using her pained distraction to its advantage, another of the hunters launched his small body onto her left flank, attempting to scramble up her hip to join its fellow at the base of her spine.

Snorting in alarm, Rosa Choque shook her young body, attempting to displace the small, sharp-fanged predators before they could reach her neck, before they could do serious harm, but their claws had latched into her hide, and she could not shake them free. Twisting, shaking, Rosa tried to free herself, dropping to all fours, lifting to her hind legs, snorting, stamping at the small predators that swarmed around her legs, that tried to bite at her belly when it came within their reach, feeling the two that were on her back scaling her spine to her neck. Lunging sideways on instinct, Rosa Choque slammed the Aristosuchus that gripped her hip against a tree, scraping it off her side and sending it falling back to the ground. As it joined the others in snapping at her legs, Rosa felt the one on her back clamber closer to her neck, and she blasted a note of fear as its teeth bit into her shoulder.

Suddenly, however, rushing, pounding steps approached, and the predators at her feet yelped in panicked screeches and bolted into the depths of the forest, abruptly abandoning their attack; and their pack member who remained on her back. Rosa Choque just barely heard her attacker let out a sound of confusion, likely at its packmates actions, before the small form was wrenched from her spine. Spinning around, Rosa saw the Aristosuchus caught, itself held in the jaws of a much larger predator, one that was larger than Rosa Choque herself. She was looking at a brown and tan Meraxes gigas, one that looked to be around her own age, perhaps. Rosa took a few cautious steps back, realizing that this predator could kill her in one bite, but realizing also, with confusion, that he appeared to be helping her.

He gave the predator in his teeth a light shake and dropped the wounded Aristosuchus to the ground, where it whimpered and drug itself to its feet. Snarling down at the puny predator, the Meraxes gigas bared his teeth and quietly said, “I believe you heard what the Parasaurolophus said. Get out of here.”

Instantly, the Aristosuchus spun and raced in the direction its fellows had gone. Rosa Choque swallowed and took one more step back as the Meraxes gigas turned his black eyes onto her, regarding her with a tilt of his head. “It's alright, I'm not here to hurt you. Actually, I... I saw how brave you were, trying to help those Ajkaceratops. I just wanted to help. They were hurting you, and I wasn't sure you'd be okay.” Blinking, he took a step back himself, as if to reassure her by placing some distance between them. “My name is Arlex. What's yours?”

Hesitating, Rosa took a cautious step forward now, approaching the seemingly kind predator. “My name? I'm Rosa Choque. I... thank you for helping me.”

Perking up, Arlex was clearly pleased. “Anytime! Erm... where were you traveling before this all happened? This area doesn't seem to have any dens nearby.”

Slightly puzzled, Rosa nonetheless answered, “I was just trying to find a lake, perhaps some plants to eat that aren't so dry. As I'm sure you know, this territory has been... less than ideal for years now.”

Nodding, Arlex quietly said, “I was also looking for a lake. Ah... this may be an odd thing to ask, but... I haven't seen many others around for a long time, apart from... you know, things I need to eat.” He cleared his throat a bit awkwardly. “Do you mind if I stick with you for a bit? Just to have someone to talk with.”

“Really?” Rosa Choque blinked, regarding the predator with some distrust, knowing he could find a filling meal in her. Regardless, he had helped her, and did not appear to be threatening in any way. “Well... I don't see why not.”

For the following day, Rosa Choque the Parasaurolophus traveled with Arlex the Meraxes gigas, the predator who towered over her by around a head. During this time, she learned that Arlex's had also lost his family. There had been too little prey to survive on during his childhood years (this, he said, with an apologetic look to his new, prey species friend) and his parents had too often gone hungry in their attempts to ensure their son ate well. Over time, this had taken a toll on his parents health, and as Arlex approached adulthood, his parents had passed away from sustained illness, weakness, and general long-term hunger. Now, Arlex had been alone for over a year, and being a massive predator, his options for forming friendships were generally limited. He seemed relieved to meet Rosa Choque, and as for the Parasaurolophus, she was finding that the carnivore was easy to talk with, and that, dietary requirements aside, the two dinosaurs had much in common; plenty enough for the foundation of a friendship.

In the following days, Rosa Choque and Arlex somehow never parted ways, forming a group of two as they traveled beyond their old territories in search of better lands. Occasionally, while Rosa munched on the plant life they came across, Arlex would quietly slip away, promising to return later. He would always return sometime later, with the scent of blood drifting from his muzzle. He promised, however, that his meals were not in the form of Parasaurolophus. In fact, he claimed he had, as of the past few days, come to find the thought of eating a member of her species to be repulsive. Rosa was rather relieved to hear this, as she did not like the thought of her new friend eating the flesh of her kind, even if she, herself, were never to be on the menu.

A small incident occurred a few days into their traveling together as they walked along a small stream, when they came across another Meraxes gigas, a large male that regarded Rosa Choque with noticeable hunger. With a soft snarl, Arlex moved in between them, blocking the fellow Meraxes' line of view, meeting the other predator's gaze with a steady warning glare. The other Meraxes let out a chuffing sound of clear confusion, stared at Arlex for a moment, and glanced past him at the Parasaurolophus, who watched cautiously. With a dismissive snort, the other Meraxes turned and walked into the depths of the forest, leaving the odd pair unaccosted. Rosa gave Arlex a tentative smile. “That is not going to help you make friends of your own species, you know,” she commented.

Arlex grumbled. “I am hardly going to let anyone eat you, Rosa, my own species or not.” He tilted his head. “Besides, I got a friend right here, right?”

Rosa nudged her muzzle against Arlex's shoulder in a gentle nuzzle. “Definitely. Thank you.”

Ducking his head, Arlex quietly responded, “Anytime. Although I'm sure you could have handled yourself, anyway.” Giving himself a brisk shake, Arlex tilted his jaw to indicate the path they had been walking before the other predator had approached. “Shall we?”

Continuing on their way, the days passed, the two traveled without any clear destination in mind, watching as, the farther they got from the stone's impact site, the more the foliage recovered, and the more the overall temperature dropped to a more normal level. Other dinosaurs become noticeably more abundant, and the two often received odd stares. Regardless, they also soon attracted some interested individuals, ones who were curious about the unusual friendship between the two, and who were emboldened by the fact that Arlex clearly was not interested in feeding on his companion. Soon enough, three other Parasaurolophus had approached them, a small herd of their own: Hanten, who was gray with white undersides and a thin black dividing line between the two colors; Hiyake; who was primarily tan with black and brown accents; and Gobgook, who was brown and tan with cream undersides and cream speckling along their back, with a black head crest.

Of the three, Gobgook was the most talkative, though Hiyake appeared to be the calm spokesman of the group. Hanten mostly observed, quietly regarding Rosa and Arlex with a watchful gaze; perhaps not anxious, but simply alert. The three, who shared Rosa Choque's species, were interested in talking with them, and the five of them rested together beneath a grove of trees to talk and learn each others' circumstances. It turned out that the three Parasaurolophuses were all that were left of their own herd, having lost the rest of their herd to the hard times caused by the stone's strike and the changing climate. Starvation, sickness, and predation had claimed the other members of their herd, and while these three were healthy, they were lonely, having been used to a significantly larger group than just the three of them.

Exchanging a look, Rosa and Arlex quickly came to an agreement. They invited the three Parasaurolophuses to join their makeshift herd, to their obvious gratitude. Thus, their duo grew to a herd of five.

A month later, now far from the territory in which Rosa Choque and Arlex had grown up, they were passing through a large swampland. The herd came upon a clutch of eggs hidden among some reeds, not far from a pond, eggs that Arlex identified as belonging to Utahraptors. This species of predators were most definitely group hunters, and each member of the species was around half the size of a Parasaurolophus, and a bit more than a quarter the size of a Meraxes gigas. These predators were far more dangerous than the significantly smaller Aristosuchus; swift, dangerous hunters who were clever and vicious.

Arlex's mention of this species made the prey animals of his herd uneasy, but the group continued on, Rosa leading them around the eggs in a wide berth. Not far from that clutch of eggs, however, the group found another clutch of Utahraptor eggs, and realized they were in the territory of a pack of the swift, large predators. Now even Arlex seemed unnerved, though mostly for the sake of his friends, and he walked up to stand with Rosa at the head of the group.

“Perhaps we should move on,” he suggested. “Before any Utahraptors assume we will harm their eggs... or view any of you as a meal.” He growled softly, lifting his head to scent the air. “I don't smell any nearby, but if the eggs are here, they must be close.”

Rosa Choque nodded. “You're right. Let's leave.”

Soon enough, the group was almost out of the swamp, but then Rosa paused as she heard a soft cry rise on the air. It sounded like some creature in distress. She turned toward the sound automatically, and started in that direction, her blunt claws sinking into the damp soil as long trailing vines slid along her spine. “Stay here,” she told her friends, pulling her head crest loose from one of the more tenacious trailers. “I need to check something.”

She started off toward the sound, concerned, and heard a soft snort behind her as Arlex fell into step at her side. “Yeah, I'm not staying behind with Utahraptors around,” he stated.

“What about the rest of the herd?” Rosa Choque pointed out, pausing in her step.

“There are three of them and one of you,” Arlex shot back. “And you, I have learned, have a tendency to head toward sounds of danger.” He sighed. “So at the very least, I'll be there, too.”

Rosa nodded, and glanced back at the rest of their herd members, who watched them uncertainly. “We'll be right back,” she called to them. “Wait here.”

Stepping further back into the swamplands, Arlex grumbling as he struggled to pull his larger, bulkier body through some of the more tightly woven foliage, the two of them soon came upon the source of the distress calls.

A young male Utahraptor, clearly a juvenile who was, perhaps, half-grown, was whining at the edge of a sink hole, a mire of sucking mud. The Utahraptor, whose body was covered in bright blue, darker blue, and black and white feathers, paced at the edge of the pit, occasionally stepping partway into the mud before yanking his clawed feet back out before he could become stuck. Rosa moved forward cautiously, trying to get a better glimpse of what was so distressing the young one.

She quickly saw the issue. Near the center of the pit, sunk up to his neck, was another young Utahraptor who looked so much like the first, aside from the color of their feathers, that they were surely brothers. This predator was likely feathered in brown and cream colors, but he was so covered in mud that it was difficult to tell for sure.

Rosa quickly moved forward. She was well aware that these were predators – a dangerous species of them, in fact. But one of her best friends was a significantly larger, even more dangerous predator; and more importantly, these were children. As she neared them, she noted that they were, perhaps, slightly older than she had initially believed, being mid-adolescents, they were still much smaller than adult Utahraptors.

“Wha- who?” the blue-feathered Utahraptor stammered as he caught sight of the approaching Parasaurolophus. He rallied and barred his sharp little teeth, moving in between Rosa Choque and the mostly submerged raptor. “Get away from my brother!” he growled, thrashing his feathered tail, though he shifted anxiously from clawed paw to paw, obviously frightened as he took in her comparative size – and more concerningly, surely, the Meraxes gigas who followed behind. Still, the young one did not budge from his place in front of his immobilized brother.

“I'm here to help,” Rosa said reassuringly. The defensive young one regarded her distrustfully, but there was a clear spark of desperate hope in his eyes. “You are brothers, you said? How did...” She looked across the sinking pit at the clearly exhausted Utahraptor. He was barely moving, his head kept above the surface only with clear effort, his breaths shallow as the heavy mud compressed his chest. “How did this happen?”

The blue Utahraptor let out a prolonged sound that was part whine, part hiss of dismay. “We were just playing chase, practicing for when we can hunt, and Rando... he...” The young one swallowed and continued, “He didn't see the sinking pit in time. He tried to jump over it at the last second, but that just made him end up farther out there...”

“Rando is your brother's name?” Rosa asked quietly. At the blue-feathered Utahraptor's slight nod, she turned back to the pit. “Rando! Can you hear me? My name is Rosa Choque and this is my friend, Arlex! We are going to get you out of there, alright? Just try not to move too much!”

“But...” the raptor still on solid ground murmured, perhaps hoping his brother would not overhear and become more afraid. “But what can you guys do? He's so far out there...”

Rosa had been considering that issue as she regarded the pit. Even at the full extension of her long body, she would not be able to reach Rando without becoming unbalanced and falling into the sinking pit, herself. Perhaps it was not deep enough to drown her, as well – but perhaps it was deep enough to drown her thirty times over. One simply did not know while approaching such a pit. Any step out into it would be a risk. Nodding to herself as she considered her options, Rosa Choque glanced over her shoulder at Arlex as he stepped up beside her. “Arlex, I'm going to try to reach him. I need you to pull me back out by the tail if I end up falling in or going too far.”

“Pull you back?” Arlex asked, seeming uneasy. “I don't know if you've noticed, but my forelegs are not... exactly long. Besides, the claws...”

“You'll have to use your jaws,” Rosa said calmly. “Just... don't bite all the way through my tail, alright? I like having it attached.”

Ignoring Arlex's alarmed protestation of “My jaws?!” Rosa moved forward, stepping onto the very rim of the sinking pit. The toes on her forepaws began to sink into the sucking mud, and she leaned her weight back onto her hind legs, raising off of her forelegs as she took a careful step forward until the toes of her hind paws touched the mud. Settling herself down into a squat for greater stability, Rosa extended her head and neck, fighting the urge to attempt to brace herself against the sucking mud using her fore-paws, as that would only cause them to sink through the surface. Instead, she merely touched her fore-paws to the mud as a reference for how far the sinking pit remained below her neck.

Rando watched tiredly, hopefully, as Rosa extended her neck, almost able to touch his feathered head with her muzzle, but unable to get near enough to gain a grip on him with her blunt teeth. Straining, stretching, Rosa leaned forward still further – too far. She yelped as she over-balanced, and her chest and neck smacked into the mud of sinking pit. Almost instantly, partially from the force of her stumble, her forelegs, part of her chest, and the bottom of her muzzle began to sink into the pit, inches from Rando the Utahraptor. Letting out an alarmed bellow, Rosa tried to pull back; but even as she stumbled in the first place, as she began to struggle, attempting without success to right herself, she felt sharp prickling pain pierce her tail. Sharp claws scraped for purchase near her tail's tip, and many jagged fangs sank into the flesh just at the base of her tail. Arlex pulled backward just enough that Rosa's head could be wrenched free from the pit as she briefly whimpered in pain.

“Sovvy, sovvy!” Arlex struggled to apologize without releasing his bite from her tail. “Can 'ou 'et him?”

“I... think so,” Rosa groaned, gritting her teeth. Still with her chest pressed against the sinking mud, she stretched forward some more, ignoring the ripping sensation as she pulled against Arlex's firm grip until her own muzzle was able to close firmly around the back of Rando's neck. “Pull!” she managed to call back to Arlex through her feathery mouthful, and slowly began to move backward on her hind paws as Arlex towed both her and Rando from the pit. It was not easy, as Rosa Choque struggled to pull the exhausted Utahraptor youngling loose without hurting him, but finally he yanked free with a wet plopping noise, and the group of three stumbled backward onto solid ground.

Rosa Choque panted as she lay on the ground, Rando sprawled in front of her muzzle. “You okay, kid?” she managed to wheeze between gasping breaths, watching as Rando desperately pulled in air, finally able to fully expand his chest with each breath. Before the Utahraptor could answer, however, his brother raced across the few feet between them, skidded to a halt beside Rando, and nuzzled his face into the brown-feathered Utahraptor's neck, practically laying on top of the prone predator.

“Rando!” the kid's brother exclaimed. “Are you okay? Are you hurt, can you breathe?!”

“I could breathe a lot better before you dropped on top of me,” Rando choked. “Ease off, Aozora!”

“Sorry!” the other Utahraptor, evidently named Aozora, exclaimed, leaning backward off of his brother, though he began licking Rando's head and neck, clearing his feathers of mud as best he could. Rando let out a tired sigh and rested his head on the ground, allowing his brother to continue the grooming.

Rosa Choque watched, her breathing steadying, pleased to see that both young Utahraptors seemed to be both safe and healthy. She heard a soft whine from just behind her, and turned her head to see Arlex regarding her bitten tail with dismay. The Meraxes gigas began to gently groom the wounds along the side of her tail, cleaning them with a look of guilt in his eyes. “Sorry, Rosa...” Arlex murmured. “I didn't mean to hurt you.”

Rosa shook her head. “Rando is safe, and that's all that matters. Besides, I asked you to pull using your teeth. It only makes sense.”

Rising back into a full stand, Arlex sighed. “Still...” He shook himself, then looked at the two Utahraptor younglings. “Where are your parents, guys? We should get you back to them. You should get some rest after what just happened.”

Aozora paused in his grooming of his brother, looking up at the Parasaurolophus and her carnivorous friend with uncertainty. “We... can't actually go back to our parents.”

Rosa frowned. “Why not? What's wrong.”

Aozora turned his gaze to the ground. “It's... nothing.”

By this time, Rando had recovered enough to rise onto his haunches, half sitting, half squatting, and at Aozora's words, he gave his brother a light nip on the flank.

“Hey!” Aozora exclaimed indignantly, but Rando just hissed.

“Nothing?” he growled softly. “It's not nothing!”Looking over at Rosa Choque, Rando explained, “We can't go back to our parents because... just a couple weeks ago, a hunt they were on went bad. They... we were all hungry. Not much food around, lately,” here, he paused, giving Rosa an uncomfortable look. “Sorry, but... you know, we have to eat.” He shook his head. “But... anyway, we were all so hungry, everyone in the pack was... and our parents and the rest of the pack tried to hunt an Abditosaurus. It... didn't end well, not for them, not for half of the pack.”

“Abditosaurus?!” Rosa and Arlex exclaimed in unison, both in disbelief at the Utahraptor pack's foolhardy efforts. Abditosaurus was a massive species, a titanosaurian sauropod. With four broad, tree-like legs and an extremely long neck and tail, Abditosaurae dwarfed even Arlex's species, being almost half again as long as a Meraxes and weighing over three times as much. It was, in fact, the largest titanosaurian species within these lands, the largest species for many, many miles in any direction.

Rando nodded heavily. “Our packmates who survived ran from the hunt. We don't know where some of them went... they were hurt, too. Maybe hurt too much... Other members of the pack... well, they are around somewhere, I think, but the pack is scattered. We're pretty much on our own now.”

Aozora dropped his head on his forepaws. “Yeah... that's why we were practicing chasing in the first place. We need to teach ourselves how to hunt. We... have pretty much been living on big bugs and things.” He whined. “It isn't enough. We're... really hungry.”

“Erm...” Rosa hesitated, made slightly uncomfortable by the predators' hunger, but awash in sympathy for their plight. “I'm sorry to hear that, boys. I am so sorry that happened to your pack. Don't you have anyone who can teach you how to hunt?”

Rando shook his head. “No. Not really. Our parents were gonna, but...” He snapped the air, upset. “They can't now, can they?”

“I can,” Arlex abruptly spoke up, causing both Utahraptors and Rosa Choque to stare at him. “I can teach you both how to hunt, if you come with us.” He hesitated, glancing at his Parasaurolophus herdmate. He lowered his voice. “Would that be alright, Rosa? These kids... they need someone.”

Regarding Arlex quietly for a moment, Rosa then turned back to the two Utahraptors. “Would you kids like to join our herd? Apart from Arlex and I, there are three other members of our herd. They are Parasaurolophuses, like I am. Arlex can teach you how to hunt. We are traveling to find a good place to stay... if you want to come with us.

“You really mean it?” Aozora asked, his muzzle slightly open in surprise. “You'd let us come live with you?”

Rosa smiled. “Of course! You need a group, right? We have one, and we can give you a place in our herd. But, of course, that means you can never hunt or try to hurt any of the herd. If you did that, you obviously couldn't stay. But if you agree to work with and live with all of us in peace, even us Parasaurolophuses, then yes, we have a place for you.”

“Yes!” Rando exclaimed. “Yes, please!” Stumbling weakly to his paws, clearly worn out from his experience but filled with new excitement, he moved forward to nudge his muzzle in a partial nuzzle against Rosa's foreleg. “It's been so lonely with just us two!” The brown-feathered Utahraptor glanced over at his brother. “Right, Aozora? Let's go with them!”

Aozora looked from his brother to Rosa and Arlex. “You mean it?” he asked with a hint of skepticism. “Why did you help us, anyway? Why offer this now? Who are you guys, anyway?”

Rosa Choque tilted her head, understanding Rando's suspicion. “We're just travelers looking for a good place to stay. We each came together in our own ways, and as you can see, we're a bit of an unusual herd. We helped because you needed help, and because you're young. Why wouldn't we help you?” She sighed. “And now, well, we can't leave you to starve, can we? I can't say I like what Arlex and you two need to eat to stay alive, but then you can't change that anymore than I can change my need to eat plants.” She smiled slightly. “We can all get along pretty well anyway, so long as you don't cause trouble for members of the herd. Do you want to join us?”

Rando stared into her eyes for a moment, then exchanged a glance with his brother. Finally, he looked back at Rosa Choque with a small smile. “Aozora's right. It's been pretty lonely with just us. I mean... it would be nice to be in a pack again. Er, a herd. And of course we wouldn't try to hunt you! Do you think we try to hunt our packmates? Come on!”

Rosa chuckled. “That makes sense. I didn't mean to imply you would do such a thing. Well, in that case... welcome to your new 'pack'. Welcome to the herd.” Rosa Choque pushed herself to all fours once more. “Come with us, then, and I'll introduce you to the others.”

Nudging her muzzle underneath Rando's neck, she balanced the youngling until she was sure he was steady on his paws. Then she briskly groomed the worst of the mud off of his sides and back, her comparatively large tongue making short work of the mess. Now mostly cleaned, Rando shook himself, and his feathers stuck up in all directions, held in place stiffly by residual mud.

Rosa bit back a chuckle at the sight. The youngling would need to give himself a proper cleaning later on, perhaps even in a stream or pond. Regardless, the four of them were ready to return to the rest of the herd, and turning to lead the way, Rosa padded on ahead through the swamp, the others following along behind her.