//------------------------------// // Chapter 17. The Tree Star // Story: The Land Before Hooves // by Moon Flame //------------------------------// The great circle of life. Some talk of it as a metaphor, some say it’s the sun herself. Some even worship it as a almighty god, one that controls everything. Whatever existential view one may have, one thing remains universal. - The sun is necessary for all life. The sky shaded of gray and red. The beams of The Great Circle reached all the way across the land, guiding creatures to better places. Sometimes it guided things that had been dead for a long time. But that was a time lasted, insignificant in a Land Before Time. But some things holds on forever. The beam of light was cut. It shone through an object, transforming the light to shades of orange and yellow. The wind gained speed. It whispered. The tree star continued its journey, a journey that was about to come to an end. The apatosaurus was born in these lands. Now he was about to die in these lands. Ironic that it was going to happen on the road away from The Great Valley this time. He scraped his foot over the dirt. Everything felt hopeless. He obviously had to return to The Great Valley again if he wanted to stay alive. That’s where the situation weighed right now, yet he couldn’t bring himself to even stand up. He went over the different ways his feelings might have been fixed this way What if Petri was right? What if he was trying to be like his father, who wandered the mysterious beyond until he became something great, the leader of a herd? Wasn’t that what Littlefoot was just a moment ago? Indeed, it made no sense why Littlefoot wanted to get away from his friends. What if he was right? What if The Great Valley wasn’t big enough for him when his friends had their families to take care of? Did that mean he didn’t trust his friends anymore, who had all sworn they were his family? But if that was the case it still made no sense why Littlefoot would want to be completely alone. At least it made sense why he had ended up here. Littlefoot had been either stupid or a fool, that much was clear. How did that insight ease his pain? It didn’t, he just couldn’t understand what was missing in his life. Had he been unaware of that, at least then he would have been a fool his friends could rely on. The longneck felt the wind stir. Was it whispering? No. It was just that someone with wings landing behind him. “Littlefoot?” The voice was the same friendly female one he heard before. He looked up. The mountain shaped like a longneck was still looking down on him. But it wasn’t it that spoke. “Littlefoot. Is everything alright?” The alicorn asked emphatically. Littlefoot felt his throat push him toward the ground. “No, princess, it aint." “Would you like to talk about it?” There was a long silence from Littlefoot. “I cannot return.” Twilight smiled. “That is your decision to make. Still, I believe it is better if we start from the beginning.” The wind stirred again. This time it wasn’t because of someones wings. Circles of sand formed in the eerie air. A small shadow casted itself over the ground. The longneck looked up, his mouth and eyes widening in disbelief. The whispers reached his ears. The leaf descended in graceful circles. It bounced slightly as it landed tentatively on the ground. Twilight saw the longneck walk up to it. “Are you hungry?” She asked confused. She saw the longneck fold his legs next to the leaf. He looked down at it for what felt like a minute. Twilight Sparkle’s mouth bent in bewilderment. Littlefoot heard the whispering winds. He looked up at the mountain shaped like a longneck. He saw that a big part of its mouth had been shattered by the rock he threw. Twilight saw the neck of the dinosaur sink. She walked closer. Her hooves send ko klonks over the rocky ground. She heard sobbing. Her ears lowered. “Littlefoot.” Littlefoot had his tail laying bent over the sand. His tears landed next to the six edged leaf. “Littlefoot? What’s the matter?” “Twilight...h....h...I don’t know...h....h...I don’t know what to do.” “You don’t always.” “I’ve failed...h....h...Everyone.” Twilight’s reply came with empathy and compassion. “You saved us in the desert. You saved Fluttershy by helping her with her grief. You saved my life in the canyon.” “No....h...h... No.” The sobbing longneck shook his head. “I could...h...done all that with my...h...h my...h... friends if I had listened...h...h... to Rooter.” "Who's that again?" "Rooter." “Who’s Rooter?” “All this time....h....h...I blamed...h...Bron, my f...f...father for moms death. If I hadn’t done...h...h.” Littlefoot couldn’t manage. He couldn’t quite remember everything Rooter, a stranger creature he met right after the death of his mother, said. The only phrase of Rooter that he could remember was whipping him, giving his heart a well deserved slashing. It is NOBODY’S fault. The words conjured another image in Littlefoot, one he thought he had gotten over. He was searching for his mom in the pouring rain. He called her name, over and over. He found her lying on a pile of rocks. He remember running up to her. She was trying to stand up. “Mother? Please, get up.” “I’m... I’m not sure I can Littlefoot.” “Yes you can. Get up.” His mother crumbled. Her face contorted in worry. “Dear sweet Littlefoot. Do you remember the way to The Great Valley?” “I guess so. But why do I have to know? You’re gonna be with me.” “I’ll be with you. Even if you can’t see me.” “What do you mean if I can’t see you? I can always see you.” “Littlefoot. Let your heart guide you. It whispers, so listen closely.” Listen closely...Listen closely...Listen closely... The whisper disappeared with the wind. Littlefoot felt his sobs do the same. The last of his tears hit the pool of water that had formed inside the tree star. It created circles inside it. “I miss her so much.” “I can’t imagine.” Twilight said sincere. “It was never about him, but about her. I thought I was searching for a purpose when all I ever did was run from the truth.” “She’s gone.” “My failure to recognize how much I still missed my mother caused me to blame my father for her death and abandon my friends in a time of crisis.” “Maybe.” Twilight sat down next to Littlefoot. His long neck had her looking up at him. “Or maybe it’s just time. I don’t know how old longnecks become.” “About 140 years.” “So you are roughly about 35 years old, giving you were 8 to 15, lets say, when you and your mom traveled together. That means you have lived 25% of your expected lifespan, which equals the time of maturity for almost every creature in Equestria, and probably here to.” “I’m going to pretend I understood that.” Littlefoot and Twilight Sparkle exchanged laughter. “In urban terms. Littlefoot, you’re growing up. You’re on the border between childhood and adulthood right now. That is a turbulent time for everyone. Everything you do or feel might not always make sense to you.” Littlefoot remained silent for a moment. “Is it that simple?” “I believe you know the answer to that yourself. I can’t tell you what to do next Littlefoot, that is up to you. But I wan’t you to remember what I said after your first argument with Ducky, Petri and Cera.” “Friendship isn’t always easy...” Littlefoot began. “...But there is no doubt it is worth fighting for.” Twilight ended smiling. The pony and the apatosaurus rose up. Twilight saw the longneck reach down and grab the tree star with his mouth. He placed it on his back. “A souvenir?” Twilight asked. “Not exactly. Lets head back.” “Back to the valley?” “Yes.” As they were leaving, Littlefoot took another look back. The mountain shaped like a longneck was still looking down at him. Was his face still disappointed?