FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Winter brought much change to the late cretaceous forests of Mongolia. When once trees were lush and green, cold winds and snow withered the leaves and left the forests barren. This was a time of migration for most, seeking refuge in the nearby desert plains, or risk surviving with the little resources left behind. Tarbosaurs, scavengers by nature but hunters when desired, moved with the herds to keep their bellies full and happy. Natasha and her family were no exception. When the leaves had finally left the forest and the prey became scarce, Natasha made her trek into the desert along with her family.

Roughly two months prior, Natasha's children had hatched into the world as newborns, but now, they could walk and even hunt small insects if desired. Sonya, the first to hatch, was the largest of the three. Having lost her baby feathers, her scales were a stunning maroon, a color that made the light blue feathers atop her skull pop. Being lean built but of a larger stature for her age, she found hunting bugs a fun hobby early on, a precursor to an eventual hunting prowess.

Vera, the second born of the clutch, still kept most of her dark red baby feathers on her torso, but the salmon scales beneath were still well visible. Short and chubby, Vera seemed to exploit her parents' love when meal time rolled around, though she seemed to have no issue living a scavenger's life, so all was well. Hiro, her adoptive father and mate of Natasha after the betrayal of her blood father, often enjoyed snuggling the lovable chick, and had no issue sharing his own meals with her.

Niko, the lucky survivor, simply looked larger than he did as a chick. Still covered in his dark green baby feathers, his dark gray scales were hard to make out, making him appear to be a fluffy bush more than a dinosaur. The runt of the clutch, he found even walking a challenge at times, but was a survivor nonetheless. Hiro, a runt himself, took extra care of Niko, and hoped he lived to see a happy life. Despite his undeveloped and somewhat sickly body, Niko was rather happy most days, even if his sisters enjoyed picking on him at times.

Though not at home on the desert plains of what would be called the Gobi Desert, the theropod family adjusted rather well. Hunting was harder due to the open space and competition with raptors and the like, but scavenging food was relatively easy, and with larger prey like sauropods likely to keel over at some point or another, one animal could last quite a period of time.

Having settled down close to a broad river, the Tarbosaur family was rather content with their winter holiday of sorts. At the time, Hiro remained with his adopted clutch while Natasha searched for food; a situation Natasha preferred in the hopes Hiro would bond well with his children.

At the river, Hiro drank large gulps of water, something he did often due to the dry desert air. Looking to his side, the sight of Niko looking perplexed at his own reflection in the water made him chuckle softly.

"See something?" Hiro asked in amusement.

Niko stared at the reflection with wide eyes a moment longer before looking to his father. "I didn't know dinos lived in water."

Hiro shook his head before leaning towards the chick's reflection and tapping it with the tip of his snout, casting his own reflection for a moment before causing it to ripple away. "I'm sure some dinosaurs live in the water, but that's just your reflection kiddo. See?" When the ripples stopped, both of the reflections appeared in the water.

Niko did a double take, looking to the reflection and his own father before smiling. "You!"

Hiro laughed before nuzzling the fluffy chick. "Yes, that's me." Pulling away, he looked to his daughters, playing with some kind of fern not too far away. "Why don't you play with your sisters?"

Niko frowned softly as he retracted his head into the fluff of his shoulders. "They mean. They like to tease me."

"Why?" Hiro gave his daughters a glare before looking back at Niko. "Is it because you're small?"

The chick shook his head. "No, because I'm male."

Hiro rolled his eyes. "Oh, I see. Well, why don't you go show them males can be just as good as any female? Your mother certainly looks at her and I as equals." Niko seemed unsure, so Hiro whispered to him. "Hey, just think, one day they'll probably be trying to get the attention of males, so this is only temporary. Okay?" Niko gave a shy nod. "Now go play with your sisters."

Giving another quick nod, Niko scampered over to his sisters, kicking up sand as he ran awkwardly to them. Hiro watched them bicker a bit at first, but quickly start to laugh and play as siblings should.

Leaving his children be, Hiro saw Natasha in the distance, dragging a hadrosaur by the neck to their camp. Perking up, he ran to her side to help her drag the animal back, surprised at first to see it still alive, for the most part.

Dropping the dying Barsboldia near their children, the young chicks were surprised to see she was still alive.

Stepping forward and sniffing the prey, Sonya looked up at her parents, rather confused. "She's alive?"

Natasha nodded. "Yes dear, she is."

The chicks jumped back in surprise as the hadrosaur moaned, having given up, her body aching for the release of death. Sonya continued to investigate the soon-to-be corpse while the other two sat back, slightly nervous. She watched as a large gash on her belly and torn up bite mark on her thigh bled heavily. Despite having been dragged by the neck, only superficial wounds rested there. Sonya seemed slightly upset by the sight. "She'll die."

Natasha leaned in and nuzzled the brave chick. "You three will kill her first." In unison, the stunned chicks looked to their parents, as if hoping the request was a mistake. "You three need to know what it means to actually kill something other than a bug or a lowly mammal. I think now is as good a time as any."

Niko wrapped his tail around his body, as if trying to hide. "B-but...I don't want to kill anyone."

Vera didn't seem quite as upset about the situation, but still seemed rather sad. "I thought eating dead food was okay..."

Natasha walked over the dying hadrosaur to stand with her babies, nuzzling each of them. "It is okay, but sometimes, when food is scarce or simply looking you in the face, you have to kill to eat. I know it's tough, but this is the law of the world." She nudged each of them closer to their meal. "Some carnivores, large hunters especially, look to their prey as nothing more than game to be hunted and devoured on a whim, but this is not the way. Life is fragile, and keeping a balance even more so. We kill so we may live, but also so they don't overpopulate. Too many of them and the lush greens of home may never grow to be food for another."

Hiro, feeling slightly distant in the conversation, spoke up. "We don't hate them, kids, we just do we must."

Sonya bobbed her head as she attempted to look into the half lidded eyes of the Barsboldia. "Does she understand? Does she think we're just hungry?"

Natasha seemed to be growing a touch impatient at their reluctance. "Most do understand until they themselves become our meals, meals you've all eaten, happily I might add, until today."

Vera joined her sister and walked towards the animal. "But those animals were always dead. This one's, well, not quite there yet." She leaned in and licked the snout of the hadrosaur, nodding slightly at the taste. "She tastes fine I guess, but still..."

Natasha stomped her foot as she noticed the life slipping from the hadrosaur. "Niko, join your sisters and kill your dinner."

Niko cowered as he curled even more into a ball, whimpering softly.

Hiro frowned a bit. "Natasha, maybe they aren't ready. They're only a few months old. I was almost a year old when I made my first kill."

Natasha shot daggers his way. "I was only just older than them when I made mine. This is something that just needs to be done, there isn't another way." The sound of a heavy sigh caught the mother's attention, moving her gaze to the hadrosaur. She watched as the air left its lungs, having given her last breath. "Damn it!" She growled deeply, baring her teeth. "You waited too long!"

Stomping to the kill, moving the chicks aside with a gentle push of her snout, she opened her jaws and clamped down on the neck of the animal, pulling away the flesh. After swallowing it down, she looked to her young. "That's all you had to do. Obviously it would have been more than just one bite, due to your size, but it's simple as that." She lifted a foot and showed it to them, wiggling her toes. "If you didn't want to bite her, you even had claws on your feet you could have used."

The three children seemed rather distraught and ashamed, their heads lowered and Niko still curled into a ball. Sonya spoke up among them. "W-we're sorry. We just..."

Natasha shot them a glance that shut them up. "Next time," She paused as she watched their body language, seeing how upset they were about the ordeal. After a moment, she let out a sigh and relaxed. Was she being too hard on them? Shaking her head softly, she lowered herself to the ground. "I guess you three just weren't ready. I'm sorry I got so angry. Come here." She lifted one of her small arms, and the three chicks moved to her side. She wrapped both her arm and her massive tail around them. "You three aren't in trouble, you just have to realize this is something you need to do. If we didn't have to kill, I wouldn't make you learn this, but we do. Do you promise to give it a try next time, for me?" The chicks nodded. "Thank you." Leaning down, she nuzzled the three of them. "Hiro, you too."

Hiro nodded before going to her side, comforting the children that were just as much his as they were hers.

The three sat by the dead hadrosaur for a short while before a loud squawk made them lift their heads in confusion. Looking around, they saw a cloud of kicked up sand, leading to a Gallimimus running in the distance.

Hiro raised a brow. "What was that about?"

Just as he finished talking, another Gallimimus raced past, squawking loudly. The family watched it before several more rushed past, followed by several more. The family turned to see where they were coming from, and the sight made their eyes widen in shock.

As if on cue, the ground began to shake softly, kicking sand into the air little by little in addition to the sand the now flock of Gallimimus running by was causing. In the distance, the family of Tarbosaurs could just make out the long necks and heads of a herd of sauropods though the cloud of dust and sand, racing towards them along the riverside. Jumping to her feet, Natasha reached out and grabbed one of the Gallimimus by the tail with her powerful jaws, stopping it in its tracks.

"LET ME GO!" It squawked loudly before Natasha pushed it to the ground, holding it in place with her heavy foot.

"What's going on?!" She roared at it in utter confusion.

The Gallimimus looked back at the now much closer oncoming herd. "A horrible sand storm, coming this way! Those Sauropods caught wind of it as well and are now running as fast as they can. Get out of their way! Let me go! They'll be here any second!"

Natasha agreed and let the Gallimimus go, turning to her family as it ran off. "We have to go, now!"

Hiro agreed, opening his jaws. "Climb in!" The three chicks climbed as best they could into his mouth. Standing up, he followed his mate's orders.

Natasha watched the herd a moment longer before realizing just how large it was. Nearly a hundred massive creatures, if not more hidden in the oncoming storm, and the closer they got, the further spaced they became, stretching across the length of the dessert, only stopping at the river. Biting her lip in uncertainty, she looked to her mate. "The river, we have to cross the river."

Hiro knew the river was risky, due to the depth as well as the width of it, but if that was the only choice, he'd take it. With a nod, he rushed to the river, walking into and trying to ignore the oncoming herd.

Following suit, Natasha joined him in the water, abandoning the meal they would have shared as a family. "Keep your heads up out of the water!"

Though not strong swimmers, they could swim. Up to their jaws in the now dirty water, tainted by the sand and chaos upstream, they attempted to cross in hopes of escaping both the herd and the sand storm surely at its tails. Not even a few minutes in to their swimming and the sound of earth shaking, thunderous footsteps and splashing water could be heard directly behind them. Hiro dared not turn his head to look at them, but Natasha looked in his place.

The herd had been blocking a mass of other dinosaurs from view, obviously at their tails in the hopes to avoid being smashed in the chaos. What ones dared enter the water seemed to simply try to keep at the sauropod's sides, though a handful seemed to risk crossing it as they did, keeping relatively close to the family as well.

Looking back to her mate, she did her best to keep up to him, slowed by her larger size and fat. When the sound of wind caught their ears, they both instinctively looked to where the massive herds had come from, a mistake on both their parts. Without warning, the sand storm hit, blasting their faces with sand and wind. Natasha was pushed under the water for a moment, but for the most part remained fine; when she surfaced however, Hiro was not so lucky. Unbalanced and hindered by the children he hoped to protect in his jaws, the wind pushed him over multiple times, the sand blinding him and forcing his lids shut. Natasha shouted to him, telling him to be strong, but there was little use. Not only did her voice not carry in the sound of the stampede and wind, but after a massive blow of wind and sand, a hadrosaur that had been trying to escape via the river had blown into Hiro, pushing them both into the water.

Panicking, Natasha dove under the water, rushing to their side. The dirt and sand made it hard to see, but she managed to find them both and use her body to support them, pushing them back up above the water. Hiro seemed to be struggling, but Natasha made sure to keep him still, using the hadrosaur on the other side of him to sort of sandwich him in place. In only a matter of minutes, the three dinosaurs had made it to the other side. The hadrosaur at first seemed ready to stick around and thank them, but upon seeing their species, rushed a thank you and ran to the safety of some nearby trees.

Natasha helped her mate to his feet, but seemed confused as he ran back to the water. "What the hell are you doing?!"

Hiro turned to her; his jaws empty and his eyes flooded with tears. "The children! I lost the children!"

As Hiro went back to the river, Natasha scanned the sand around them, the children nowhere in sight. Her own eyes watering, she ran to the river. "We can't go back in there! It's too dangerous."

Hiro paused only a moment before diving back into the water. Natasha's heart fluttered in awe for a moment at his dedication before following his lead, diving back into the water.

Swept away in the chaos and pushed further by the wind, the three struggling chicks washed ashore alongside the river. They did their best to cough up the water, but the storm made it difficult to breathe.

A shadow in the distance approached them as they began to lose consciousness. The last thing they saw was a fluffy mass covering them in darkness.

....................................

When the storm finally came to a halt several hours later, Natasha and Hiro pulled themselves from the river once more, having searched it for some time. Up and down its length they searched, top to bottom, but not even bodies remained. Exhausted and defeated, Natasha fell to her belly on the sand, closing her eyes in the shame only a mother that lost her children by failing to protect them could do.

Hiro moved to her side and rested beside her, nuzzling her cheek gently. "This is all my fault."

"No..."

"I had them, but then I let them slip from my jaws."

"Hiro, no." Natasha shouted to her mate, but her anger was not at him. She sighed heavily, blowing sand away from her face. "These things happen. We couldn't have known, but life is life." She rolled onto her side, shoving her face a bit into the dirt. "And death is death."

Hiro was unsure how to comfort his mate. He was unsure how to even comfort himself. All he could do was slide up next to her and rest against her belly. "We'll rest, and in a little while, we'll check further downstream. They're small, the current and the wind probably just pushed them further down. If they tried to escape, maybe they washed up on the shore somewhere."

Natasha didn't seem convinced, but she didn't decline the suggestion.

Leaning in, Hiro licked her cheek free of dirt and tears. "It's going to be okay."

....................................

Vera yawned loudly before opening her eyes to find only total darkness. Looking around in confusion, she could feel her sister and brother lying next to her, as well as a radiating heat all around. "Is it night time?"

The voice of her sister woke Sonya, who gave an equally powerful yawn before looking around. "Night time?" She noted the total darkness and shook her head. "We were drowning, remember? Surely we're dead."

Vera frowned sadly. "Oh...the not alive place is rather warm. I kind of like it."

Sonya used her foot to nudge her sleeping brother. "Wake up; you don't want to miss out on the joys of being dead, do you?"

Niko simply curled into a tight ball. He never liked waking up. If sleeping was something he could do forever, he probably would.

Sonya kicked him. "I said wake up!"

Niko woke up, but as he did, the area around them began to shake and move. Niko instantly opened his eyes in fear. "What was that?!"

Like Sonya and Vera had before, the sound of a loud yawn filled the air before a rather cheery yet tired voice spoke. "I take it you free 're awake?"

Sonya jumped to her feet, stepping on her siblings and eliciting yelps from them, as well as bumping her head on what appeared to be a rather short roof. "Hey, what gives?" She nudged it with her nose, feeling something very soft and warm and making the ominous yet sweet voice from before giggle. "Who are you?"

"Oh!" The voice seemed surprised, as well as spoken with a strange accent. "That's a fine ques'ion." Suddenly, the roof lifted away to reveal the bright sunny sky. After blinking from the sudden light, the three chicks realized they were not dead, or in some kind of afterlife, but had instead been covered up by a rather fluffy Velociraptor, larger than them by some bit but dwarfed by their parents. Standing up, the raptor moved aside to give the chicks room to move about.

The chicks scrambled to their feet as the raptor shook her entire body, knocking sand and dust free from her puffy feathers before using her snout to start preening her 'wings.'

The curious one, Sonya approached the raptor, a dinosaur their mother had always said would be best to avoid. "What happened?"

The raptor stopped cleaning herself to answer her question with a smile. "I 'eard you free splashin' and yellin' about, right, so I came to yer aid after you washed ashore. I'm useta 'ese storms, and me feathers 'elp keep the sand out." She lifted her tail to her face, showing the fanned feathers at its tip, showing how she was able to keep her face clear of sand as well. "I just curled into a ball of sorts and kept you free warm and safe. You should be dry by now, right, right?"

The three checked themselves before nodding.

The raptor hopped once in place, seemingly happy she kept them safe and dry, before walking closer to them. "Shayla, and you free are?"

Sonya spoke up first. "Sonya. Thank you."

Vera smiled as she approached the fluffy dinosaur. "Vera. I really like your feathers." She nuzzled the raptor's fluffy body a moment before moving back to stand beside her sister.

Shayla couldn't help but chuckle. "I like 'em too. And 'oo might you be, little one?"

Niko had been standing back a ways, his head pulled back into his feathers and his tail wrapped around his body. Sonya rolled her eyes before going behind him and pushing him closer. "Come on, introduce yourself."

Niko yelped at the action before staring at the raptor he hoped was as friendly as she seemed. "N-Niko."

"Cute!" Shayla leaned down and nuzzled each of them before stepping back. "How 'bout I cop a snack for us and then you free tell me 'bout yerselves? Good plan?" Before the three could speak up, the raptor straightened her feathers and ran off into the desert, apparently in search of a snack.

Left alone, Sonya took charge. "Alright, we should probably look around the area before she comes back. Just get a feel for where we are."

Vera seemed to agree, but Niko shook his head. "Mom and dad, we need them."

"Niko." Sonya did her best not to sound upset with him. "We don't even know where to start. Maybe Shayla can help us. All we have to do is wait, alright?"

Vera nodded. "That sounds good to me! Plus, food sounds good too. We didn't exactly get a chance to eat earlier."

The three nodded in unison. Their plan decided, they began to look around the area. For the most part, it seemed like any other part of the desert. There were a few bushes that weren't around where they were from, but that seemed about it.

About a hundred feet from the river, along the edge of a forest and at the base of a cliff, Sonya found several large boulders surrounded by thorny berry bushes, forming sort of an enclosure. In the enclosed area, she found what appeared to be a nest, heavily used with a few bones lying around. "I think I found a nest."

Vera and Niko came to look as well, but neither seemed very excited about it. Vera raised a brow at her sister. "So? Do you think it's hers?"

Sonya shrugged before taking one of the small bones and chewing on it. She wasn't sure what kind of dinosaur it belonged to, but the bone seemed old and bleached by the sun. She put it back after deciding it meant nothing. "Well, let's just look some more, to be safe."

Nearly an hour passed before the sound of Shayla dragging something alerted the chicks. Wanting to stay out of sight of any possible predators, they chose to hide at the nest they found until she returned.

"Oi! Where you free at?" Shayla seemed worried until she saw them pop out of the rocky area. "Oh, you found me nest then?" She shrugged. "Oh well, not like I 'ave any eggs to nick. Let's eat!"

The three miniature Tarbosaurs walked over to the odd dinosaur she had dragged over. It wasn't very big, but had a large beak, a frilled head, and quills along its hips and tail. Vera seemed put off by the quills. "What is that?"

Shayla seemed curious that they had never seen one before. "It's a Protoceratops. There are loads of 'em 'round 'ere. You must've been raised in the forest or sumfink." The three nodded. "Oh, well that makes sense then. So long as you avoid them nasty quills, they taste pretty right good. This one's a touch small though. I 'ope 'at ain't an issue." She didn't waste any time ripping into the dinosaur's belly, her sharp teeth pulling away strips of flesh rather easily.

Sonya and Niko seemed shy at first before eating, but Vera got to work on eating right away.

Several bites in, Sonya spoke up. "The storm, it separated us from our parents. Our dad was trying to carry us across the river to escape a stampede, but we were swept away."

Shayla licked her lips before frowning. "That's too bad." Looking them over a moment, she scratched her head. "'oo are yer parents?"

Vera swallowed down a large chunk of meat and answered. "Our daddy is Hiro and our mommy is Natasha."

Shayla hopped in place. "I know of Natasha! She don't come 'ere often though, usually just 'round winter. Not sure 'oo 'iro is, but yeah, yer muvver's reputation precedes 'er!" She seemed suddenly giddy about the new information. "If I can be 'onest, I always fought she'd look good wiv a buddy of mine, but I'm sure 'iro's good." The children seemed unsure what to say about that. Shayla chuckled before moving back on topic. "If we 'ave a look together, I bet we could find 'er."

Niko spoke up softly. "I thought mom didn't like raptors..."

"Pfft!" Shayla shook her head. "She probably just dislikes them stupid packs of raptors that like to bovver literally everyone. They're not very keen either; I've seen them run prey right into the forest. I don't 'ave a pack no more, so I'm prolly not so bad."

Niko seemed unsure. "If you say so."

Swallowing down the liver of the beast, Shayla licked her lips and stepped back from her prey. "How 'bout we start looking then! The sooner we find yer mum the better!"

Vera seemed like she wanted to eat more food, but reluctantly nodded with the rest of her siblings.

Ready to go, the group of four walked the direction they had been swept from, Shayla being their guide as the chicks recounted what had happened once more in hopes it may help their journey.

....................................

Natasha growled quietly to herself as she stomped along the edge of the riverbank, leaving massive footprints in the sand that filled with water from the river. Several steps behind her, Hiro followed her tail, not wanting to get in her way yet still contribute.

Natasha couldn't smell them anywhere, nor could she hear them. The sand barely left tracks and shifted, resulting in few lingering scents, and the water made hearing harder and also washed away scents. Frustrated, Natasha placed her foot onto a nearby boulder and shoved it away. "Damn it!"

Hiro hated seeing her upset. "Don't give up; we haven't been everywhere yet, right?"

Natasha didn't bother answering his question. Hearing some rustling, she noticed a Nemegtosaurus, a large sauropod, eating what few leaves remained on a nearby tree. Gritting her teeth, Natasha approached the behemoth. "Hey, you!"

The long necked dinosaur looked to the angry mother with a calmness only a sauropod would show to a predator like her. "What is it? I'm eating."

Natasha had half a mind to try and eat her. She always did find the bloated bellies of massive sauropods rather appealing. Regardless, that wasn't important. "There was a stampede earlier, due to a sandstorm. My babies were carried away by the river in the chaos. Have you seen anything?"

The sauropod seemed uninterested until the mention of babies came up. Showing actual concern, she looked around, using her long neck to see over the area. "Well, unfortunately not. I'm sorry. The most I saw was a raptor and her babies some ways back, further down the stream. At least I think they were her babies, one of them didn't have very many feathers." Natasha seemed somewhat hopeful at the uncertainty. "I can see quite a lot from up here, but making out details is a bit difficult you see. Perhaps she found them."

Natasha gave a brief nod. "Thank you."

Motioning Hiro to come along, she headed further up the stream, hoping the raptor was indeed with her babies and not its own; though, why a raptor would have her children was beyond her.

The two parents walked for some time before Natasha froze in place. "I...smell something." Lowering her large head, she sniffed the ground, following a familiar scent. It was weak, but it seemed reminiscent of her children, but was muddled by another scent as well. Following her nose, she came to a thorn bush surrounding an outcrop of boulders. Peering in, she saw a makeshift nest in the sand. "This must be the raptor's nest."

"I found prints." Hiro looked closely to the ground, finding small footprints in the sand. Most of them were larger than their children, sporting two toes, obviously that of a raptor. Mixed with the tracks however, small three toed prints could be found. Hiro looked to his own tracks to compare them. "I think we've found them!"

Natasha's heart raced as she considered the possibility of her children being alive. "We have to find them!"

Hiro followed the tracks a ways, seeming to be have headed where they had come from, before realizing their own larger tracks and the wind left any tracks leaving the nest area mostly destroyed. Hiro thought on this a moment. "That sauropod said she saw them down this way; perhaps that means they were heading the way we came."

Natasha was curious to the possibility. "Why didn't we pass them then?"

Hiro shrugged. "We don't really know when this happened. Maybe we were searching the river, or we were on the other side of it. Maybe they're trying to head home."

Storming away from the camp, Natasha gave a nod. "Then let's head back."

....................................

"The camp!" Sonya bounced in joy as she saw the spot of desert they had called home for the time being opposite the river.

Equally excited, Shayla hopped in place. "That's amazin'!" The overjoyed raptor ran for the river before Niko spoke up.

"Wait! How are we going to cross without being swept away?"

Shayla cocked her head as she froze in place. "Um...I reckon you've gotta point." Walking into the river, she fanned the feathers on her arms and tail and smiled as she floated in place. "How 'bout you free just 'op onto me back and I swim you 'cross!" Vera seemed excited to try it out, but Shayla and Niko seemed dubious of the plan. As Vera hopped into the water and climbed onto the raptor's back, Shayla motioned them towards her. "Come on, it's not 'at far. Ten minutes, tops, and we'll be back at yer home."

Sonya didn't seem to like the idea, but reluctantly her and Niko joined their sister and started their voyage across the river.

Halfway across, Sonya smiled in joy. "This actually seems to be working."

Shayla nodded, still trying to keep focus on her task. "Sure is, love, jus' make sure you keep still so I don't drop you." The three children clung to her tighter at the thought. As the edge of the river neared, the four dinosaurs perked up at a loud and happy roar.

"Kids!"

Turning in unison, the children smiled in bliss as their mother and father stood on the river bank they had just left. Shayla couldn't help but give an accomplished smile as the parents neared the river.

Upon reaching the other side of the river, Shayla waited patiently for the parents of the children she had looked after all day. In almost no time at all, the dinosaurs made a rather damp group on the riverbank.

Natasha and Hiro immediately snuggled their children close before looking to Shayla. Without leaving her children, Natasha gave her a grin. "Thank you. You have no idea how happy we are to see our children alive."

Shayla felt herself blushing under her feathers. "Oh, well, I just did what I fought was right, mam. I woudn't 'ave felt good 'bout lettin' children die in a storm like that, not one bit."

When the parents were ready, they asked what had happened, and so Shayla explained it all. From her seeing the chicks wash up on the river bank to her covering them with her body all the way to them crossing the river. When her story was done, Natasha couldn't help but nuzzle the fluffy raptor herself. "You're our hero."

Shayla laughed as the large female rubbed her feathers with her snout, feeling happy just to be around her. "Yer too kind, miss. After yer children told me 'oo their mum was, I was 'onestly excited to possibly meet you. The way you take down yer prey and the way you treat 'em, well, it's talked about by many predators. I know me one pal, Aeron, likes to blab about you a bit." She paused a moment as she thought over what she just said. "Don't fink 'at's the reason I 'elped 'em; I'd 'ave 'elped 'em regardless."

Natasha had no doubts there.

With the children safe and free from harm, the Tarbosaurus family relaxed with their new friend, telling stories from their lives and forming a bond. When night fell, they even offered her room in their family huddle; Shayla enjoying the feeling of being nestled up against the large mother's belly alongside the chicks.

For the remaining winter months that the family stayed in the desert, Shayla became a constant visitor to their camp, and when sandstorms hit, would do her best to cover the chicks as she had on that day; that is, until the chicks outgrew her.

When spring finally arrived and the time came that Natasha and her family traveled back to the forest, they left knowing they would always have a friend in the desert, a fried that would maybe even visit them in the forest when the desire to do so struck.

Epilogue

_Two weeks before spring... _

With a thud and a puff of sand, Natasha released her prey from her jaws. The young Deinocherius moaned as it held on to the last breath of life in its lungs, though knowing full well death was near.

Circling the bird-like dinosaur to stand next to her babies, fully free of their baby feathers and standing up to their mother's knees, Natasha leaned down to speak into their ears.

"She's yours." Her whispered voice sent a chill down their spins. They all remembered that day, seeming so long ago; the day they disappointed their mother. "Watch her fat belly heave with her ragged breaths." Their mother licked her lips as they did as told. "Such a belly begs to be devoured, and at this point, she begs for release."

The former chicks felt their own mouths water as they smelled the blood of their soon-to-be prey; moving their eyes all across her probably tasty body and savoring the curves of fat and flesh with their gaze.

Sonya, now well toned and showing a largeness that may one day rival her mother, took a cautious step forward. "S-she'll die. We will kill her." Natasha hissed happily to voice her approval.

Vera, who had grown just as big on her belly and hips as she had in height, openly drooled as she craved the feathered flesh sitting before her. "I-I'm ready, mother."

The two sisters slowly approached the dying animal, but the still scrawny Niko stayed with his mother. Natasha gently nuzzled his cheek before pushing him forward with her snout. "Go, my son. You're ready."

Niko's feet left ruts in the sand as he was pushed forward against his will. "B-but I'm so small...so weak."

"Niko." The boy looked to Hiro as he approached from the side. "Look at me. I'm small. I'm nearly half the size of your mother, and yet I can kill. I am fast and strong."

Natasha chuckled in her son's ear. "I don't like to admit it, but he is a better hunter than I. I like the thrill of the hunt, or else he'd probably be out there getting your supper."

Niko looked to his father closely. Though only his father through love, Hiro was still his uncle by blood, and so his genes ran though his body as well. Niko knew well his father shared the title of runt, and yet, he was strong. Looking to the prey, she huffed before moving to stand with his sisters.

The three nest mates looked over their prey as they stood in unison around her long neck. They listened to her breathing as they watched her chest rise and fall. Looking to her face, they watched the pain in her eyes as the blood drained from the open wound on her belly. After a time, the female closed her eyes and stretched out her neck for them. It was time.

With a heavy sigh, the three siblings leaned down, smelling the neck offered to them. Natasha and Hiro watched with nervous anticipation. Natasha had made sure this time to make the wound lethal but not so that she would die right away like last time, or else she may have passed by now. Quietly, the mother spoke to her young. "Give her release."

Opening their jaws, the three children lunged at their prey's neck, eliciting a yelp from the Deinocheirus before she went limp. The siblings had become predators. Natasha couldn't help but roar in joy as she watched, with her mate, their children tear into the dead dinosaur in a flurry of blood and feathers.

Vera was the first to stray from the neck, placing a large foot onto the animal's belly and using her sharp talons to rip it open with a satisfying pop, watching the organs spill free. Her parents couldn't help but chuckle as she shoved her snout right into the belly cavity, pulling away mouthfuls of meat and oragns; she always was the glutton.

Sonya chose to grab a leg by the ankle and rip it free from its host by holding the body down with her own strong legs; her toned muscles already putting her mother to shame as the leg ripped off with a splash of blood. In no time at all she was feasting on the dismembered limb.

Niko chose to play it safe by avoiding his sisters and simply ripping meat from the back of the animal, enjoying the rib flesh before pulling savory mouthfuls of fat tail meat into his gullet.

When their children had become fat and tired with bellies full of their first kill, Natasha and Hiro picked at the remains, resulting in a rather happy meal for the family. When their meal was done and the corpse left, they couldn't help but wonder if Shayla was hungry that evening. With a coy smile, Natasha figured she'd go and ask, and left to visit her friend, possibly for the last time before leaving the desert.