Reply To: The Land Before Time XVII: The Threehorn Gathering
CHAPTER FIVE: THE THREEHORN GATHERING
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“Cera, what’s bothering you?”
Littlefoot noticed that Cera seemed down. “What they said last night. That Dad could have saved Mom and the others.” said Cera gloomily.
“We don’t know what happened.” said Littlefoot.
“I wish they’d tell me.” said Cera, shaking her head.
“Look, it’s our Aunt Cera, the great Sharptooth fighter!” said Dana and Dinah to a Club Tail of about their age.
“What did you tell them?” asked Littlefoot incredulously.
“About our adventures with Sharpteeth.” said Cera, grinning.
Olivia came to Cera. “What stories are you filling their heads with?” she asked.
“Stories about my adventures with Sharpteeth.” said Cera.
Olivia shook her head. “You’re going to give them bad Sleep Stories.” she said in a scolding tone.
Cera decided to ask her older sister about her mother and siblings. “What happened with Mom and my siblings?” Cera asked Olivia.
Olivia said nothing. Her father had wanted to keep it a secret. She knew it was a matter of deepest shame to him. Topps had asked her not to tell Cera.
Olivia left crying. “Come back here!” said Cera angrily. Cera followed her. “Tell me the truth!” demanded Cera.
“I can’t. I promised.” said Olivia.
Cera fumed all that morning. What were they hiding from her? She’d seen the attack on Littlefoot’s mother. It wasn’t like she couldn’t handle it.
“Still going to be in the Threehorn Gathering?” Cera turned. It was Bambo.
“Did I hear something?” asked Cera to Littlefoot.
“Very funny.” said Bambo, scowling.
“What do you want?” grumbled Cera, giving him the stink-eye.
“I wanna know why you want to be in the Threehorn Gathering. You’re a girl. There’s never been a girl in the Threehorn Gathering before.” said Bambo.
“There hasn’t?” gasped Cera.
“Nope. You gotta be tough to be in it.” said Bambo smugly.
“OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHH!” fumed Cera. “I am tough!” she growled. She began to sing:
“I’m really tough.
Even if I’m a girl I’m really rough.
Look around and you will see.
There is no Threehorn here tougher than me.
Give it up Bambo you cannot dissuade.
For there is nothing that makes me afraid.
Guess what Bambo I’ve got news for you.
There ain’t nothing in the Threehorn Gathering that a guy can do that a girl can’t do too.” sang Cera.
“Go on ignore what I say.
You won’t last through the first day.” sang Bambo.
“Is that true?
Says who?” sang Cera. She rammed her horns against Bambo, who quickly had moved to block her. The two started to struggle, pushing each other back and forth.
“Oh I’ve really had enough!
I tell you that a girl can be tough!” sang Cera again, moving Bambo forward, air coming out of her nostrils angrily.
“This contest is only for the strong.
Having a girl in it is just plain wrong!” sang Bambo, starting to move Cera forward, though with a lot of effort.
“I’m as tough as you can get.
And the truth of that is something upon which you can bet!” sang Cera, knocking over Bambo.
“The only one that can win is a guy.
That’s a fact and I’m not going to lie!” sang Bambo grumpily. He went and rammed her, sending her flying a short distance.
“You’d hit a girl?” said Cera in mock sweetness. Bambo nodded. “Very well then.” said Cera in a threateningly calm voice. She got up and rammed Bambo, sending him flying even further than he had sent her.
“I will do what I have to to get through to you.
Winning this contest is something that a girl can do!” sang Cera defiantly. Bambo shook his head. “YES!” sang Cera.
“NO!” sang Bambo.
“Let me face you and you’ll know!” they both sang, finishing their song.
“See you tomorrow, if you’re tough enough.” said Bambo, starting to storm off.
“I hope your mommy doesn’t get all sad when I’m done with you.” snapped Cera. The two stuck out their tongues at each other. Bambo left.
“HMMMMMMMPPPPPH!” said Cera, thumbing her nose in the air.
Cera went off sulking. “Says a girl can’t be tough. What does he know?” she grumbled.
“Cera, what’s bothering you?” asked Tria.
There was a lot bothering her. First of all, her dad and sister were keeping what had happened to her mother a secret from her. Second, there was Bambo and his sexism.
“It’s Bambo. He says that a girl cannot possibly do well in the Threehorn Gathering.” said Cera.
“It’s true enough.” It was Chas. “They’ve never had a girl in there before. Why change things now?” he said, smirking.
“Oh really?” said Tria in a calm, yet dangerous tone.
“Yep. Always been that way. Why let a girl in?” he said.
“Well, things are going to be different this cold time! I’m joining!” said Tria. Cera’s mouth fell open in shock.
A while later, Topps was also shocked. “You’re what?!” he said in utter shock, his mouth also open in shock.
“That’s right. I’m in.” said Tria smugly.
“But you don’t seem the type to do this.” said Topps.
“True, I’m usually not. But this is personal.” said Tria.
Topps was wise enough not to challenge her. He knew she was tougher than she looked.
They went to bed that night. Cera was thinking about her mother and her siblings as well as Bambo and his sexism. Also, she wondered what had happened in the past between her father and grandfather and Angus, Banger, Prong, and Chas.
The next day, they woke up early. The contest began. “You can do it Cera.” said Littlefoot. Cera smiled at him.
They began. Cera plowed through the rocks. Cera noticed that Bambo was pretty tough. Cera started to encounter harder rocks. Bambo seemed to be getting ahead of her. “Told you a girl can’t do it.” he said smugly.
This infuriated her. She let out a Threehorn screech and charged forward. SMASH! SMASH! SMASH! SMASH! SMASH! SMASH! SMASSSSSH! She charged through the rocks, heading ahead of Bambo. Bambo stared at her, dumbfounded. “Hee!” she said, smirking.
Tria was able to beat out many contenders. Topps and she were neck and neck. Several Threehorns were shocked that Tria could be so tough.
Meanwhile, Ducky had gotten some ferns and was waving them around like pom-poms. “Go Cera! You can do it! Yep yep yep! You can! Go Cera! You can do it! You can! You can!” she chanted.
“Cera going to win! Cera going to win!” chanted Petrie.
Spike, meanwhile, was distracted, eating green food. Ducky whacked him. “Spike, you are supposed to be watching Cera. You are. You are!” scolded Ducky.
Spike watched Cera. However, a while later, he started to eat one of Ducky’s ferns. She waved it, only to find part of it was missing. “Huh?” she said. She saw Spike eating it. He went and took another bite of it. “SPIKE!” she shouted angrily.
At last, Cera and Bambo were defeated. They both couldn’t get past another rock. The rocks were quite big. They were the best in their group.
Topps and Tria, along with Angus, Chas, Banger, and Prong, had also made it to the next round.
“Say Bambo, how did that part about me losing go?” said Cera smugly.
“Beginner’s luck.” said Bambo, though he couldn’t help but smile weakly at Cera. Cera smiled weakly back.
That night, Cera was worn out, but proud of herself. “Nice job Cera.” said Littlefoot. The others concurred with him.
“Well, I’ll admit, for a girl, you’re not that bad.” said Bambo, approaching her.
“Funny, I was going to say the same thing about you too.” said Cera, smirking.
“Real cute.” said Bambo in annoyance.
“When are you going to admit that a girl can do it?” asked Cera.
“I’m coming around.” said Bambo. “After all, your stepmother surprised me too.”
He went off to go retire. Cera and her friends, however, heard arguing voices and crept toward them to investigate.
“Daddy, why can’t we tell her?” came Olivia’s voice.
“Cera thinks that Threehorns are wonderful. Why take that from her?” came Topps’s voice.
“She still should know.” came Tria’s voice.
“She trusts Dad. If she knew that his hotheadedness caused that fight that led those rocks to fall and kill her mother and siblings, she’d be devastated.” came Olivia’s voice.
The whole world seemed to shift around Cera. She couldn’t believe what she’d just heard. She let out a loud yell. “NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!”
