You're My Ugly Pineapple

Chapter fifteen

(Though the actual type of animal Buck is is technically unknown, since he's described as a weasel but not what type of weasel ((since he's a weasel from the ice age)), I'm using a stoats gestation period since it's a bit easier for me to do so)

A few months went by and the tell-tale signs of pregnancy appeared, though it would take until next spring for me to give birth. Though it would take so long, the excitement of the pregnancy didn't disappear. I would spend hours on the floor of the den weaving blankets out of wild cotton and vines or making cots out of branches and soft moss. I prepared as many as I could, as I had no idea how many children we'd actually have. Buck would spend as much time as he could with me, carving toys out of bones and wood, but would need to go help a triceratops or something every so often.

It was a simple but nice life for the first two months, but then things started to change. Badly. 

I woke up in a cold sweat to the den shaking, the little carvings on the shelves carved into the dirt rattling and falling onto the ground. I shook in fear and woke Buck up, my eyes wide with adrenaline. 

"Mmf, what is it, love?" He grunted, rubbing his eye and yawning. After a second another tremor hit, waking Buck up completely. His eyes widened and he looked at me, grabbing my paw. 

"It's an earthquake, put everything you can in a bag and get up to Ava," He explained, looking into my eyes calmly. I gulped and nodded, getting out of the hammock. He followed and I took the hammock down, tying the ends so it made a little bag I could hang over my back. I walked around and collected everything I could. All the toys, the carvings and the blankets along with my knife went into the 'bag.' I climbed up to see the entire forest shaking and ripping apart, a massive crevice cutting across in front of me. I squeaked in fear and jumped back, climbing the tree to wake up Ava.

"Ava, wake up!" I exclaimed, shaking the little dino awake. She cooed softly before jumping up in fear, staring around as the jungle shook. "Calm down hun, we need to get out of here," I whispered, patting her beak as I looked back down at the jungle to search for Buck. I heard a mighty roar and saw Rudy thundering towards me, Buck standing on his head with his knife and a vine in his paws. 

"Sky!"

"Buck!" I grabbed a vine and jumped onto Ava's back pulling the reins for an instant take-off. "We need to get somewhere safe!" I yelled, flying over to the two. 

"Agreed! But I reckon this ain't gonna stop for a while and there's no knowing where the cracks'll form!"

I flew Ava above to overlook the land and the pattern of cracks, spying a piece in the land that none of the cracks seem to touch. I yelled out to Buck and pointed at the land, motioning that he follow me as I flew over there. 

Ava and I landed softly and another rumble filled my ears, the ground beneath me shaking violently. I clutched the reins tightly in fear as my hands shook from the adrenaline, trying not to fall down as I tried to stop Ava from flying off. 

"Easy girl, it's going to be okay," I assured, stroking her beak softly with my spare paw. I heard thundering footsteps and looked up to see Rudy and Buck looming over me, their shadows basking over Ava and I. Buck slid down Rudy's back and ran up to me, holding me in his arms. 

"Are you ok? Are the babies ok?" He exclaimed, pulling away and looking me up and down, his paw on my belly. 

"I-I don't know. It's still so early in the pregnancy and I don't know if they're okay or not," I muttered, looking down at my hardly-noticeable baby bump. I didn't feel anything from them whatsoever, no movement or anything. It scared me, so unbelievably so. "If anything happens to them, I don't know what I'd do."

"Hey, hey," Buck cooed, taking my cheek in his paw and wiping away the tears. "It's going to be okay, nothing is going to happen to them."

I sighed and looked down at the ground, my shoulders slumping and my ears going floppy. Something inside told me that something was wrong. Something wasn't right with our children. And I was praying that the feeling was wrong. I could tell Buck had that feeling as well, that fatherly instinct that made him on the edge. 

As soon as the quake stopped we started setting up a temporary camp, using leaves and such to make camouflaged tents that would sustain us for long enough to make a den when all of this ended. Rudy had made his own little nest of sorts out of fallen trees, Ava had done the same next to him and the rest of the day was spent worrying both about our safety and our friends above.

I stared up at the cracked ice above and sighed, my mouth drying as I thought of everything that could have happened to them.

And I hoped with all my might that they were ok.