[Age-up: Charna] Crossing Paths

How long has it been? At least... a week? Two weeks? She wasn't sure anymore...

It had been a while since Charna was separated from her herd, and not able to find and reunite with them. The juvenile styracosaurus had spent many nights sleeping alone, huddled in bushes or any small crevice she could find to avoid being discovered by predators. The day that started this aimless journey, still haunted her dreams. The panicked bellows of her herdmates, their stomps akin to distant thunder as they scattered. A loud, deafening roar, accompanied by a maw full of sharp teeth, soaked in deep crimson. Sounds of pained yowls; if it was a carnivore or herbivore, she couldn't tell.

A youngling like her isn't supposed to live this long. But by some miracle, Charna was holding up on her own with relative ease. Despite being a rambunctious child who only wanted to spar with her siblings, she liked to think she listened to her mother's teachings well enough, even if she didn't believe Charna was paying attention at all. Too occupied literally bumping heads and playfully establishing dominance. The seasoned cow taught her what to eat, taught her what not to eat. What to do in the presence of a predator, or what must be done when she felt like there were eyes on her even when she couldn't see it.

The sun was beginning to set, and Charna was hungry. She wanted to find at least some bit of food before looking for a place to hide for the night; to quiet the ache in her stomach. It was boring and incredibly lonely; just scrounging around for roots, nuts and seeds. Then, right as she was about to head off for the day, she had found the jackpot, a small bush with berries! She recognized this plant and the fruit it produced, and thankfully they were safe to eat, but unfortunately, there weren't many on this tiny shrub. Some were on the ground, not looking as ripe as the few remaining ones. Charna snorted in frustration, but in the end, something was better than nothing, and began to carefully pick them off with her beak, one by one.

Before she could take the last berry, something small, furry and brown in color suddenly popped out from the bushes, catching her by surprise. “EEK!!” Charna shrieked in horror. She jumped up, lifting herself onto her hind legs, kicking in the air before falling onto her rear. It took her a moment to realize the creature that emerged from the bushes as none other than a pesky squirrel, a pesky squirrel that was grabbing the last…

Wait a minute.

“HEY!” Charna shouted furiously at the squirrel that was now scurrying away. “THAT’S MY BERRY! GIVE IT BACK YOU SMELLY RAT!” She hastily got up and was in pursuit, the youngling was not letting some tiny mammal take her precious food!

The squirrel may have been fast, but she had the stubbornness and energy to keep up. They both exited the tree line and were now out in an open field, with only vibrant green grass and white flowers scattered as far as the eye could see. But Charna didn’t care about the world around her at that moment, she saw nothing but red, her tunnel vision focused solely on the rodent.

Already getting exhausted from having to run with all her might, she was starting to slow down, maybe the berry wasn’t that worth it… But seeing the squirrel make it to a tree and begin to climb it rejuvenated her and her fury, forcing herself to give it her all again and run to the tree with more speed.

And then she crashed into a rock she didn’t realize was right in front of it…

“Dang it!” The young sty shouted whilst moving a few steps back. The boulder was large, purple and it felt… strangely cushiony, it didn’t hurt her at all. She’d gasp audibly as the rock instantly shuffled and a head emerged, yellow eyes staring right down at her. Charna could feel a shiver course through her small form, the bristle-like fur on her back standing on its end similar to a frightened cat.

The figure continued to sit there silently, just looking at her, with a very disgruntled and albeit a bit of a groggy expression. This gave the youngling time to get a good look of the dinosaur in front of her. It had a large crest adorned with spikes, a short-ish yet broad face and snout, and a long horn on the front…

Charna gasped again, though even more louder and exaggerated than before. Her eyes were beaming with excitement, the fear and tension she felt giving way to excitement and familiarity. “Wait, you! You’re me! You’re a sty!” She exclaimed with immense joy, stomping with all of her four legs due to not being able to contain her enthusiasm, almost like a horse’s piaffe. She hadn’t seen another styracosaurus for what felt like ages. The last time Charna did was when she was with her herd, before they were separated. “I haven’t found another me in forever! Who are you? What’s your name? Where are you from? Are you from my herd??”

“Hey. HEY.” The old bull rumbled. He had just been so rudely poked awake from his important naptime. Now he’s got to deal with getting his bearings, an aching shoulder, and this chatterbox of a youngster. “Simmer down, pipsqueak!”

His protests were to no avail, Charna kept yapping away and away with questions. Oy vey, Oculus likely thought to himself, this was going to be a long evening…