Later that night, under the starry sky, Sid wandered off to find food for himself. "Now to find a meal befitting a conquering hero". Sid lets go of the branch but hits him to the ground but he gets up. "What ho? A foe? Come on, come on. You want a piece of me?"
Sid uses karate sounds and hits the tree but found an acorn. "Spoils worthy of such a noble-" Sid was about to eat it but as the acorn was about land, something came flying into Sid and grabbed the acorn It was Scrat! After a brief struggle, Scrat took the acorn out of Sid's mouth and started scurrying away, but not before shaking his fist at Sid for nearly taking away his acorn.
*Meanwhile*
"Bedtime, squirt". Manny tuck the baby in his trunk and settled himself in as he did, he looked at the human girl, who was asleep near Diego. He then looked toward Avery, who walked over to tuck her in.
This time was as good as any to talk about what happened earlier. "So, what was that earlier? With her speaking?" Manny asked Avery.
The weasel looked at Manny and then back to the human girl. "She was always able to talk", she answered.
"So why didn't she?"
"Humans are different from us mammals. They have their own language and don't really understand ours. Believe me, I've been around them long enough to know they couldn't understand a word I was saying".
"But how did she learn?"
"This one taught her" Avery pointed at herself, looking proud. "It took a while but she started to understand. The only reason she doesn't speak now is because she doesn't really like you guys. You, she's getting used to. Sid, she was fine with him from the start. But Diego, uh..."
Avery looked toward Diego and frowned. "Yeah, I'm pretty sure she's never going to be close with him".
"That makes a lot of sense" Manny commented before he noticed Sid returning. "Oh, the triumphant return".
"Huh? Oh, that". Sid laughs nervously. "I'm so full. Uh, anyway what were you guys talking about before I got here?"
"It was about Redwood and her speaking" Avery answered.
"Who?" Sid asked.
"That's her name. Redwood." Avery gestures to the human girl. "Before you ask, I didn't name her, her parents did. I should've told you before but I'll do that tomorrow". Avery walked toward the human girl, now named Redwood, and laid down in a sleeping position. "Night boys".
"How about a good night kiss for your big buddy Sid..." Sid asked, turning to Manny.
"Shh! They're asleep". Manny said, assuming he was talking about the humans.
"I was talking to you". Sid clarified, causing Manny to give a disgusted look on Sid as he prepared to dust off the rock to sleep. "Fine, I'll tuck myself in". Sid reclines on the rock; making moans and groans of relaxation and yawning. "All right... Good Night..."
He flops on the rock, then turns over. As he's turning over and over, Manny becomes slightly irritated as he watches Sid quirk around on the rock groaning. Sid is then lying on the rock on his back and his head lolling off the rock while talking in his sleep. He shuffles his body counter-clockwise towards the front of the rock, making fizzing noises with his teeth and tongue, and flops on his side. He suddenly jerks his arm and head up and down and loudly groans.
Manny shouts angrily; startling Sid. "WILL YOU STOP IT!"
"All right, All right, jeez... I was just trying to relax". Sid said sheepishly as he finds a comfortable spot on the rock and begins to suck his thumb.
Everyone started sleeping to pass the night. As for Manny, he looked at Diego one last time and slowly closed his eyes, ready for the night. But with everyone dozing, Diego quietly opened his eyes. With the moonlight in his eyes, he quietly approached Manfred. He looked at Manny, Avery and then the baby. All of them weren't awake. He smirked, proud to have fooled them into accepting him into the group before turning to the baby. Lifting his paw, he attempted to take the baby out of Manny's trunk, but a noise stopped him from doing so.
To his relief, it was only Sid snoring. Diego extended his paw again, but this time, Manfred moved his trunk, holding the baby tighter. Frustrated, Diego looked at Manny before hearing a noise up on a nearby hill. He quietly approached the hill and saw a dead bush rustling. Crouching down, like he was hunting, he leaped into the air and tackled his watcher.
But as he prepared to attack, he saw that it was only one of his pack members, Zeke. "What the...?"
"Go ahead. Slice me. It'll be the last thing you ever do".
"I'm workin' here, you waste of fur". Diego argues with Zeke before hearing another voice.
"Frustrated Diego?" asked his other pack member, Oscar. "Tracking down helpless infants too difficult for you?"
"What are you two doing here?" Diego asked.
"Soto's getting tired of waiting". Oscar tells him.
"Yeah, Yeah, He said, "Come back with the baby, OR DON'T COME BACK AT ALL!" HAHAHAHAHAHA!" Zeke laughs.
"Well, I have a message for Soto. Tell him, I'm bringing the baby. And tell him I'm bringing... a mammoth". Diego says.
"A "mammoth"?" Zeke questions.
"Mammoths never travel alone". Oscar points out.
"Well this one does, and I'm leading him to Half Peak". Diego explains.
"Mmm... Look at all that meat. LET'S GET 'EM!" Zeke tries to run to Manny but is stopped by Diego.
"Not yet! We'll need the whole pack to bring this mammoth down, get everyone ready. Now!"
As the two sabers headed out, Diego left to return to his sleeping spot. The second he laid down, Redwood moved up closer to him and laid her head on him, unaware that she was doing so.
This surprised Diego a bit and he tried to get her off, but it backfired when she snuggled up closer to him. Not wanting to disturb the child, Diego sighed in annoyance and started dozing off to sleep.
*The Next Morning*
Morning arrives, Manny wakes up and feels for the baby in his trunk, only to discover that the baby is gone. He stomps over to the sleeping Diego, who wakes up along with Avery and Redwood.
"Where's the baby?" Manny asked.
"You lost it?!" Both Diego and Avery asked.
Redwood clear her throat to get their attention and pointed to where Sid was, "We're missing someone", she said.
They all look at each other and noticed Sid is not there.
"SID!!!"
*Meanwhile*
Sid is with the baby in a jacuzzi-like mud hot spring; using the baby as a 'chick magnet' to attract two female sloths.
"Oh, he's lovely. Positively adorable!" said a female sloth named Rachael.
Another sloth named Jennifer starts baby-talking to the baby. "Hello, Pumpkin. Hello, little bunny baby..."
"Where did you find it?" Rachael asked Sid.
"Ah, poor kid was all alone in the wild. Sabers were cornering him, So I just snatched it!" Sid answered.
"Oh, so brave of you!"
"Yeah, well... He needed me... And I wished I had one of my own, too..." Sid said wistfully.
Jennifer then got excited. "REALLY?" She calms herself down before continuing. "I'm... I'm attracted to that quality in a male".
"Who wouldn't be?" Sid said while unaware that the baby is sinking into the mud hot spring.
"You caring for a baby..." Rachel was gushing.
Sid then finally noticed that the baby is gone and pulled the now muddy baby up. "Yeah, well... You know... " The baby playfully throws mud on Sid's face; they both laugh as he grabs something to wipe the mud off his face. "Cute kid, huh? So, as I was saying ladies... uh..." He wipes the 'something' on his face, which is Manny's trunk; he realizes and gasps and looks to his side to see both an annoyed Manny and an upset Redwood. "Oh, hey! Hey... Manny!"
Manny takes the giggling baby away. "What's the matter with you?"
"Excuse me, ladies. You just keep marinating and I'll be right back" Sid gets out of the mud hot spring and gave the ladies one last look before following Manny and Redwood. "Sexy".
After he leaves, Jennifer and Rachel begin talking. "He's not much to look at, but it's so hard to find a family guy".
"Tell me about it. All the sensitive ones get eaten".
*With Sid, Manny and Redwood*
Sid walks over to Manny and Redwood to stop them. "No, no, no. Guys, please, I'm begging you. I need him!"
"Why, a good-looking guy like you?" Manny said sarcastically.
"No, you say that but you don't mean it". Sid tells him.
"No, seriously, look at you. Aw, those ladies they don't stand the chance".
Redwood then gives Manny an upset expression. "You have a very mean sense of humor".
"Hey, he shouldn't let me cramp his style", Manny turns to her.
Sid then takes the baby from him. "Oh, thanks, Manny, you're my pal. You are the best".
"Without Pinky". Manny takes the baby back.
"Manny, Manny, I need him!" Sid gives up and starts humming while heading back to the mud hot spring. "So, ladies, where were we".
To Sid's surprise, he ends up in the wrong hot spring that had the rhinos that tried to kill him before.
"Carl?"
"Easy, Frank!"
They growl and Sid screams.
*With Manny and Redwood*
After leaving Sid, Manny was speaking to Redwood as he tosses the baby a bit with his trunk. Redwood stood quiet again, especially since she didn't know how to respond to what Manny was saying.
"Pretty tail walks by, suddenly he moves like a cheetah. And that tiger... Yeah, Mr. Greater Tracker. Can't even find a sloth. What am I? The wet nurse?" He puts the baby down on a rock as the baby starts babbling and laughing. "What are you looking at bone bag?"
Redwood stands near the rock and starts making faces at the baby, which made him giggle. Manny took a look at the two before speaking to them. "Look at you two. You're both gonna grow into great predators, huh? I don't think so. What have you got? You got a little patch of fur. No fangs, no claws. You're folds of skin wrapped in mush. What's so threatening about either of you?"
Redwood gave Manny a determined look and made some growling sounds, which sounded more cute than threatening. "I'm threatening! One day, I'll be tough enough to fight really scary creatures!" Redwood then made a few fighting moves before tripping on her own foot and landing on her butt.
Manny shook his head but had a small smile on his face. "Sure you will, kid". He helps her back on her feet with his trunk before turning to the baby. "And what about him? What's he going to do?" Manny poked him but then the baby hugged Manny's trunk as the mammoth's expression changed.
Redwood looked at him and his current expression. It was softer and less grumpy than before. Plus how he didn't act like a jerk to her or the baby like he did with Sid and Diego, she was thinking maybe he wasn't as bad as she thought he was.
Manny then shook his head and lost the softer expression. "Hey, does this look like a petting zoo to you, huh?" Manny held his trunk high to get the baby off, but that led to him pulling some of Manny's fur with him, which caused him to yell in pain.
"Okay, all right, wise guy. You just earned a time-out". Manny placed the baby on a tree as he lays upside down on his back and continues to laugh. "Oh, you think that funny. How about this?" He puts the baby on the highest branch of the tree. "You'll be a little snack for the owls".
"Don't do that", Redwood said, feeling worried. She tried climbing the tree to get to the baby but she loses her balance and fell off. She would've hurt herself if it wasn't for Manny catching her with his trunk.
He sighed before placing her on his back. "If you promise to watch him and entertain him, I'll bring him back down, okay?"
Redwood nodded and Manny got the baby off the tree and gave him to Redwood, who started making faces at him again.
"You're both brave little squirts, I'll give you that". Manny commented to the human kids.
*Back with Sid*
Sid is still running but stops when he finds Diego with Avery. "Oh, Thank goodness. Thank goodness". Sid then calls out and pretends that Diego eating him. "OH NO! A TIGER! HELP! HELP!"
"Where's the baby? Are he and Redwood okay?" Avery asks in concern.
"Oh, they're fine. Manny has them". Sid whispers to her before turning to Diego. "Just put me in your mouth. Hurry up". He calls out again, still pretending Diego eating him. "AAAAAOOOOOHHHH! HE GOT ME! Oh, help..."
"Get away from me". Diego tells him before walking away.
"Sid, what's going on?" Avery asks.
"He went this way! Over here!" The rhinos who were chasing Sid said.
"I'll tell you later", Sid told Avery before running to Diego and kicking him, which angered him and he went to bite Sid's neck. The rhinos came from around the corner and found Sid (who was pretending to be dead) in Diego's mouth.
"Oh, Carl. The tiger beat up us to him!" Frank said, feeling disappointed.
"Wait a minute". Carl sniffed Sid, trying to see if he really was dead. Diego looked at him as if he was trying to claim Sid as his own kill. Carl backed away a few inches, irritated by the sloth's smell, and believed he and Frank were too late. "He's dead alright".
"Oh, carnivores have all the fun".
The rhinos leave and Sid sighs in relief. "Gosh, I hate breaking their hearts like that. But you know how it is". Sid tries to leave but Diego's jaw is practically locked on Sid's neck. "All right, thanks. You can put me down now". Sid continues to struggle and tries to get himself free before he tries calling for help. "Manny! Avery!"
Avery sighs and walks up to Diego. "Drop it!" she orders but is ignored, so she repeats herself, "Drop it!" Avery gets more annoyed and tries to reason with the saber. "Diego, please spit him out. Neither of us knows where he's been and I doubt either of us wants to know. He smells bad for a reason".
Diego thinks for a second before spitting Sid out.
"Thanks," Sid tells Avery.
"Don't mention it. Also, where's Manny?" Avery asks.
Her question was answered when Manny appeared with the baby in his trunk and Redwood walking next to him. "Guys, I thought we were in a hurry. Oh, and Avery, teach your kid how to fight. She going to get hurt learning that herself".
"First, she's too young. Second, that's going to be her new human family's job. And third, since when are you concerned?" Avery asked as she catches a ride onto Redwood's shoulder.
As for Sid, he starts talking to Diego. "Boy. For a second there, I actually thought you were gonna eat me".
"I don't eat junk food". Diego states.
Sid laughs a bit but then gets slightly concerned. "Thought you were gonna... I thought you were gonna... Were you?"
END CHAPTER
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A/N: This was a good place to stop the chapter on. And BTW, school would've been taking all of my free time to work on this if I wasn't secretly using my phone during my boring classes like history, hehe 😈.
All of that aside, please comment and tell me what you think of the chapter.