Manny's herd was still exploring the new land they came across. Ethan, Steffie, Meghan, and Katie weren't with them since they weren't official members of the herd yet (Manny was still a bit distrustful of Ethan for, well, for father reasons). They were in a forest at the moment, but when they stepped out into the open hunters appeared and attacked them! Manny, Shira, and Diego started fighting them.

"Ellie, get everyone else out of here." Manny ordered.

"But what about you?" Ellie protested.

"Just do it!" Manny snapped.

Shocked, since she had never heard Manny speak like that before, Ellie obeyed. She and Peaches ran back into the forest. Sid, Crash, and Eddie were already there unsurprisingly. So was Granny, even she knew the dangers well enough this time. Oblivious as she was to some things the danger of hunters never left her mind for a second.

Diego got badly scratched at one point.

"Diego, Shira, just go." Manny said sternly.

"Hey, I'm not letting you fight them alone." Diego argued.

Manny gave him once heck of a death glare.

"I...er..." Diego then remembered about Manny's first family. "Right. Shira let's go, we can protect the others in case any hunters enter the forest."

"Okay..." Shira said hesitantly, not knowing why Diego had given in.

They ran into the forest. The hunters just kept attacking Manny, who was fighting back ferociously.

"Wow, what's eating him?" Crash asked.

Diego and Sid looked at each other awkwardly. They were the only ones who knew about Manny's first family. Manny was still uncomfortable with telling everyone else the story, even Ellie and Peaches.

Finally the hunters had tired Manny out enough for him to collapse. One aimed his spear...

"STOP!"

Startled, the other hunters turned towards the sound and saw a young human running towards them.

"Stop! Don't hurt him!" The young lad called.

"Roshan I know you're a vegetarian, somewhat, but the rest of us have to eat meat." One hunter said, annoyed.

"It's not that. Remember dad telling you about a mammoth who returned me to him?" Roshan frowned.

The hunters lowered their spears awkwardly.

"Uh, you mean..." Another hunter pointed at Manny.

"Exactly, he's that mammoth." Roshan went past the the hunters and approached Manny. "Manny? Are you okay?"

"Hold on, he knows Manny's name?" Ellie was surprised.

She wasn't the only one who was surprised.

"Wait...he said something about a mammoth returning him to his-" Diego dropped his mouth open.

"No way, it can't be." Sid's eyes widened.

"What in tarnation are you two talking about?" Granny demanded.

"Way back before we met all of you Manny, Sid and I went on a journey together to return a human baby to his herd." Diego explained. "In fact that journey was what caused us to become a herd in the first place."

"Really?" Shira said.

"Yeah, beforehand I was part of a pack and Manny and Sid were on their own." Diego nodded.

Diego and Sid left the forest cautiously.

"Diego, Sid, there you are." Roshan smiled. "It's me, Pinky."

"Wait, how do you know our names?" Manny asked. "And what we called you?"

"Because I understood you." Roshan smiled. "I can still understand you."

Manny, Sid, Diego, and the rest of the herd gaped at him.

"You can understand us?" Sid double-checked.

"Uh-huh, I guess all babies can understand animals but forget how as they learn human language." Roshan said. "However I never forgot. I never wanted to forget you guys so I kept the three of you in my mind and my heart my whole life. Lucky thing too." Roshan added as he glanced at Manny. "This caused me to form a strong connection to nature, and it also prevented me from becoming a hunter. I'm now mostly a vegetarian - another name for herbivore - except for some fish now and then. I'm also studying to be a shaman."

"What's a shaman?" Diego asked.

"A healer, to put it simply." Roshan explained.

"It's great seeing you again." Manny smiled as he slowly got up. "Don't worry about me, I'm just a bit tired."

Ellie and Peaches then went to Manny.

"Well, is this your family?" Roshan asked, smiling.

"Yup, this is my wife Ellie and my daughter Peaches." Manny introduced.

"Great to meet you." Roshan smiled.

"Same here." Ellie smiled back.

"Wow, I had no idea you once saved a human daddy." Peaches said.

"Yeah, well, that was a long time ago." Manny shrugged. "I never though I'd see Pink-er-Roshan again which is why I didn't tell you about him."

"Understandable." Ellie had to nod.

"So, is this the last of your herd?" Roshan asked.

"Nah, there are more back in there." Sid said as he pointed to the forest. "Ellie's brothers Crash and Eddie, my Granny, Diego's mate Shira, and Peaches best friend Louis."

"Oh. Well I'd like to meet them all." Roshan smiled. "Oh wait." He turned to the hunters. "I suggest the rest of you go somewhere else for your meal. Plus I don't think the rest of their family would be comfortable being near all of you."

"True." A hunter said. "We'll see you back at the village Roshan."

"Right, if you get back before me tell dad that I'm just hanging out with some old friends." Roshan nodded.

The hunters left. Crash, Eddie, Granny, Shira, and Louis then came out.

"Wha-" Roshan was surprised. "Gee, when you said that Crash and Eddie were Ellie's brothers I was expecting two more mammoths, not opossums. Adopted huh?" He guessed to Ellie.

"Yeah." Ellie confirmed. "I was separated from my first herd one winter and Crash and Eddie's mom took me in."

"Ah." Roshan smiled. "Oh...Diego are you okay?"

He had just noticed Diego's bad cut.

"Huh?" Diego turned around and saw his cut. "Oh yeah, kinda. I mean it hurts but I'll live."

"Better take you back to my village, I have some healing salves I can put on that." Roshan said. "Don't worry, the people there know to trust and not harm any animal that enters the village with me. Everyone already knows that I can talk to animals so they try not to kill any of my friends. Besides, I think dad would like to see the three of you again."

Manny and the others agreed, and followed Roshan back to his village.

"Manny...why were you acting like that back there?" Ellie asked.

"Huh? Oh, you mean with the hunters..." Manny hung his head sadly and sighed. "I have been meaning to tell both you and Peaches this, I just found it hard..."

"Tell us what?" Peaches asked.

"Tell you...that you're not my first family." Manny admitted.

Ellie, Peaches, Crash, Diego, Granny, and Louis looked at him with shock. Roshan was shocked as well but couldn't look at Manny with it because Manny was behind him.

"Before I met Sid I had another family." Manny continued. "But one day hunters attacked. My family ran away as I fought them, but it turned out to be a trap. My wife and son ended up trapped alongside a rocky wall, and other hunters..." He choked, starting to shed tears. "Other hunters dropped boulders on them. I couldn't do anything to save them, the hunters that first attacked us had surrounded me and kept me away."

He started to sob and stopped to recover a bit.

"Anyway, after the loss of my wife and son I tried not to get close to anyone else at first. Then Sid entered my life and I wound up with a bunch of new friends...and then a new family. I don't regret it, but I also don't want to lose any of you."

"So that's why you've been so protective of me." Peaches realized.

"Exactly, if anything ever happened to you...I don't even know what I'd do." Manny sighed.

"I'm really sorry Manny." Roshan said sympathetically. "I know it wasn't my fault, but it was still my species's fault. I'm glad you were able to have another family."

"Me too." Manny actually smiled.

By this point they neared the village. Runar, Roshan's father, approached him.

"Hello son-" Runar stopped and stared upon seeing Manny and his herd; mostly Manny. "You...you're the one who returned my son to me..."

"That's right, this is Manny." Roshan smiled. "Our friend Diego is hurt so I brought them here to treat him. Excuse me while I get one of my salves."

"Thank you." Runar smiled to Manny; he then looked at the rest of the herd. "Well, you're a father too now. Then in exchange for returning my son I'll help protect your daughter whenever you and your family are near my tribe."

Manny just smiled.

Roshan soon came back.

"Here you go Diego." Roshan rubbed the salve on Diego's wound.

"Thanks kid." Diego smiled.

"Heh, actually by human standards I'm close to being an adult now." Roshan chuckled. "Still have to go on my guide spirit journey though."

"Guide spirit?" Sid asked.

"Yeah, each human, when they come of age, go on a journey alone deep into the forests or woods. Depending on where you are." Roshan explained. "Some even go into the mountains. They then do some rituals like praying until they see their guide spirit, who help them find their destiny. You can never predict which guide spirit you'll get, but you can always be sure that it will be some type of animal."

"Son, since your friend Diego is wounded he and the others are welcome to stay here until he heals. Maybe even longer than that." Runar offered.

"Really?" Roshan smiled. "What do you guys think?"

Manny and the others decided on staying. They wanted Diego to be fully healed before continuing the journey anyway, plus those who didn't know Roshan before now wanted to get to know him more.

"Great. I know you guys wouldn't be comfortable being inside the village all the time so you can hang out amongst the trees near us." Roshan grinned. "I especially think Crash and Eddie would prefer that since we really don't have anything for them to hang from around here."

Crash and Eddie agreed.

Roshan and Manny's herd then hung out near the trees and got to know each other more. Roshan learned about their adventures, and was amazed by the other characters they had met (mostly the dinosaurs and pirates).

Roshan also got to know each newer member of the herd - from Ellie and her brothers to Louis - individually. He actually became pretty close with Louis, especially because of Louis's friendly, wise, and brave personality.

"You know," Roshan said to Louis one day as they relaxed near a small pond. "You never were a weiner, you always were brave."

"Heh, really." Louis scoffed.

"Sure, true bravery is doing what's right, even if it means risking your life." Roshan smiled. "You may not take risks or make bold moves, but you're still willing to risk your life to protect others. You also are willing to join your friends on adventures even though you'd rather stay safe, because you're that loyal to your friends."

"Ah...well truthfully I'm only willing to join Peaches on adventures." Louis admitted.

"She's your best friend, it's not surprising."

"True, but...I would like her to become more than that."

It was now out. The truth was Louis had never told anyone else about his feelings for Peaches, not even his family (who knew about his decision to stay with Manny's herd and were okay with it).

"You're in love with her?" Roshan was a bit surprised since he had never heard of interspecies relationships.

"Yeah. But since she's a mammoth and I'm a molehog I haven't been able to tell her." He sighed. "She has this crush on a mammoth named Ethan anyway."

"So when you saved her from Gutt...that was out of love and not just friendship." Roshan realized.

"Yeah, that was why I was so brave then. I'd do anything for her." Louis nodded.

"Well, sounds like your love for her is real." Roshan smiled. "Real love always works out one way or another. Have faith, maybe someday you two will be together."

"You think so?" Louis was surprised.

"Uh-huh, just keep following your heart and then who knows." Roshan nodded.

Louis thought about that for a few seconds and then smiled.

"Thanks Roshan."

"Anytime."