Chapter 2

"Hey Diego...I wonder how our little guy is doing." Sid asked as he attempted to sculpt a snow-mammoth.

"What do you mean? Who?"

"You know, the kid we saved. I wonder how hes doing."

"Why?"

"I don't know. Just wondering...I wonder if he remembers us." Sid casuallly picked up the fallen bit of the sculpture that had broken off.

"Sid, he was just a little kid, not even a kid, a baby. I don't think he'd remember us. Maybe his father-" Diego tensed, disguisted. "But probably not the boy."

"Hey guys, what're you doing?" Elle smoothly walked over to Sid and Diego, curious.

"Oh, nothing! nothing at all! Hey, where's Peaches?" Sid and Diego stood infront of the sculpture, hoping Ellie wouldn't see it.

"Oh, shes with her father. He decided to take her to go see the other kids for her birthday. Though I don't think they'll get much of a chance to see her, Manny is so overprotective, these days."

"Oh, um...uh...wheres' Crash and Eddie?"

"They went with Manny and Peaches...Hey, whats that, behind you?"

"Its a surprise, for Peaches."

"Aww...well I won't intrude, then. I need to go pick out something for her too, anyway." Ellie waved her trunk goodbye to Diego and Sid, and casually walked off.

"Feeew!" They sigh, and continue to work on their project.

"Ok, so remember Peaches, if any of the kids start to scare you, tell Daddy, ok?" as Manny protectively guarded Peaches next to him, waiting for her to look up.

"Not that you'd be able to tell me but, just, I don't know, do what ever babys do when they're scared...cry." Peaches walked with Manny happily by his side, content in watching her surroundings.

"Ok, Peaches...almost there-..." Peaches yelled out a high pitched laugh and charged towards the playground where all the other kids were playing.

"Peaches!" Manny chased the go-lucky baby mammoth to the playground, trying to settle her down.

"Peaches, be careful!" Peaches ran up the teeter-toter and it dropped hard on the other side. Peaches ran off that, and started playing with the snowballs on the trees that slopped off onto the ground, leaving the branches 'unsafe'.

"Peaches!" Manny carefully stepped over the kids, and reached Peaches. He slid her away from the unprotected tree, packed the snow back up, and carefully slid the balls onto each twig. She makes her way to the swing, where little Johnny is happily swinging. Peaches knocks him out of seat and heads toward her ice wind chime.

"Hey..." Johnny weeps, momentarily.

"Sorry, hey, Peaches, stay away from that!" Manny caught her right before she disturbed the glistening chimes that shined in the sun. He examines the chime that hung at the bottom, the only one with a different color. It had been a year since the gang had seen Buck. Manny turned away from it, and found Peaches playing 'Peakaboo' with Crash and Eddie.

"Alright, guys...Ellies' probably wondering where we are. We better go."

"Ok, come on, Peaches."

"You can't catch me!" Crash yells back, encouraging her to follow them.

"My foot is starting to feel a little better." Buck smiled, putting more weight on his foot to test it.

"I would hope so, its not like it went completely through your foot.".

"That doesn't change the fact that it really hurts, Mate."

"Well, I thought-" Vanessa was cut off.

"Wait"

"Whats wrong?" Vanessa asked, staying behind Buck.

"We're in Raptor territory."

"Thats...Bad...isn't it?"

"Considering the fact that they're carnivores, and we're a bit smaller than they are...Oh,and that they hunt in packs..."

"Yea..Kinda bad..."

"It shouldn't be a problem!"

"Excuse me?"

Just then three velociraptors jumped out into the clearing, and started to advance onto their prey. Buck pulled off his vine-rope, tied it into a lasso and started swinging it around his head as Vanessa watched from behind, trembling. Buck smirked, and one of the raptors jumped at him. he lassoed it around its muzzle, and he swang onto its back. He threw the back end of the dino and its tail knocked the other two dinos out. Leaving them on the ground, unconcious. He still struggled to keep his raptor under control, as it continued to jerk left and right.

"Buck! Are you ok?" Vanessa cried out, leery of the unconcious reptiles splayed on the ground.

"No problem-Miss! I do this-all the time! No need-to worry!" The immediate jerks left Buck's voice choppy.

"Be careful!..." Vanessa whispers, frantic. Buck flipped onto the raptors head, flexes his wrist with his knife, and hit it directly in the temple with the butt-end of the knife. He jumped off as it fell, landing infront of Vanessa. Pleased with himself.

"Ready, Mate?"

"Your impossible!" Vanessa squeaks, with a hint of laughter, and nervousness.

Buck walks passed her triumphantly. Vanessa's eyes follow than began to follow behind him as she let out a big sigh.

Hello, Manny! Hi sweetie, how was the park?" Ellie asks, as Manny, Peaches, and the possum twins walk up. The possums mirror eachother and jump from Manny's back, to Ellie's tusks. Peaches squeaked a high pitched laughter, throwing herself at Ellie for a hug, and interlock trunks.

"Diego and Sid are making Peaches a you-know-what."

"A what?"

"You know.."Ellie clears her throat, and hints at Peaches.

"Oh, a P-r-e-s-e-n-t...I'll have to check it out first."

"Manny, I doubt it'll be even remotely dangerous. This is Sid we're talking about."

"Your right...More the reason for me to check it!"

"Manny..."

"Awww...Hi Peaches!" Sid broke in, running up with Diego not too far behind him, walking.

Guess what? We have a suprise for you!" Peaches jumped up and down, letting out little bits of laughter.

"C'mon, we'll show you-"

"Sid." Manny intrudes.

"Aww Manny, we've gotta let her see it at some point..."

"Manny...just let Diego and Sid give it to her." Ellie points out.

"Ok, ok. Fine."

"Yes!" Sid runs with peaches not to far behind him, and Manny and the rest of the gang not too far behind her.

"So, Manny, what did you get her?" Diego asks.

"You've seen it."

Sid walked up to his sculpture, and just as everyone gets there, he stands aside revealing a perfect sculpture of Peaches.

"Diego helped...hehe...a lot..."

Peaches walked up to it, curious. She circled it and examined it from every corner, smiling.

"Ok, Peaches...now your present from Mommy!" Ellie reached into the tuff on her head, and pulled out a ice-headband that was shaped into a flower ontop. Peaches laughed happily and started spinning in circles.

"Alright Peaches.. now your present from Daddy." Manny says softly, as he reached into the massive locks of hair on the top of his head. He pulled out the fragile necklace given to him so long ago. Memories flushed back into his head of the little boy that he had seen so long ago.

"This necklace, Peaches..is very important to me. I'm sure you will take care of it, and I know you don't understand half of what I'm telling you right now, but I'm sure you will understand it in the future. If you want, I can hold onto it for now, but it will belong to you."

Peaches looked at it, curious, and smiled. She accepted Manny to put it around her neck, but after a few seconds, she gently pulled it off, and handed it back to Manny.

"Whats wrong?" Manny watched, hurt that she didn't accept his gift.

"She wants you to keep it..." Ellie told him in a soft voice. He looked back at Peaches,as she smiled at him and wrapped her trunk around his, giving him a hug.

"Awwwwwwww...!" Sid weeps, falling onto Diego, who pushes him off to the side.