Title: Lost and Found
Disclaimer: I don't own Manny, Sid, or Diego and/or any other characters associated with them. I do own Nana though and her storyline.
Pairing: Diego/OC
Summary: What if Sid wasn't the only mammal left behind?
I was starting to forget what was happening in the movie so I had to watch it a couple more times. And I cried. Three times. How pathetic is that?
-#-#-#-#-#-
Before the shock of Manny suddenly disappearing could register in the minds of the others, they abruptly saw him lifted high in the air on a huge jet of steam. There was a loud crash as gravity decided to kick in and the mammoth fell onto the hard surface where the group stood. Sid scrambled over towards him, closely followed by Diego and Nana as rock, ice and other debris showered the ground.
"Manny! Are you ok? Come on, say something, anything!"
"Nyore ndin yn ny yrrnk," mumbled Manny faintly.
"What? What was that, I can't hear you?" Sid inched closer.
"You're standing on my trunk," he repeated.
"Oh."
The sloth jumped from his trunk and Manny gratefully sucked in lungfuls of air.
"You're ok, you're ok!" Yipped Sid dancing around wildly with the baby gurgling in his arms. Diego looked confused, an expression on his face which Nana hadn't seen before. He was always cocky, sure – never uncertain and perplexed.
"Why did you do that? You could have...died, trying to save me."
"That's what you do in a herd," answered Manny, matter of factly. "You look out for each other."
Diego paused to digest the information and Nana smirked at the tiger, who suddenly couldn't meet anyone's eyes.
"Well...thanks." He smiled slightly, looking embarrassed. She could swear he was blushing.
Sid, ever looking for a moment for a quick quip spoke. "I don't know about you guys, but we are the weirdest herd I have ever seen."
Nana laughed and the group settled down to wait for Manny and Diego to recover from their little flirtation with death.
-#-#-
It was getting dark by the time the group set off again.
They covered a huge distance in just a few short hours, but a storm was brewing, and the dark clouds that were quickly forming did not bode well. A strong breeze started up, causing the pace to slow down as the 'herd' tried to make it though the snow with their eyes streaming. They kept moving however, and it wasn't until Nana heard the baby whimper that she decided she'd had enough.
"Guys, we've gotta get the baby out of the wind!"
Diego glanced back at her and hesitated slightly, before nodding, and they started to look for any shelter they could find. Sid spotted it first, a huge rock that was just tall and wide enough for the four of them to comfortably rest behind, while the wind blew around it. Manny looked in the direction of Half Peak; it wasn't too far away and it annoyed him immensely to have to be stuck here.
"How much further?" He voiced, raising his volume to be heard over the howling wind.
"Three miles," shouted back Diego.
Manny glanced back to see Sid scratching away at the rock with a smaller one held in his claws. Manny turned to Diego for help but he didn't look like he had a clue either.
"What're you doing?" Asked Diego bewildered.
"I'm putting sloths on the map," answered Sid seriously. Without turning around he continued his scraping on the rock, then finally stopped and stepped back to admire his work. Nana raised an eyebrow as she looked at it, trying to figure out the nicest way of pointing out that Sid looked nothing like what he'd just drawn.
Manny, however, had no such qualms and pointed out the blatantly obvious in his normal, blunt manner.
"Hey why don't you make it realistic and draw him lying down?"
Sid turned with an annoyed expression on his face and started to say something sarcastic but was interrupted by Diego who also decided to join in.
"And make him rounder." While Diego distracted Sid, Manny snatched the rock out of his grasp and pressed it against the drawing, adding a big round stomach to it.
"Perfect," murmured Manny satisfied. He and Diego grinned at each other but Sid grabbed the rock away from him and muttered sarcastically.
"Ah, ha, I forgot how to laugh."
Turning he started scraping at the drawing trying to get rid of the stomach Manny had drawn on it. A scratching sound reached the group's ears and they watched, surprised, as a spark flew from the rocks and landed on a small pile of twigs and leaves. Sid stared at the fire that he had just started, then smiled and kissed the rock.
"I'm a genius!"
Manny found some branches nearby and brought them back to keep the fire going. Slowly they settled down for the night. Manny lay down next to the wall and Diego sprawled out a short distance away as usual. Nana flopped down next to him and Manny couldn't help but smile at the picture the two made. Diego looked slightly uncomfortable but made no move to get up and shift. The three of them and the baby watched while Sid pranced around the fire proudly.
"From now on, you'll have to refer to me as Sid: Lord of the Flames!"
Rolling his eyes Manny turned them to the fire and watched interestedly as a spark popped out and landed on the sloth's tail. A soft glow could be seen momentarily then smoke started rising up. He didn't seem to realize this and the mammoth smirked at him.
"Hey, Lord of the Flames! Your tail's on fire."
The baby laughed at Sid's reaction as he jumped up and started running around in circles wildly. The group laughed and Nana smirked, enjoying the spectacle, making no move to help him out. Diego snickered as he sat up waiting for Sid to dash by him, then he reached out and grabbed the sloth, pulling him back into a pile of snow and extinguishing the fire effectively.
With a sigh of relief Sid sat up and smiled at Diego.
"Oh, thank you! From now on, I'm going to call you Diego…"
"Lord of Touch Me and You're Dead," Diego growled menacingly, glaring down at him, which caused Sid to gasp and shrink back from the tiger.
Nana rolled her eyes and muttered quietly next to him, "Diego don't be so harsh on him."
Diego sighed but complied with her wishes. "Ah, I'm just kiddin', ya little knucklehead..." Grabbing Sid he tucked him under a paw and started rubbing his head making Sid squirm underneath him and try to get out of his vice like grip.
Sudden movement to the side caught Manny's attention, and he glanced over to see the baby slowly pulling himself up onto his feet, using a hairy, woolly leg to keep his balance.
"Hey, lovebirds. Look at this." Diego abruptly stopped what he was doing and looked up sharply, and Nana smiled slightly, watching the baby carefully take a few steps towards Sid. Nearly losing his balance for a second he started falling back but Manny caught him with his long trunk and helped him regain control.
The sloth was staring at the baby in amazement, and a smile broke out on his face. "I don't believe it!"
Diego glanced from Sid to the baby, and then to Nana. He smiled at her again then turned his attention to the baby as Sid started to encourage him.
"Come here, you little biped! Come here, you little wormy worm! Come to Uncle Sid!" The baby turned his head and saw Diego sitting to the side, then changed his direction and slowly made his way over to the saber toothed-tiger who looked ready to run and hide behind Nana. "No, no, no, this way. This way!"
A look of panic flashed across his face, as Diego shook his head and pointed at Sid.
"Go to him. Go to him." As the baby continued walking towards him he backed up a step. Reaching him, the baby fell forward and wrapped his arms around his leg smiling up at him. "Uh...ok. Good job. Keep...practicing." He helped the baby up and gave him a nudge in Manny's direction.
"Aaw," murmured Nana sleepily at his side. "You look cute with kids."
Diego, startled, glanced at her and then at Manny, who looked knowingly at them.
"Yeah, well," but he was saved from saying anything as the baby sneezed and fell down in front of the fire, drawing everyone's attention.
"Look at that. Our little guy's growing up," said Sid approvingly. Manny reached out with his trunk and picked him up, pulling him over to him.
"All right, come on. Sleep time, lumpy." He smiled as the baby snuggled into his fur and stuck his thumb in his mouth like always. Sid wandered over to Diego and Nana who was slumbering and sat down next to Diego, watching Manny, who, after making sure Junior was comfortable, lay down went to sleep himself.
"You know," said Sid, "I've never had a friend who would risk his life for me."
Diego shifted, the guilt about his plan gnawing away at him inside. "Yeah," he agreed. "Manny's a pretty amazing guy."
And I'm gonna kill him. That's gratitude for you.
He sighed at his morbid thoughts, trying to figure out a way in which he could save his new friends, and escape his pack without recriminations. What he needed was a new plan, and a damn good one. His dilemma was clear. Not to tell them, and have his pack eat his friends, or tell them and face the fact that they might never forgive him and his pack would disown him.
He looked over at Sid, but he was fast asleep. Diego fidgeted before settling down for a restless night.
-#-#-
"Diego how could you!"
"You brought us home for DINNER!"
"You're not sorry… not yet anyway."
Their faces haunted him, disappointed and disgusted. Sid looked at him in sheer terror, unable to move even, as Diego felt himself raise a paw, helpless to stop himself, as he swung it at him, sending out a killing blow in an instant.
Manny trumpeted in anger and terror as Diego and the rest of the pack closed in on the helpless mammoth. Nana tried to protect him as Soto lunged at Manny, and she clawed at him, snarling at the larger and much stronger male saber. Soto scratched at her face and front, reopening the large scar that ran across her front chest and down the side of her leg. Blood began to run freely down, coating her fur, in thick red fluid and Diego saw her sway dangerously. She held on though and raked her claws across Soto's muzzle.
He roared and sprang at her throat, sinking his fangs into the soft flesh before viciously ripping her throat out.
"NO!"
He yelled but no sound came from his throat and his body kept moving for the mammoth. He wanted to throw up as he saw Soto carelessly discard Nana's still body onto the frozen snow and head over to Manny, her blood smearing his muzzle and glistening on his fangs.
They closed in on Manny, who was trying even now to save himself, using his tusks to keep the vicious tigers at bay. But suddenly there was an opening and unable to prevent himself he leapt. Manny turned and their eyes met as Diego's sharp incisors pierced Manny's hide.
And he would never forget the expression on his face.
I betrayed… all of you.
-#-#-
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