Chapter 8: Illuminated (By Hurts)
Characters: Jade, Manny
Genre: Hurt/Comfort
Request: me (with the help from Stubborn Saber.)
On a nice, sunny day, and Jade, Diego and Shira were coming back from hunting. Manny was watching over Cody, Teal, and Shamrock, Diego and Shira's cubs... and Jade's three little triplet brothers. The three were play fighting, hitting each other lightly with their paws, out lunging at each other. The triplets were only 5 months old, they were up and running about, but they were a bit clumsy at times. Manny chuckled watching the little show, as they ran back and forth while the sabers neared closer and closer.
"Have they been behaving Manny?" Asked Shira. This made Manny jump, before smiling at them.
"Yeah," he replied. "They were just playing about-" He then turned to the triplets. "Hey hey Codi! Don't do that to Teal! Shamrock, sit out if you feel dizzy."
Jade giggled. "You miss looking after babies don't you?"
"I was never one to 'look after' babies," he air quotes 'looking after'. "I was always finding food and playing with Peaches when she was a baby. Ellie did the looking after... well I sometimes helped." Jade turned to her own father to see if that was true, and got a nod for an answer from him. He then paused and looked at Jade.
"Jade where's the rabbit you caught?"
Her eyes widened. "Oh crud." And off she ran.
"I go after her," said Manny, and he got up and left. He caught up with her, and they found her catch, and they were making it back, with her holding the prey in her mouth safely. The two have bonded over the time Jade had came into their lives. She shared many different stories and ideas she had heard as a human through that time, and she still had plenty more to share. Manny listens, but he asked her to repeat once or twice because he couldn't her it properly, and he wasn't really willing to volunteer to hold the dead rabbit in his trunk. Manny was in the middle of a joke, until he realized they stopped by the side of a familiar lake, surrounded by trees, and berry bushes... which sparks something in Jade's memory.
"Remember when I first came here?" She asked. Manny looked around, and then looked at her.
"Yes..." How could she ask such a question? Those memories enter his mind day after wretched day... and were eating shooting at his brain now;
"Was that kid hitting you with a stick again?" Asked Manny. Sid shook his head.
"With his tail, then 17 more kids came!" He said. Manny shook his head in frustration.
"We'll discuss this later. Right now, we have to find Peaches before this... thing gets her first." As he said this, they heard Peaches laughing. They followed the sound of her voice, and saw her coming their way.. Manny and Sid ran up to her.
"Peaches where have you been? There's a thing on the loose and..." Sid said, then he saw the thing beside her.
"Huah!" He screeched, he jumped on Manny's back. Back at the napping place, Diego, Crash, Eddie, and Louis could hear him and they got up and went to where the screaming was coming from, leaving Ellie and Shira sleeping. Sid clung onto Manny's head, still screaming, until Manny slapped him. He calmed down. Manny looked at the thing beside Peaches; Brown fur on top of the head, green eyes, naked on the arms, unknown non furry stuff on the rest of her body... the thing that Mrs T was talking about! Manny pushed the thing away and stood in front of Peaches, with Sid wrapped in his trunk like a weapon. The thing had her back to the tree, clearly terrified.
"Dad! What are you doing?" Said Peaches.
"Protecting you from that... that thing!" He said. Sid bared his teeth at the thing, trying to looked scary... But Sid looked like he was constipated... Badly Constipated...
Manny put him down and swung his trunk at the thing when she attempted to get away. His trunk got her right in the face. Peaches kept screaming at Manny to stop as the thing braced herself to be crushed by the mad mammoth. Then Diego and the others came. It took one short look at Diego and jumped up the tree.
He shut his eyes, wanting them gone immediately. But they were still coming to him.
"It doesn't matter what it is, but great job Diego. It won't come down when a Saber-tooth tiger is around." Said Manny. Peaches pushed him out-of-the-way and looked up the tree that the thing climbed up.
"Savannah! Please come down!" She called.
"Savannah?!" Said Manny, Sid, Diego, Crash and Eddie in shock.
"No! Not with them down there, especially that mammoth!" She muttered, but no one heard her. Peaches turned around to them, giving a sigh.
"I was going for a walk, when i got caught by a vine. Savannah came along and helped me down, i was scared at first, thinking she was going to kill me, but then I realized she was really nice, only wanting to help me. Now she won't come down because of you dad!" She said, giving Manny an angry look.
"It was self defense! That thing could of killed you!" Said Manny.
They heard a little splat on the ground beside Peaches, they looked down and saw a little red puddle. They looked up and saw Savannah starting to climb down slowly. Savannah had a bruise on her head and a scarlet fountain coming down out of her nose, and some more coming out of the top her eyebrow..
"Manny. What did you do? Try to kill the poor creature?" Said Sid, jumping down from Manny's back. Crash and Eddie climbed up the bark of the tree and stopped when they saw Savannah.
"She has red water coming out of her nose." Said Crash. Eddie climbed back down and looked at the red puddle that had become bigger. He stuck his finger in it and then stuck his finger in his mouth. He spat it out.
"It doesn't taste very nice." He said between spits.
"It called blood." Said Savannah, jumping down to the ground. They stared at her and screamed, but not Diego.
"Sh-she-c-can-talk?" Said Sid. Savannah looked at him.
"Look who's talkin." Said Savannah, wiping her bloody nose with the back of her hand.
"Manny?" Jade looked at Manny for a worried look. But then she was getting flashbacks too...
Savannah woke up screaming. Everyone jumped up, Manny glared at Savannah.
" What is with all the screaming!" He shouted.
Savannah said nothing but looked at the ground in shame. Diego and Shira took her side immediately.
"Give a break Manny!" Said Diego firmly. Manny glared at him too.
"Stop taking her side! Why would you meet some weird kid, who magically appeared out of nowhere, and suddenly act like your her dad!"
Peaches kept telling her dad to shut up. So did Ellie, but Manny ignored them. Diego and Shira started to get angry.
" Well maybe their are some animals here that actually like her." Shira said.
"Unlike you!" Said Savannah. Everyone stared a her in surprise, even Manny.
"When I first came here, you didn't want me here when you first caught site of me! You didn't give me a chance to show you what I'm like! OK, I didn't try to gain you trust but these dream I've been having are telling me that I have the chance to find my real parents!"
Manny glared at her again.
" All the humans here are dead!"
"Well the dreams have also told me that I don't belong in the modern times!"
Savannah was boiling over with rage. So was Manny.
"That is the stupidest thing I have ever heard! You don't belong down here! Go back to all your little friend up in your world of craziness!"
"I wish I could! But no one wants me up there! My so called 'parents' died when I was a baby,"
Everyone gasped. Manny was now starting to wish that he kept his mouth shut. Savannah let a single tear drop.
"I could speak to animals there. Everyone thought I was nuts. That's why I can understand you all. I was living on the streets for years, stealing what I needed, and getting animals like rats and dogs and cats to steal for me. I never had a real family. But when I met you all, I felt like I was home. And then these dreams came along, telling me that everything I thought that was my life wasn't meant to be. A lie! Was I meant to be here with a mammoth goes around trying to become a serial killer while his family welcomes me with open trunks or paws or claws. Why you be like them?"
Savannah finally broke in tears and ran away. Peaches and Eliie went after her.
Manny was gobsmacked by what Savannah had just said. Diego and Shira was too. Then Said came you of nowhere.
"Hey guys," he said. He looked at their expressions, laughing at granny's expression. Her eyes were bulging and her choppers (teeth) were on the ground.
"What did I miss?" He said.
Everyone just stared at one another, and then at Manny.
None of them had words that could express what they had just encountered. Especially the guilty mammoth.
But all they could really say was that he missed out so much.
Soon their minds collided into the same thinking bubble of one event, which brought back a few good memories too.
Savannah narrowed her eyes at Manny when Diego and Shira left. She covered her eye that was once black and purple, and watched the fire. Manny slowly and cautiously scooted up to Savannah, and when he was close enough, he dumped his bum on the ground. Savannah said nothing and scooted a centimetre or two away from him, making a little 'hm!' noise as she parked her bum firmly on the ground too. Manny laughed lightly. Savannah turned her head to the mammal's direction, one eye brow raised and looking curious.
"What are you laughing about?" She mumbled for the first time that day.
"It was like you were doing an impression of me. I'm like that when I am r-e-a-l-l-y grumpy."
"Which I can predict is all the time?"
Savannah was actually talking to him properly now.
Manny blushed under the thick fur.
"Heh... pretty much..." He smile disappeared as he cleared his throat.
"Listen Savannah, I'm really sorry about today. The way I acted towards you," he gave a little sigh. "I'm sorry about not letting myself get to know you properly. And giving you the black eye." He looked at Savannah, who had her whole body turned his direction, and she was hugging her knees, listening to his every word.
"And..." he inhaled some air before he continued. "I feel you pain."
Savannah looked uncertain about that. But she unhooked her arms, scooted closer to Manny and then linked her arms again.
"How do you feel my pain? Did you find out you didn't belong in the ice age? Did you lose your non real parents?"
Manny shook his head.
" No, but I lost my wife and child years ago."
Both of Savannah's eyebrows raised when she heard this. She looked at Peaches and Ellie, who were hanging upside down, sleeping soundly.
Manny saw her glance that way.
"Ellie is my second wife, and Peaches is my second child. Hunters killed my other wife and child. I thought I was going to die alone, but then I met Ellie. And then. We had Peaches. After what happened to my first wife and kid, I swore I'd protect my family,"
He took another inhale and looked at the moon and stars above him. Savannah did the same.
"So you see, that's why I'm over protective with Peaches, I just want her to be safe..."
Savannah was taken back by Manny's story.
"Wow... I didn't realize how dangerous it was down here with the hunters. And I thought I had it bad up in the modern times." She said quietly, but it was loud enough for Manny to hear.
Ellie must of heard it too, because she smiled in her sleep.
Manny scratched the back of his neck
" So..." Manny started. "Are we friends n-"
But he was interrupted when Savannah suddenly jumped and hugged him.
"Yes. And I'm sorry too. I should if tried harder to bond with you'" she said. Manny smiled as he used his trunk to hug her back.
"Your actually not a bad kid after all Savannah. I was wrong about you all along."
When it came to when she was kidnapped by Soto and Gutt... he shuddered.
Soto was on the ground, badly bruised.
"Leave... and never come back." She said.
Her voice echoed as Soto slowly and painfully began rise from the ground. So did Gutt, Zeke, Lenny, and Oscar. Then they ran for it. Diego, Shira were about to celebrate, but then Savannah suddenly collapsed again.
"Savannah!" Shira screamed as Manny and Ethan turned her over. But Savannah's eyes remained closed. Louis ran forward and put his ear to her chest, praying to hear a beat... But there was nothing... All the girls burst into tears as everyone went into a big group hug. Savannah... Diego and Shira's daughter...
Was dead.
Manny got flash backs of when Jade's funeral was going on... the conversation he and Diego had...
Unlike the others, Manny wasn't crying. But he kept letting out tearless sighs every now and again. He kept thinking about the way he treated Savannah... And he didn't understand what she went through in the modern world. He looks over at Ellie and the others. Sarah Jane heard the news and she was there beside Sid. Manny looks at Diego and Shira. He goes up to them.
"We're sorry." That was all he could say. Diego closed his eyes and sighed.
"No need to say it. I was the one who basically killed her with that impact."
Manny looked sorrowful now. "Savannah was a great kid." Diego looked up at him with confusion.
"I thought you hated Savannah's guts," Diego replied.
Manny made a little smile.
"Well, after telling me about those 'other parents', and losing them, I realized we both had something in commen. And when she saved Shaw... basically stopping Peaches doing it... I realized she wasn't half bad then I thought she was." Then Manny finally let out a tear. For the first time since his first wife and child died. He sighed.
"I wish I was a better friend to her... but now it's too late...".
And lastly, they both remembered when she was transformed into a Saber...
Shaw-woman smiled as she gave a light laugh.
"I now christen your child; Jade." She said.
Savannah looked at Diego Shira and the others. Manny smiled.
"I think that name suits you...Jade." He said.
*Fast forward*
Jade found herself and Manny staring at each other.
"So.. about that last night...no hard feelings?" He said, scratching the back of his neck with his trunk. Savannah said nothing but gave him a little punch on the leg, because she couldn't reach his shoulder.
"Sure... Manfred." She said with a devilish grin.
"You can stop calling me that. It's Manny."
"As in... Uncle Manny?"
Manny grinned.
"Sure."
And they hugged as the whole herd cheered.
"Manny?" He got out of his little dream space,and turned to Jade. Her big green eyes staring into his as she put the catch on the ground. They were full of question, just waiting for his mouth to open and give her an answer. "You okay?"
Yeah! Of course! I'm just fine!" He forced on a smile. "Why wouldn't I not be?"
"Manny..." Her Jade became more concerned and serious. "Don't lie to me... your very bad at it... towards me anyways." Edging closer, she asked again, louder this time, until he couldn't hold it in anymore. He began to say it out slowly, bit by bit on what he was thinking about, but then in great detail how it affected him... and it was deeper then she expected it to do.
"I know this sounds unbelievable... but... but when you... 'died'... and we thought there was no way of getting you back... I told myself I was the cause..."
"But Manny-"
"Just hear me out, OK? It was my fault because that night... at the fire,
"Manny-"
"What I said before that... all the stuff I said..."
"Manny!"
"What I did..."
"Manfred!"
He stopped. He hated being call Manfred... that was the only reason why he stopped. "What?" He asked.
"None of it was your fault... and I said stuff too..." Manny looked into her beautiful, jade green gems. The serenity and beauty that was held within them was sweeping through his soul like they usually did... it melted his heart there and then.
"I don't want to remember the past..." He whispered.
"Nor do I, but time will heal us..."
She soon began to hum as she walked backwards, sitting on the ground as she looked up at the sun... before singing a strange melody, which scared Manny slightly, but forced him to listen.
Jade:
Time waits for no one,
So do you want to waste some time,
Oh, oh tonight?
Don't be afraid of tomorrow,
Just take my hand, I'll make it feel so much better tonight...
*Manny closed his eyes, and listened.*
Suddenly my eyes are open,
Everything comes into focus, oh.
We are all illuminated,
Lights are shining on our faces, blinding...
*He reopened them and sang too.*
Manny:
Swing me these sorrows
And try delusion for a while,
It's such a beautiful lie...
You've got to lose inhibition -
Romance your ego for a while.
Come on, give it a try.
*Jade smiled at him as she swayed in time with the song.*
Suddenly my eyes are open,
Everything comes into focus, oh.
We are all illuminated,
Lights are shining on our faces, blinding.
We are, we are, blinded,
Both:
We are, we are, blinded.
Suddenly my eyes are open,
Everything comes into focus, oh,
We are all illuminated,
Lights are shining on our faces, blinding
Jade:
We are, we are, blinded,
Manny:
We are, we are, blinded.
They sat together after thy returned to the herd, closer then they were. There they sat together there a little while more, watching the sun setting. Jade's catch was long gone...
But their bond was going to last forever.
Stubborn Saber's Idea for this story:
Manny and Jade- With this story it would take place about 4-5 months after Jade was turned into a saber and reborn, the two have been bonding a lot over this time period. One afternoon the two are wandering through the forest and chatting about the events leading up to Jade's transformation, they arrive at the place they first met and Manny still feels the guilt about his past actions towards Jade and apologies again, Jade excepts the apology and begins to sing Illuminated; Manny joins in around half way through and to end they begin to head back to the herd because the sun is starting to set and the moon is beginning to rise.
Well I thank you very much for this idea! I wanted to use this song so bad! And I got my wish! Thank so much!
Keep sending in your song requests everyone! They mean a lot!