Chapter 2 by MusicRocks807

Diego's pounding heart leapt into his throat. She lay there, body curled into a semi-circle, her grey fur spattered with frightening crimson. Thankfully, closer inspection proved that her chest was indeed rising and falling, if incredibly slowly. A steady pulse was also beating beneath his paw when he set it on her neck.

"Shira, can you hear me?" he asked, leaning in to press his mouth against her ear.

She moaned lowly in response, apparently too weak to form a response.

Trying to quell the panic brewing in his chest, Diego stepped back and roared, praying that somebody - preferably Manny, though at this point he'd settle for Sid - would hear. He continued to howl for an indefinite amount of time, growing even more frantic as the minutes - or was it hours? - dragged by, until finally, a large creature covered in brown fur burst through the trees.

"Diego, what's wro-" began Manny, before he saw the fallen Shira on the ground. "What happened?"

"I don't know," he admitted, struggling to keep the fear from his voice. He still had his reputation, after all. "We split up to get a drink, and I heard her scream, then... I found her like this!"

"Is she still, you know..."

"She's alive and breathing, Manny."

"Good, good... Let's take her back to the cave and see if Ellie can help her." Manny moved to wrap his trunk around her, before stopping. "Wait, where is she injured?"

"I, uhm... I didn't check," Diego sheepishly confessed.

Groaning and rolling his eyes in exasperation, Manny bent down beside the sabretooth and began to gently inspect her. He ordered Diego to fetch him a clean leaf to clear up the blood with, and discovered a jagged slash in her side. It didn't appear to be too deep, luckily, but it was very lengthy.

Manny winced. "Ouch."

"Yeah, yeah, come on, we gotta get her back," insisted Diego, unable to conceal his nerves any longer.

"Easy, tiger." The mammoth carefully slipped his trunk around her, taking care not to aggravate the wound any further. He lifted Shira up into the air, and softly lay her down on his back, making sure he didn't jostle her. "Okay, let's go."

Diego readied himself to run, before noticing that Manny bore no intention to do so. His pack instincts quickly kicked in, reminding him that sudden movements would be bad for Shira. He cursed himself for forgetting such a simple fact and panicking, before leading his friend at a constant but speedy pace through the trees.

They made it back to the clearing in good time, though to Diego, it felt as like the trek had taken years. He was ordered by Manny to get rid of Peaches (and Louis, if he was there), since it wasn't a sight for young eyes. Diego did so, telling them to go and explore the beach with the other teens. Manny then joined Diego in the main cave area, Shira still unconscious on his back.

"Oh my gosh, what happened?" exclaimed Ellie.

"We don't know," answered Manny, crouching for Ellie to lift Shira off of him. "We were wondering if you could do anything?"

"Uhm..." Ellie tapped her trunk against her mouth. "Sid, go get some Lotus berries. Crash, Eddie, you two find us some long, clean leaves and some vines. Manny, Diego, you guys get water."

The boys immediately complied, knowing there was no arguing with Ellie's orders. As they all left, Ellie cautiously set the sabre down on the cave floor, arranging her into what was hopefully a more comfortable position. Everybody returned from their missions quickly, but they were forced out of the cave pretty soon after. Apparently, Ellie needed peace and quiet to work, and if Shira happened to wake up halfway through, a crowd of concerned faces wouldn't do much good.

Ellie carefully rinsed the cut out with water, before applying the Lotus berry juice to numb the pain. She let the juice soak in before washing it again, and tied the fresh leaves over the gash with the vines to act as a bandage. All this time, Shira remained asleep, but her breaths became more frequent and her heartbeat returned to normal.

Smiling proudly, Ellie called out, "Someone get a patch of moss in here?"

Moments later, Sid presented her with a thick, green pad of moss. She thanked him, before placing it beneath Shira's head as a pillow.

"So, is she, erm..."

"Yeah, Sid. She's fine." Ellie's tone was light and relieved.

"Awesome." Sid beamed. "So, I can send Diego in, then? He's been pacing back and forth and back and forth and back and forth-"

"Sid," she warned.

"Oh, yeah, sorry. But he's been pacing for ages. I'm starting to get worried!"

"I'm sure he's just a little freaked," Ellie assured him. "Wasn't he the one who found her like this?"

"Well, yeah..." Sid looked down, seemingly randomly... disappointed.

"Besides," he looked up at Ellie's lowered voice to see a smirk on her face and a glint in her eyes, "I think he's got a bit of a thing for her."

Sid's eyes widened in joy. "Yes! I knew it wasn't just me that saw it!"

The mammoth winked at him. "Don't go spreading stuff though, Sid. After all, we could be wrong."

They met each-other's gaze for a moment, before bursting out laughing. Sid then shouted for Diego to come in, and he was promptly bowled over by a speeding tiger.

"Where is she? Is she okay?"

Ellie chuckled. "Right here, and she's doing just fine."

Diego heaved a heavy sigh of relief. The mammoth met Sid's gaze again, gesturing with her eyes towards the exit. They both took the initiative, silently - or, as silent as Sid and a mammoth can be - slinking out of the cave and leaving the tigers alone.

Tenderly, Diego lay his head against Shira's, just listening to her breath and enjoying the sound. You're okay... He thought to himself, before another thought crossed his mind. Why did you insist on splitting up?