The Herd's Growing Family (Ice Age)

Late Night Worries

(A/N: One thing you guys need to know about me, I love bittersweet realism in my fictional stories.

Also, thank you @Ana_Stories234 for helping me out with a scene in this chapter. If you guys haven't seen her stories, go check them out).

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Later through the night, everyone was still soundly asleep... except for Redwood, who woke up at some point and was sitting a few feet away from the herd. She wanted to clear her mind for a bit, as her anxious feeling has returned yet again.

"Having trouble sleeping?"

The human girl gets startled but then realizes that it was just Buck.

"No! .....Well, maybe a little...", She answers him. "I... couldn't sleep for the past few days and... I just need to clear my mind right now".

"About what? Is it about your friend again? If it is, we're gonna find him soon, so don't worry." Buck tried to comfort Redwood.

"No, it's not that. I mean... of course, I'm worried about Sid. I really wanna know if he's okay, but still... I'm not only thinking about that..." Redwood said before looking back at the herd.

"Then... what is it? If you wanna talk about something, you can tell me. I'm all ears, kid". Buck said, giving her a reassuring smile.

Redwood then sighs and looks at Buck. She wasn't sure why, maybe it was because he saved her and the others' lives, or maybe it was because he seemed very genuine about letting her speak. Either way, she felt like she can trust him with her thoughts right now. Plus, if she kept this in any longer, she would scream.

So after a few minutes of silence, Redwood decided to talk. "Honestly... I'm worried about what's gonna happen with our herd. Manny and Ellie are having a baby, Diego is planning on leaving, I don't know if Sid is dead or alive, and Avery... she... well... let's just say that I don't think she understands why I feel like this. I know she just wants to help me and tells me things will get better, but with how everything is changing..... it just makes me more scared..."

Redwood's voice begins to crack and she tears up a bit. "I'm afraid of what's gonna happen to all of us. We're meant to be a family but... we're just drifting apart. And... I already lost my parents before...  I don't wanna lose this family... I don't... wanna be alone..." Redwood lowered her head and started silently crying.

Buck looked at her, and the smile that's usually on his face shifted into a saddened frown. Listening to what she had said, plus seeing the poor teen sob made his heart ache. From what he saw before, she had a bit of a moody attitude with the others, and now he sees why. She's just a terrified kid worried about her family and her future.

This made Buck quiet for a moment. He gently patted her arm as she continued crying, and soon he figured out what to say to Redwood. "You know what, kid? From what I've seen before with you and everyone else; you're herd, or family as you like to call them, look like they care about you a lot. They're trying their best to look after you, but it also seems like they have their own goals and ambitions that they want to follow too. That doesn't mean they'll stop caring about you or each other. The fact that you all are on this dangerous adventure to save your friend says a lot about that".

"I know", Redwood tells him, sniffling a little. "But still, in the end, things will change and we're all going to be on our separate ways. And when we do...", she didn't bother finishing her sentence.

"Change isn't all that scary. It's part of growing up. And learning to adapt to new things may seem difficult at first..." Buck looks at his knife as he continues. "...But when you actually give it a try, it won't seem as scary as you once thought before. It might even change you for the better. Besides, even if your herd decides to go on their separate ways, you will never truly be alone. Because you'll never forget about each other. You know what it's like being a family and what it means to them, and no matter what happens, no matter how far away they'll go, they will always love you and each other. Because nothing will be able to break the bond you've managed to build with them".