Me Katniss, You Peeta.
Chapter One
The view from the treetops is indescribable. Words have never came easy to me, I have never uttered more than a few words my entire life, but I know that if even if I could speak in proper terms, I still would not be able to describe the sheer beauty of the view of the jungle from the top of the tallest tree. I can see my entire world stretched out in front of me and I entertain the idea that I can see every leaf, every blade of grass, every beetle, every bug, from my seat on the highest branch. I know that this is impossible but it pleases me to think this way. My entire world, in the palm of my hands.
I am the jungle.
The jungle is me.
I hear Kala's call. Distant but distinct. I whip around, squinting through the leaves, and see her sitting at the base of the trunk. I call back and smile, assuring her that I'm fine, before grabbing a vine and sliding down. My feet crush the forest debris, creating a satisfying crunch, and lower myself onto my haunches. Kala's gaze is judging, her anger at my vanishing clear. I lean forward and nuzzle her neck, her scratchy, matted fur rubbing my cheek. She is not angry at me long and smiles affectionately. Her large hand pats my head before she walks away, expecting me to follow.
I do for I have nowhere else to go.
I do not entertain the idea that I am the same as Kala and the others because it is clear I am not. They are covered in gorgeous fur, have hands large enough to crush opposition with ease, they are bigger than I, stronger, faster. My skin is bare, my hands are small, but I am strong. I do not wish to discover why I am different, I have been raised by Kala so she is my family.
Once we have reached the spot where the others are resting, Kala tells me that we are to move on at dusk. I remember when it used to be a challenge to move in the dark. As a youngling I struggled, but I am older now and find it easier to frequent the trees than the land. I nod in understand and eat a short meal before we set off. I exchange quick looks with the others, whose eyes light up with glee.
There was a time when they wouldn't accept me. They allowed Kala to raise me but it was no secret that once I grew older, they wanted me gone. And I don't believe for one second that they wouldn't have pushed me out if Kala hadn't fought so hard to keep me. My best friend Gale, an ape much larger than I who accepted me ever since I was a youngling, desperately wanted me to stay but we knew I'd have to do something to prove to the others that I was worth keeping. Especially to Cornelius, the leader of the troop who still gives me the stink eye despite the other's acceptance.
Gale dared me to steal the hair of an elephant, something no ape ever dared to do. I wanted to be accepted as a fellow ape desperately, I wished to prove myself as one of them, so I did what he told me to do. It was an incredibly stupid thing to do but we all do silly things to no longer be considered an outsider. I didn't want the other apes to look at me like I was 'a hairless wonder' anymore. I wanted them to look at me and see one of them. Which retrieving the elephant hair would hopefully achieve.
Gale had been right to dare me, I had been stupid to accept it. However, over the years I had learned to use my differences to my advantage and was able to swim in the rivers and creeks, a thing no ape had ever been able to do. The elephants frequent the water, using their magnificent trunks to slurp up the water as nourishment. I snuck up behind a baby and plucked a single hair from its behind. For a single moment I was triumphant, staring at the hair between my thumb and forefinger in disbelief, amazed that I had managed to do it.
The baby elephant lashed out, its panic causes a stampede to ensue. Thankfully, no one from the clan was injured but I couldn't believe I had been so idiotic as to think that I could gain acceptance by doing ridiculous things. Sometimes I blame Gale, for who I know blames himself, but I know in my heart that it's no one's fault but my own.
Kala showed me that night that we are the same. She held me in her arms and showed me that we have the same hands, eyes, hearts. That where-ever I came from doesn't matter, that I am hers and she is mine. I the daughter and she the mother. I was raised by Kala and I will continue to be raised by her. She loves me and I will always love her. My new confidence surprised the other apes in the clan but I think they began to respect me for how I no longer cared about what they thought of me. I don't know if they've stopped calling me the 'hairless wonder' but I no longer receive angry eyes being thrown my way. And, for now, their respect is the best thing I can have.
We travel all night. I always keep one eye on my mother and one eye on the sky. I sometimes wonder if this is what it feels like to be a bird, soaring through the air with wings full of gorgeous feathers. I swing from vine to vine, grabbing at branches and jumping across reasonable gaps. Kala is watchful of me, I know how she worries, but this is the only way I am to keep up with them. On the ground, I am the hairless wonder, in the trees, I'm the best ape in the jungle.
The dark is relaxing, my eyes working like the sun is still up and day is still neigh. I can feel my muscles begin to ache but I do not stop, I do not pause, because I must prove I am one of them, show the apes I am strong. Because I am strong. Stronger than most of them. I sometimes wonder if I was maybe an ape just born without hair. That this is what Kala and Gale and Cornelius would look like if I were to shave them down to their natural skin. Just because I can flaunt my muscles and tawny skin does not make me weak. My differences do not make me weak.
I am strong.
When the sky morphs from the pitch black of night to a pale purple as the hot ball of fire begins to make its way back to us we stop. The clan settles but I stay up in the trees, staring at the kingdom of leaves and foliage as dawn approaches. A brand new day. My fingers tighten around the branch I sit on, clutching until my knuckles turn white. My muscles are crying for reprieve but I have to see it, I have to see the brand new day as it unfolds before my eyes. The sun is the instigator, the controller of us all. I will not rest until I welcome it back to the jungle. Thanking it for giving me the rest my body needs, thanking it for the light that it brings the land.
I know it is not my place to thank on the behalf of the jungle but I do it anyway, as the other animals will not bother, I am sure of it.
I sleep in the tree, nestled against a branch and shrouded by the leaves. The sun warms my skin, lulls me to the sleep, and I immerse myself into the depths of my own mind.
When I awaken again, I am sure it is afternoon. The sun has not left yet but I am sure it will soon. The clan is still below me, all still asleep. I stretch my limbs and jump to the next tree, then the one after that and the one after that. I continue to swing and leap and climb and skid until I am far from the other apes but still know where they are. I don't know where I'm going but that adds to the enjoyment of it.
I move so far into the jungle I find myself somewhere I've never been before. Kala always told me to never go into the uncharted areas without her but I find myself older now and the prospect no longer frightens me. Everything is the same to the untrained eye but I notice the many differences that wow me into silence. The flowers are exotic and of odd, bright colours. The grass is a little longer, littered with leaves and the odd rotting fruit. I jump from my tree and wander across the expanse, my eyes unable to take in everything at once.
It's beautiful, it's amazing, it's aweing.
In the distance, I find a weird structure. As I approach, I realize it must be made of the same thing as the trees. A wood of some sort. The structure is falling apart, veins having wrapped themselves around the top and bottom, leaking out of holes and crumbles in the wood. I wonder how long such a thing has stood here and how long it has went unnoticed by the others.
Inside is in just as much a ruin. The floor is cool beneath my feet and I do not like it, but do not back down. There are more odd structures inside. Made of the same tree wood. The interior is rotting away, the entire place stinking of mildew. Again I wonder how old this place is and, more importantly, what in the world it is.
Who used to use such a place? What was its purpose? Does Kala know that such things exist in this very jungle? Or will she be just as surprised as I am?
A strange sound captures my attention. My nerves lurch in my weighs and I immediately flee, survival having been drilled into my ever since I was a youngling. I scale the closest tree, using anything I can find. Vines, branches, even leaves a couple of times. I know I should go back to Kala and the others but something keeps me rooted to my spot high in the tree. Whether it be curiosity or just pure stupidity, I'll never know.
A group of strangers appear out from behind the cabin. Strange creatures I have never seen before. I stay close to the trunk of my tree but continue to look on, amazed at how these animals hold themselves so straight and have such strange hides-
They don't have hides. Only skin.
They look like me!
No, this can't be true. Kala never said there was more of my kind. She would have told me. These animals must be a variation of something I've never seen before. A mutant or a hybrid of two unsuspecting species who decided to would be a good idea to mate, despite the ugly off spring they'd produce.
There's five people. All seeming to look like me. Long hair-much straighter and cleaner than mine-facial features evenly spaced out and unburdened by fuzzy fur, they walk on two legs and do not drag their hands. They're surprisingly similar to me, despite the impossibility of it.
"This is where they used to stay," one of the animals says. The voice is high pitched and they speak the words I can sometimes produce when I try hard enough. "I told you that people used to leave her Delly."
The supposed 'Delly' folds its arm and sticks out its bottom lip. "It was an easy mistake to make, this jungle is so thick it would be reasonable to think it was only inhabited by animals!"
All these creatures wear strange clothes. Tawny bottoms and zipped up tops, with strange headwear that covers most of their heads. The first one to speak opens its mouth again but is interrupted by the third creature standing by. The fourth and fifth have both disappeared into the cabin, intrigued by is mystery just like I. "You fought so hard to prove your point, Delly, you even insulted a few of Leevy's ancestors. I think you should apologize."
"Oh, do be quiet Madge, it's nothing to do with you," snaps the Delly.
I have not heard of any of these animals. Delly. Leevy. Madge. I cannot believe how much I have missed out on. I spent my life believing I knew every animal in the jungle. It appears I am far from it.
"Besides, that cabin could be inhabited by animals," the Delly insists.
"Nope." The fifth girl comes out before the fourth, a somewhat satisfied smile on her features. "There's furniture in there and everything. Humans. Definitely."
Humans? What is a human? Are these animals variations of humans, I wonder? If so, how have I never seen them before? Are these names only titles for the whole species known as human?
The Delly is clearly enraged. It marches passed the Madge and Leevy, stomps up the steps and stands inside the odd tree wood structure. "It's a mess in here, you can't tell that this rot is furniture!" it declares. It spins on its heel and looks at fifth creature. "You're wrong, Clove. Wrong, wrong, wrong!"
"Oh shut it, will you?" the Clove bellows. I am impressed by its bravery, shouting in the middle of a populated jungle, and find the way the Delly cowers a little amusing. "Prim, second opinion, furniture: yay or neigh?"
"Yay!" A small voice replies. Fourth animal returns to join the others, the Prim creature? "Definitely human furniture."
The Delly, obviously outnumbered, throws it hands up in despair. I wonder if its mistake will cost it its position with the pack, if it will now be kicked out, like I have almost been many a time before. Instead, however, it simply kicks the side of the structure in anger. "You always gang up on me," it complains.
"That's because you're always wrong," the Leevy responds, mimicking the Delly tone almost as well as I have learned to mimic Kala's calls.
The Delly is still furious. It looks around and raises its eyebrows in suspicion. My heart beat quickens. Has it picked me out? Caught my scent? Am I now in horrible danger? It spins on its heel again, this time in a full circle, and only speaks when it stands back in its original position. "Where is Peeta? Did we lose him along the way?"
"Maybe he's made his escape from you," the Clove mutters. The Madge animal makes a strange snickering noise and nudges the Clove with its elbow.
Another strange name for a creature. I have never heard of a Peeta. I begin to fear something I had never imagined, something that had never crossed my own mind. How well do I know my own home? If I don't recognize these creatures, how many more out there are there that I don't know? Do I really only know a quarter of my comrades, my enemies, my friends? Maybe Kala was right. Maybe I should stay with her always, as she knows the ways of the jungle and would never betray me in that way.
The Delly comes out with the most deafening squeal I have ever heard in my entire life. As new as this animal is to me, she must be low on the food chain, as it is not very smart. Making such noises could attract predators from far and wide. "Peeta!" she squeals, "where are you?!"
The Leevy, a little smarter than its fellow pack member, slaps the Delly round the head. "Hush! The gorillas are nearby, we don't want to wake them!" she scolds.
However, the Delly's call works and another creatures comes out from the tree line. This one is different, much, much different. So different I find myself clamoring onto a closer to branch to have a better look. This animal is strapping, broad shouldered and strong looking. Its fur is not like the others, not long and dark like my own. It's cropped and scruffy, amazingly fair. Its skin pale as milk, once again hairless. It is beautiful. Unlike anything I have ever seen before.
The Delly's call must be a mating call of some sort. Calling the pretty and the perfect toward her. "Ah, Peeta, there you are," it declares. I begin to wonder which are the males and which are the females in this strange pack of naked creatures. I guess the long furred ones are the females, judging by the Delly's simpering and high pitched voice. Then the beautiful being, the 'Peeta', is the only male. How odd. Normally packs are dominated by the males. How strange this pack's customs are. But then again, I could be wrong.
"Sorry, I was distracted," the Peeta quickly explains. Wedged under its-his?-arm is a strange looking object, the part facing me coloured brown with a white section wedged between. "There's a tree back there that's got this lovely entanglement of vines. You should see the wrinkles in the bark, it's like nothing I've ever seen before."
The Delly rolls her eyes, sidling up to the Peeta and laying a hand on his shoulder. "You mustn't wander off, you had me worried for a moment." She bats her eye furs, the yellow strands flickering in an annoying fashion. It is clear what she is doing here. I've seen apes do it enough around mating season. She's marking her territory, showing the other girls who owns this Peeta creature. But, from what I can see, her pack mates don't seem to care. And the Peeta creature seems oblivious to it anyway, taking in his surroundings in amazement I recognize as the wonder of new environments. An amazement I had already experienced not long beforehand.
I don't care about the others anymore, I simply watch the Peeta. It is the only animal out of this new pack that has so far been able to appreciate the beauty of the jungle. It is dressed different from the others-proof that it is definitely different in gender, if I could only figure out which. It's top is white, the arm covers puffed out a little, with another top over the white that is black as night. I wonder at first it Peeta creatures wear bottoms as the bottom this one wears are so close fitted that I first think they are its legs. How strange. How different. How . . . exhilarating. A strange contraption sits at the end of its nose. The object is thin and wired and appears to be fitted with glass. The Peeta pushes them up every now and then but they almost immediately slip down again.
I look at my own body covers. Made from the hide of Kala's latest kill, a leopard who attacked the clan not long ago. I am completely different to these 'humans', dressed my animal skins and covered with dark skin and hair. If they saw me, would they think the same?
I force myself to move. I yank a vine free and make my way back to the clan. The humans are still on my mind but I force myself not to think about it, no matter how much the Peeta creature comes back into my head.
Kala is awake when I return and scolds me for wandering off. I take her apprehending and climb my tree again, deciding to get some more sleep before the clan begins to move again. Maybe by tomorrow we'll find the cabin.
I do not dream.
I never dream.
I have nothing to dream of.
Only blackness.
That's all I see.
In my dreams, I lack the sun.
A/N: Hello folks, this is my first ever Everlark fic so please be gentle when reviewing! I hope this was an okay first chapter, let me know!
#wesupportjlaw