No magic AU. No Clayton. Universal animal language that's a mix of noise/vocalizations and body/sign language to human eyes/ears.
Deep in the West African Jungles we find two families who are not supposed to be there. High in the trees two houses are supported side by side. In both houses there is a man, a woman, and a baby. The fathers, British aristocracy, brown hair and kind hearts. The mothers, fair skin, sharp minds, and caring souls. The babies are completely different from each other. The Greystoke have a baby who takes after his father in looks and mother's personality. A giggly baby boy who is ready to explore the world. The Potter's baby girl has bright hair and eyes but is quieter in personality. She seldom cries or squeals and is content to lay in her bassinette. Still despite the lives they have settled in to here it is clear that they do not belong.
"Lily take Daphne and run to Alice. John and I will distract the leopard," James shouts as he swings a sharpened stick at the predator in front of him. Lily listens to his instructions and runs out the side door that has a bridge connected to it. Across the bridge Alice is hiding her own baby to protect him from being eaten.
"Here Lily, place her with Clay. They should be safe hidden here," Alice says as she uncovers a hidey hole. Lily kisses her child and places her with the other baby.
"Momma loves you baby girl." With that said both women cover up the sleeping children and grab weapons themselves. This will be the last time they see their children.
3 months earlier at the watering hole
The watering hole is known as neutral ground to every animal in the jungle. No killing. No fighting. Everyone follows the law. Kala and Kerchek are at the watering hole with the herd of apes and more importantly their 6-week-old son.
"Don't go too far okay," Kala yells absentmindedly as she notices her child wonder off but immediately continues her conversation with another female ape. The baby continues his wandering with childlike fascination with the world. There are so many new animals and things to see. He bumps into several birds, okapi and monkeys his size.
Once he reaches a clear spot near the water's edge he sits and takes in all the bright colors he sees. He gets lost in thought which allows a young leopard to land behind him and scare him.
"Rawr!" She shouts which sends the young ape to jump and land in the shallow water with a slash.
"Hey! That wasn't nice," he says.
"Well I've got to practice my pouncing on someone don't I. Plus I'm a leopard, I don't have to be nice." She sits at the edge of the water and turns her nose up at him. The young ape pouts before smiling and splashing a wave at the she leopard.
"Ha, now we're both wet!" The girl laughs and jumps into the water to play with the ape. Both unaware of the crocodile watching them intently.
At this time both parents are worried that they haven't seen their children around and head off the find them. They are too late as they here their child's scream. Arriving at the scene Sabor and Kala watch the crocodile eat their children and can do nothing to stop it.
Now at the treehouse
Sabor hears a crying noise coming from the second tree house and sets off to find its source after eating her fill in the first house. She is not the only one to hear this cry however. Kala who was wandering below hears the cry and is drawn to the noise. Kala comes through the door and does not see Sabor on the roof watching.
She cautiously lifts turned over baskets and blankets until she finds the hidey hole containing the children under a woven mat. There are two children. One brown haired boyo squirming and crying and one red haired girl quietly watching. Kala strokes the boy's face in wonder and he stops crying. He reaches out to grab her finger and lets out a giggle.
Kala smiles in return and goes to do the same it the girl when she notices the child's eyes are starring at something over her shoulder. She turns and jumps at the sight of Sabor right behind her. Sabor pays little attention to Kala and is entranced by the little girl just as much as the little girl is with her.
"I ate their parents," Sabor says not looking away from the children.
"Are you going to eat us too?" Kala says reaching for the boy once again.
"I was going to eat whatever was crying but now I can't."
"What's stopping you?" Kala is now holding the boy close to her chest as he falls back asleep.
"Everyone was so quick to forget I was a mother too. The quiet one reminds me of my cub." Sabor murmurs.
"They'll need us now. We can be their mothers."
"Don't be so quick to claim responsibility for another's life. They are not ape, or leopard how could they ever survive here?" Sabor snaps at Kala.
"Yes, they are neither ape or leopard, but they'll have us, and they'll have each other. We will teach them how to survive. I have no intention of losing another child." Kala looks Sabor straight in the eyes as she says this.
Sabor is still hesitant and unsure until she looks back at the baby. She's stretching her arms up at Sabor and she breaks. Sabor leans her head in closer and licks the little girl who smiles at the action.
"I'll name this one Tarzan for his fair skin," Kala smiles at Sabor.
"This one shall be Mauti for her bright colors and for that is what I shall train her to become," Sabor nods. "Let us go tell your herd of this new development." With that said Sabor picks Mauti up with her mouth so she's swinging by her shirt.
Both Kala and Sabor climbed down from the tree houses, conscious of the precious loads they now carried. A little further away a call went out from an ape.
"Kala's okay!"
After that her herd appeared over the hill all relieved to see her again. Kerchak approached first, curious as to what she was holding in her arms, but as he got closer he spotted Sabor emerging from the tall grass behind Kala.
He shouted a warning as he ran close, but she just smiled and told him it was alright. He kept his body between Kala and Sabor and demanded to know what was going on.
"We found them, and we are going to take care of them." Kala says revealing Tarzan in her arm.
"Them?" Kerchak asks warily.
Sabor nods and steps aside to reveal Mauti sitting behind her two back legs.
"You know they can't replace the ones we lost." Kerchak whispers.
Sabor nods. "They aren't replacements, but I refuse to watch any other child die. "I will find you when it's time to socialize them." Sabor picks up Mauti and runs off.
Tarzan and Mauti are 5 years old
"Who we meeting momma and why we gotta be so far from the herd?" Tarzan asks Kala.
"We are meeting with someone special and someone just like you. We have to be away from the herd because this special someone is a predator and scares the others," Kala answers.
"They should be scared! My momma is a strong leopard and soon I will be too!" A voice says from the tree to the far left from Tarzan and Kala. In that tree is Sabor with a skinny Mauti on her back.
Sabor jumps down and Mauti rolls and shifts with the motion so she won't fall off. Tarzan is clearly tense and unsure what to do in this situation. Kala places her hand on his head to calm him down.
"I see Kerchak let you come alone this time. Finally convinced I'm not going to eat you?" Sabor says as Mauti dismounts.
"You could say that," Kala laughs gently. "Now Tarzan this isn't the first time you've met Mauti, but this is the first you can understand what's happening." She says, and Tarzan is listening but he's to busy starring at Mauti.
"Momma she looks like me," Tarzan says in wonder.
"GO on child," Sabor says to Tarzan.
Mauti walks forward just as amazed but better at hiding it. Both children circle each other mentally comparing with their eyes before Tarzan hold up his hand. Mauti blinks and grabs it. She runs her fingers over his nose and mouth before touching her own.
Both Kala and Sabor allowed the children to get to know each other before they started the serious talk.
"Children please sit. We know you must have questions and that's why we met today. We felt you were old enough to understand who you are now," Kala began. "We found you in a nest built by humans because you are humans. You have been raised by ape and leopard, but you are neither. You are human cubs, but that doesn't mean we don't consider you ours anyway," Sabor continued.
"What happened to our human parents?" Mauti asked.
"I ate them before I knew you two existed," Sabor said.
"Does that mean we are siblings?" Tarzan asked not disturbed to hear Sabor admit to eating people he never knew. That was the life of the jungle.
"No, you both had different parents you're nestmates." Kala explained to Tarzan. "We brought you together today because we want you to know you aren't alone and can learn how to be human cubs together.
Mauti and Tarzan at age 14
Tantor, Terk, and Tarzan were spending time together away from the herd and more importantly away from Kerchak.
"Nothing I do is good enough for him." Tarzan flops down on his back with a sigh.
"I wouldn't say he thinks you're not good enough, its more like he doesn't like anything you do because he doesn't like you." Terk trails off after realizing what she's saying isn't helping.
"Nice going Terk" Tantor uses his trunk to point at Tarzan who was sulking more.
Terk was going to respond but noticed the silence around them. The birds had gone quiet and the wind wasn't rustling the trees. "Tarzan" she whispered.
A blur leaps out of the trees and lands on Tarzan. Both Tantor and Terk were frozen in shock as they watched Tarzan wrestle with the figure attacking him.
"We've got to help him," Terk shouts to Tantor before changing at the two clashing figures with a shout.
"No, no you guys. I know her" Tarzan says from under Mauti. He looks back to the smiling face of Mauti. Her hair had grown into a wild flaming mane of curls, waves, and braids. She had a few new scars on her face and arms but otherwise she was just like the last time he saw her.
"Got you again Tarzan, you've been slacking on your training." Mauti laughed as she helped him up.
"Uh Tarzan? Are you going to introduce us anytime soon?" Terk asks.
"Oh yeah. Terk, Tantor, this is Mauti. She's Sabor's cub and a human like me! Mauti these are my other friends."
"Sabor's cub!" Tantor cried and hid behind Terk.
"Calm down guys she's not going to attack you."
"I might take a nibble though," Mauti said as she flashed her fangs.
"Ahh!" Terk put her arms up ready to defend herself the moment Mauti moved closer.
Mauti took a few steps before breaking out into laughter.
"She's just joking guys. She'd never eat anyone I called my friends."
"Yeah, yeah. Just know we don't taste good anyway." Terk and Tantor stepped closer to get to know their new friend better. Still making sure to keep Tarzan in between them and Mauti.
"So why were you all mopey before I showed up?" Mauti asks laying down near Tarzan.
"We were talking about how Kerchak hates me for not being ape enough" Tarzan sighs and hangs his head in defeat.
"Well of course you're not ape enough!" Mauti sat up and shouted.
"Hey!" Terk yells.
"You are a human and everything you will do is going to be different from them. That doesn't mean it's the wrong way though. You remember how I used to ride Sabor every where when I was younger?" Mauti asks.
"Yeah?"
"Well once I got bigger, I couldn't anymore, and I had trouble keeping up. I tried so hard to keep up the leopard way because I thought momma would eat me if I was too human for her."
"What did you do?" Tarzan asks.
"She sat me down one day and told me to accept the fact that I was a human and couldn't do things her way but that also meant she couldn't do the things I could." Mauti smiles thinking fondly about her mother.
"I don't understand what you're trying to say," Tarzan says frustrated.
"What I'm trying to say is that we are human and how we do things isn't wrong just different. We use tools because we aren't as strong. We use the trees and vines because we aren't as fast. It's okay to be human." Mauti hugged Tarzan once she noticed him crying.
Tarzan hugged her back tightly not caring that his friends were watching.
Tarzan and Mauti are 19 years old
Tarzan was holding a baby anteater for Jane to sketch it. Her father was nearby following the anteaters' parents on all fours.
"So now you're the herd leader now, how does that work?" Jane asks, "Is it a hereditary position or can it be won?"
"Hereditary?" Tarzan asks confused. He has gotten better at speaking English, but some words still escaped him.
"Oh, it means its passed on to their children and their children's children." Jane explained.
Tarzan nods. "Both. Kala is mother, so I'd take over the lead but because I'm not theirs by birth I would have to fight challengers and prove I could lead."
"Wow! Were there many challengers?" Jane asks. She puts down her drawing giving Tarzan her full attention.
"Not really. Most of the males in the herd were there when Kerchak claimed me before dying. Also, the word spread of me defeating the leopard that killed him so not many wandering males wanted to challenge me." Tarzan let go of the baby aardvark and watched the family leave the clearing. The professor came and sat with them just as enthralled in the story as Jane.
"A leopard, how exciting! Do you get many leopard attacks?" The professor asked.
"That leopard was a rouge. After the herd was declared off limits we didn't have to worry about them."
"Off limits by whom?" Jane asks.
"My mother and Sabor wanted us to have contact while growing up so Sabor was the first to stop attacking us, but after we got older he cub declared us off limits and fought any who challenged her claim." Tarzan smiled as he thought of Mauti.
"Who's us?" Jane asks seeing how bright his smile got.
"Mauti," He says," Do you want to meet her?"
"Oh boy, meeting a leopard! I would love to meet her. What's her coat like? Spots, Black? Oh, Tarzan please tell me she has a black coat!" The Professor clapped as they followed Tarzan across the jungle floor.
"Daddy calm down, he can't answer if you don't slow down. Tarzan would she be okay with meeting us?"
"Its okay we planned on meeting later today anyway. Plus, she's been watching you after I told her about humans in the jungle. Oh, and she'll pretend that she wants to eat you, but she'll be mostly joking." They see a bright spot in front of them meaning a clearing is up ahead.
Tarzan turns toward them and makes a shushing gesture. Then before their eyes he shifts his posture to a more animal like stance. He lopes off into the clearing and they hear a loud splash and snarls. Jane and her father hurry into the clearing to see what is happening.
As they were teaching Tarzan how to be civilized they forgot that he was raised by and still is a wild animal. Now watching him bite and scratch another crouched form they couldn't forget he wasn't like them no matter how much he looked like he was.
Tarzan laughed and jumped back away from Mauti.
"Jane, Professor, this is my friend Mauti," Tarzan revealed. Said people were shocked to see another human form instead of the leopard they were expecting.
Mauti was shaking her body free of water after Tarzan pushed her into the pond. Her fiery red hair was still full of braids but went down to the middle of her back. Some were short parts where they were hacked off. She had a necklace of fangs she had taken from challengers and several scars from said challengers on her arms and side.
Mauti snarls and lifts her hand by her mouth before placing it back down on the ground in a smooth motion.
Tarzan rumbles from within his chest before pacing on all fours and lets Mauti move closer. She swats at him and makes a coughing noise. Tarzan turns to Jane and the Professor, "She told me I was a weak grass eater for getting her wet and I responded that she was lazy and slacking for letting me catch her unaware."
"She's human," Jane shouted. Tarzan turns and translates for Mauti when he hears her questioning snort.
"Yes" Tarzan said simply. He didn't understand why Jane was so amazed by this.
"She was raised by this leopard Sabor correct" Professor asked?
Tarzan nodded, "Sabor killed our parents before she and my mother found us. They decided to raise us separately but allowed us to meet up."
Mauti makes a huffing noise and dips her head down.
"Mauti wants to know what your names mean," Tarzan translates.
Professor Porter looks gleeful as he responds, "Jane means 'to be in God's grace' and Archimedes means 'to think'. Do your names have meanings?"
Tarzan relays his question to Mauti and a proud look crosses her face.
"She says Sabor tells all who they kill about how Mauti ahs lived up to her namesake. The moment Sabor saw her she knew what to name her." Tarzan huffs as Mauti hakes her mane of hair and smirks.
"Yes, yes and how Sabor thinks Kala wasted on opportunity when naming me."
"What do you mean?" Jane asks.
"Mauti means Death. She was named for her hair, the bright color a warning, she was named for the deaths Sabor trained her to cause, and she was named as a reminder for the death of her birth family." As Tarzan explained Mauti has her head held high, proud.
"Tarzan means white skin. Kala thought our fair skin was beautiful when she first found us."
Mauti made an odd rumbling purr noise before crouching like she was going to pounce. Tarzan laughed and crouched in the same position. Mauti's hand flew forward and yanked on a lock of Tarzan's hair. She smiled and ran off to a tree across the clearing. Tarzan was about to follow her, but Jane stopped him.
"What did she say? Why did she do that?"
"She told me that if I was dying she'd make sure I knew it was her eating me gut first, and I told her the stench of her wet fur would let me know it was her coming long before she reached me." Tarzan was smiling not understanding the confused and slightly concerned look on Jane and the Professors face.
Tarzan ran off to go play wrestle with Mauti.
3 weeks later
Terk, Tarzan, Jane and Mauti were spending time relaxing together. Mauti and Tarzan were lying further away from the other two basking in the sunlight.
Jane stares at them and sighs. Terk turns to her curiously but because Jane can't understand her says nothing and turns back to watch Mauti and Tarzan.
They two in question were now face to face and Tarzan had just pulled out a hair ornament constructed from strings, feathers, and bones from Mauti's favorite kind of bird. A tinkling laugh filled the air and Mauti stayed still long enough to let Tarzan put it in her hair.
Once it was in there was no holding her back. She jumped and twirled and laughed like no tomorrow. Her hair flew and twisted around her like a red halo, a splash of blue and green feathers and a sound of hollow bones clacking together when she rushed at Tarzan.
Jane clutched at her heart and turned from the sight of Mauti rubbing her head against Tarzan and licking his face, but what hurt the most was that he was accepting it with a smile on his face.
That night Tarzan sat next to Terk as the herd settled down for sleep.
"Terk, why is Jane avoiding me?" Tarzan asks
"So, you noticed, that did you? Great powers of observation mighty Tarzan," Terk says sarcastically before rolling over into a more comfortable position.
"Come on Terk, tell me. She left when we were hanging out and when I went to ask her what was wrong she lied to me and ran away. What's happening?"
"If I tell you will you let me sleep?" Terk sighs at Tarzans enthusiastic nod. "Fine! It's a female thing."
Tarzan cocks his head in confusion.
"Jane sees you as a potential mate and assumed you were going to choose her too as the only compatible female."
"Compatible?" Tarzan asks
"The only other human you could mate with" Terk explains.
"But Mauti is a human female." Tarzan says still confused.
"Yeah, we know that, but Jane didn't know Mauti existed and now she thinks you already chose Mauti as your mate." Terk just shook her head and laid back down." Talk to both and figure this out. Now let me sleep.
Next day
"Hey Jane, can I talk to you?" Tarzan asks
Jane nervously smoothed her skirt down and walked closer to Tarzan. "Yeah…I mean yes, we can talk," she squeaked.
"Will you tell me why you left yesterday?"
Jane stumbles over her words and gestures noncommittally, "Uhm, well you see, I had to help father with some science stuff you wouldn't understand."
"You're lying to me Jane." Tarzan says softly
"I don't know what you're talking about Tarzan. I'm not lying about anything." Jane forces and awkward laugh.
"Terk told me that you chose me to be your mate but got upset when you saw me with Mauti." Tarzan says calmly over Janes laughter and she gasps at the revelation.
"Why'd you choose me? There must be other mates you could have at your home."
Jane sputters for a whole but sighs. "You know how amazing you are Tarzan, compared to everyone back home I mean? You accept the fact that I'm intelligent and a woman and I can honestly say you and daddy are one of the few men who would. You don't care about my money or status Id bring you." Jane starts to cry, "Can you blame me for thinking you're my best change at a happy and loved life."
Tarzan walks closer to her, "You don't love me." He says.
"I could Tarzan! We could learn to love each other as we travel the world. Isn't that something you could take a chance on?"
"Could you love me if I told you I never want to leave this jungle?"
"Well I mean wed have to leave at some point. Were human Tarzan! We belong out there with other people." Jane says.
"No Jane, I belong here with my herd, in this jungle, forever. IF you can't accept that then I don't really think you loved me in the first place." Tarzan said.
Jane stares in disbelief at Tarzan.
"I've got to go find Mauti. I will always be your friend Jane." He climbs the nearest tree and swings away leaving Jane to think over her assumptions and actions since meeting Tarzan.
Mauti jumps to the side to avoid Tarzan's leaping attack, "Ha ha, not today Tarzan!"
Tarzan laughs and sits next to her relaxed and smiling. "So, what did you do today?"
Mauti sighs as she leans on him. "Just settled a few disputes over feeding grounds. They needed a judge who could be fair."
As Mauti talks Tarzan listens and can't help but notice how much he loves this girl. There could be no other he would trust to keep the jungle safe by his side.
"Hey, can I court you?" Tarzan asks suddenly interrupting Mauti.
"Wow, that took you forever. If you had taken any longer Kala and Sabor would have won, the bet." Mauti smiles.
"What bet?" Tarzan asks.
"Kala, mama, and I bet on when you would realize you love me and ask to court me. I win a back rub from Kala and some sweet fruit from mama." Mauti chuckles and lays down on her back.
Tarzan is confused for a few seconds then shakes his head to clear it. He kneels on all fours over Mauti's body. His face hovering over her smiling one.
"You'll be my mate?" He asks, and she nods. "You love me back?" She nods again.
There two smiles are blinding before Tarzan leans down to kiss her. Laughter floats all around them.