Sam decided he liked Maurice.

The old orangutan had taken it upon himself to act as a buffer between the Winchesters and Lake in the last week. From the way the apes respected him, Sam knew that Maurice was one of the leaders here. He would probably one of the reasons that Sam and Dean would actually be allowed to leave. Assuming they were allowed to leave.

(Yeah, they could fight their way out if it came to that. But as the brothers had gotten older they had discovered that they preferred the non-violent resolution whenever possible.)

It had not escaped the younger Hunter's notice that these magnificent creatures bounced between skittish and hostile with the humans in their midst. It also hadn't escaped his notice that although Caesar was the worst off, most of the ape community suffered from some amount of exhaustion and malnourishment. Many of them were nursing lesser bullet wounds and second degree burns. Clearly, humans somewhere had not been kind to them. Equally clearly, they had been lucky to escape the encounter.

All around him, apes muttered about his presence in sign language.

Stanford sign language classes had been two lifetimes ago. Eileen Leahy, however, wasn't so long ago. Like most women in his life, the friendship hadn't lasted long; but it was long enough to brush off old skills. He never imagined he would do it again in quite these circumstances.

Clumsy from disuse, Sam's hands asked Maurice if any other apes needed looking after as well. For a moment, Sam was sure his offer would be utterly rejected as Maurice stared at him. But only for a moment before the orangutan nodded and lumbered off.

Slowly, apes made their way over. Within a day, Sam had set up a walk-in clinic using whatever supplies he had off of their supply run. And the usual Winchester first aid kit, which meant a small surgical theater. The supplies themselves were fairly basic and nothing the people back home needed all that much. The ape's goodwill was well worth the trade-off.

Most of his patients, nearly all of them in fact, remained wary even as they came to him for help. Some stayed aggressive and barely short of hostile, as though they needed to prove to themselves that they were not afraid. Sam understood and tried not to take it personally. Others came and could not relax around him. Without Maurice's calm and solid presence, they would never have stayed long enough to be helped. Sam understood this as well and made sure to stay seated or otherwise NOT be as big as he really was.

Most remained wary.

A younger ape called Curious was all over the clinic. Sam wasn't sure if 'Curious' was his name or his prime feature. The little guy was forever poking his nose into everything and never stopped asking questions. More and more as the days passed, Sam found himself answering questions.

What is that? Why is that happening? Why are you putting alcohol on that? What are germs? How do you make alcohol? What are a-n-t-i-b-i-t-i-c-s? Why do they help? How do you make them? Can I help?

Patiently and with a smile, Sam became a teacher, showing the ape more than the man would ever have guessed he would. Curious was astonishingly smart and took in everything, remembered it all, and easily applied what he learned.

It wasn't long before Sam declared one of the Winchester-level kits the sole property of Curious George, whose thick finger were shockingly gentle and dexterous with a suture.

"I wish some of our medics were as fast of learners as you," Sam told his new apprentice. Man, chimp, and orangutan were enjoying a light dinner at dusk. (Dean would be whining in his room about the lack of meat in the meal, but Sam was fine.)

Curious George grinned around his mouthful of apple.

{Good teacher.} Maurice signed.

"I wish I had a few medical textbooks with me," Sam sighed. "It looks like your people could use them a lot more than mine."

Maurice grunted in surprise.

{You'd do that?} Curious George asked, eyes wide in shock.

Sam blinked. "Why wouldn't I?"

{We are apes.} Maurice informed him, as though Sam never noticed. Or forgot this little fact of biology.

Sam laughed. "True, but if you had your own medic, then you wouldn't have to kidnap guys like us when you had problems. Dean and I spend a lot of time teaching people in our community how to be self-sufficient. Its pretty important these days."

Both chimp and orangutan had to look away in consternation at the word 'kidnap.'

Sam continued, ignoring the embarrassment. "Maybe when your boss is back on his feet, we can work out a trade deal or something. You know, raw materials for education.

{You'd come back?} Curious George hooted in excitement.

Sam ran a hand through his hair. "Yeah, it might have to be me. Most of the guys back home would freak."

George's face fell. Sadly, slowly, he signed {Why do humans hate apes?}

Sam felt like he'd been kicked in the gut. How do you explain prejudice? Or hate?

Before the man could begin to fins the words, a loud primate screech of alarm sounded. Within seconds, half a dozen voices joined the first.

{Someone's hurt!} Maurice signed. {They'll bring him here.}

Sam nodded. "George, clean and clear the exam table. Maurice, can we get some more light in here? I'll prep the trauma pack."

Everyone got to work.