My greatest apologies for the long wait---I was ill, and also had writer's block. Thanks to those who reviewed! I'll try my best to make this a good story. Please, more reviews! 3 isn't enough of a motivating factor ;-P

Hearing the calls of her mates, Jarelline hesitated. She couldn't leave this elfling here all alone, with no one to care for it and soothe it. Carrying it carefully in her arms, she made her way back to her companions.

"Where have you been, Jarelline?" Behemoth, one of her very close friends, demanded impatiently. "It is time to return." Embarrassed, Jarelline realized that she had completely forgotten about gathering food; her companions had already gathered a little collection of food which was to last for the rest of the week. "Where is the food you collected?"

"I left it among the trees."

"Ho!" Behemond, Behemoth's twin brother, bellowed. "What have we here?"

"An elfling???!!!!" Basilisk, another of the gorillas, exclaimed. "Jarelline, whither did it come from?"

"I found it among the bushes, abandoned by its own kind. I have decided to take it in and care for it." Jarelline was surprised by her own words. She had not decided what to do with the elfling when she had brought it over.

"What?!" her friends exclaimed as one. Jarelline nodded firmly.

"You cannot take him in, Jarelline!" Behemoth stared into his friend's eyes. "Have you forgotten our feud with the Elves?"

"No. However, our feud with the Elves has nothing to do with this little elfling. It is innocent; it isn't its fault, but its ancestors'!"

"How are you going to care for the elfling, Jarelline?" Behemond asked softly, racking his brain for any other reasons to dissuade his friend, for he recognized the truth in her words. "I am sure elves do not eat the same food as we do."

"Besides, we have not enough food to feed every one of us already, let alone this elfling. We already have enough on our hands to feed already, with the human child you have already 'collected'," Basilisk added.

"Are we then to leave this elfling all alone here, with no one to tend to him? Would you let it starve? Leaving it here, helpless and defenseless, would mean certain death. I cannot bear to let a life go like this. Had it been a baby gorilla, I am sure that either a Man or an Elf would take care of it and not let it die." Jarelline's voice was firm.

"I have made up my mind, and it is no good trying to dissuade me." Jarelline lifted her chin resolutely.

"Very well," Behemoth said quietly. "The elfling is your responsibility, and no one else's." He knew from Jarelline's expression that it was no good trying to bring her round. No one could stop her from doing what she really wanted.

What neither of them knew that this kindly act of taking in a helpless, defenceless little elfling was the turning point of the gorillas' fortunes and a blessing in disguise.

All the way back to the enclave, Jarelline's attention was riveted on the elfling. She cooed and made soft noises to it, and rocked it gently in her arms, and stroked it. The Elfling seemed to have taken to her very much indeed, and had stopped crying. It now looked out of huge, beautiful blue eyes that matched the colour of the sky and made little noises. It was certainly a beautiful baby, with perfect, soft even features in a sweet cherubic face. It was clad in a green and brown robe. Basilisk grumbled since now he had to take Jarelline's share of the load of food.

Jarelline gazed down at the elfling, enchanted, and wondered who could have been so heartless as to dispose of this beautiful sweet little thing and leave it to a certain death in the wild.

Back at the colony, there was a major uproar when the party appeared, not only with food but with the elfling. Every gorilla gathered outside the Gorilla King's tree, waiting to see how the King would react to the appearance of the elfling. The King, Jeromir, was prone to throwing major tantrums when things went wrong and any discerning gorilla would stay miles away while he was in one of his mad rages, or risk being torn to pieces. Every gorilla in the colony was slightly afraid of this fiery king, but he was an extremely capable ruler and for long the colony governed by him had lived a content, happy life, with whatever they needed easily available.

Now, knowing the King's infamous tempers, every gorilla was gathered around the tree that served as a palace, though they were all careful to stay in the forks of the athenas trees, well out of reach of the King, and the little ones were perched on the tree tops to get a better view. They were sure that they would get a good 'show', and some of the adult gorillas were speculating on what the King would do and betting some of their precious bananas and nuts on it. The gorillas of this colony were quite hooked on betting, and they often betted on the outcomes of the 'pawball' games(the gorillas' equivalent of British football, with an acorn as the ball) played among the gorillas.

Every gorilla watched with bated breath as the hunting party, led by Behemoth, approached King Jeromir. Jarelline hesitantly, with the elfling still in her arms, came forward and bowed to the King.

"Your Majesty, I found this elfling left all alone in the forest with no one to tend to it. I have decided to take it into our colony and care for it, at least until it is able to fend for itself." Jarelline said boldly, and every gorilla marveled at the bold, determined and straightforward way that she approached the King. Then again, Jarelline was one of the few who dared to oppose the King openly in any way, and she had the leverage to do so. For she was one of those who had helped bring up the king in his youth, when his father was still alive, and the King was very fond of her.

"WHAT did you just say?" King Jeromir growled, his eyes narrowed as much as a gorilla's eyes can narrow.

"This elfling shall be my heir."

"Repeat that again." Jeromir's voice was dangerously low and soft. The gorillas who were closer began to back away.

Jarelline sighed impatiently. "I said, I shall keep this elfling, Your Majesty." She declared loud and clear. "Since when are you hard of hearing, my Lord?"

All who were watching were sure that the King would fly into a rage and toss Jarelline in the air. Jeromir had been known to throw one of the gorillas clean out of the enclave in his rages. Like a Frisbee, the unfortunate gorilla had flew up in an arc and landed stunned on one of the trees but fortunately had escaped serious injury.

"You will take the elfling out of our home and leave him where you found him, or I grant you leave to live with this elfling outside by yourself and never return." Jeromir's voice left no room for argument.

"I cannot do this. We cannot leave a little one out there, who cannot fend for himself."

"Have you forgotten how the greedy elven king took our territory from us by force, thus left us only this little area to live in, and how the elves killed my father?" Jeromir's voice was bitter with hatred and loathing for the elves.

The King of the Wood-elves of Northern Mirkwood, Thranduil, had not been pleased with how the gorilla population had multiplied in Mirkwood.. The gorilla population had once been so great that they had partially destroyed some of the forest while eating, and they demanded more land for themselves. Not too willing to cede any more land to the gorillas, there had been a mini war. Jeromir's father had accidentally been killed by one of the elven archers. The wood-elves would never intentionally kill another living thing if they could avoid it. After the war, where the elves triumphed, of course (though the gorillas had fared pretty well by throwing acorns and whatever else they could find to throw at the elves, and gorillas are known to have made some primitive kind of weapon for the purpose of spearing insects out of holes in trees for food), the remaining gorillas had retreated to the enclave they now possessed. When evil had entered Mirkwood, the elves had retreated to their Northern realm and had forgotten about the gorillas.

"Your father's death has naught to do with this elfling, my lord. Do not hold a grudge against this elfling, who did not participate in the war or ever harm any of us. Surely if it had been one of our young left alone in the forest to fend for itself, and if an elf found it, he would not leave it to die. The elves are good-hearted gentle folk, my lord. We should do likewise. Perhaps if any elf ever took this elfling back, the elves would look upon us with goodwill for the favour we have done them by looking after this elfling."

"My...my..my lord, she.she. makes sense." Behemond ventured timidly, sure that he would be thrown out of the colony as well. He knew Jarelline well enough to know that she would insist on keeping this elfling.

"We need only to tend it until it can fend for itself." Behemoth spoke in support of Jarelline, and she gave her friends a grateful look. "Surely you cannot be hard-hearted enough to let a life waste away, my lord." The other gorillas began to whisper among themselves. Some chanted in support of Jarelline, for she was well-liked, much loved and respected among the gorillas.

Jeromir, provoked into one of his major rages, roared in anger and began to pummel Behemoth, Behemond and all the other gorillas, pelting them with acorns amd nuts and bananas, so that poor Behemond and Behemoth was covered with squashed bananas and bits of nuts and flowers and leaves and fruits. Jeromir made as if he was going to toss Jarelline and the elfling out into the forest.

The other gorillas immediately began to form a barrier of their bodies around Jarelline and the elfling.

Jeromir might be a violent gorilla *sometimes* (and that's the understatement of the year), but he had a kind heart, and sometimes his growl was worse than his bite. Furthermore, he saw that he might be defeated, if the supporters of Jarelline (and these were numerous)ganged up against him. Besides, he could not really bear to send Jarelline out of the colony.

"Very well," Jeromir finally gave in. "The elfling shall stay with us-for the time being."