2012
Evie is eight years old when she sees Mama.
Her three-year-old sister, Amber, is standing beside her, fidgeting excitedly while her older brother of two years, Danny, sighs with boredom as they stare through the glass into the gorilla enclosure.
Going to the zoo was probably Dad's idea. A typical family activity, something simple, something easy. Typical for Dad. But Evie doesn't think this right now. She's just happy that she's with her dad, that he actually managed to go out with them at all.
Danny is less than impressed. He raps his knuckles on the glass, trying to get the gorillas' attention. The group of gorillas, a silverback with other smaller males and females and their children, don't even bother to look.
"What's the point of this?" Danny groans. "They never do anything." He knocks on the glass again.
"Don't," Evie says, "you're not supposed to do that, they don't like loud-"
Danny sighs again, louder this time. "Evie, can you not be such a goody-goody for once? Nobody's looking."
Amber peers up at them, trying to read their lips.
What? Amber signs.
"Nothing, don't worry about it," Danny snaps.
Seeing Amber's face crumple, Danny takes a breath. Sorry, he signs. He playfully pokes her in the ribs, earning him a big grin from Amber.
From birth, Amber has always been deaf. Evie remembers how excited she was to finally have a baby sister. In the first few weeks after Amber was born, Evie tried so many times to play with Amber, waving Amber's toys around and giving them silly voices, only for Amber to stare back at her blankly. Amber was diagnosed as being deaf soon after that.
It never bothered Evie though – she loved her sister and thought there was nothing better in the world than Amber's face lighting up whenever she saw Evie.
Eventually, Amber got hearing aids which allowed her to hear enough to read lips, but Evie was determined to learn sign language anyway. Out of their family, she and her mom were the most fluent in sign, with Danny knowing a few signs (more from being lazy than it being 'too difficult', Evie thought) and Dad even less so.
Evie looks back at the gorillas. One of them (a girl she thinks) is staring them, eyes lit up in interest.
Hey, she says, signing and talking at the same time, that gorilla is looking at us.
Amber stands up onto her tippytoes, trying to get a closer look. Danny raises his eyebrows, finally interested.
The gorilla, still looking at them, makes its way to them slowly, coming right up to the glass.
"Oh my god," Evie whispers. She whips her head around the room, trying to find her parents, finally spotting them right at the back of the room, leaning up against the wall. They are directly facing each other, their faces close, talking. They look happy. Evie decides not to interrupt them and turns back to the gorilla.
The gorilla sits up next to the glass, looking down at Amber. Its eyes look kind.
Wrapping his arms around Amber's middle, Danny clumsily lifts Amber up onto the ledge of the enclosure so that she can have a closer look.
Amber grins at the gorilla, waving at it. It waves back.
Evie doesn't believe it for a few seconds - but then the gorilla waves again and Amber squeals happily, waving her hand even more enthusiastically.
Other people have started to notice, kids and their parents starting to crowd around them. "Wow," a sticky toddler breathes into Evie's side.
"Mom, Dad!" Danny shouts. "Look at what this gorilla is doing!"
The gorilla stops waving. It starts moving its arms and hands, forming various shapes. It takes Evie's brain a few seconds to realise that it is signing.
Child, the gorilla signs. Child. Girl. Pretty.
Amber gasps. Gorilla sign? she asks.
Yes, the gorilla signs back.
Evie and Danny are beyond shocked. Evie has watched all the animal documentaries - she likes watching the ones about apes and monkeys - but even she didn't know they could do that.
The people around them seem to realise what's going on and they start ooohing and aaahing. Some of them begin filming, some even clap and it annoys Evie. She feels like they're doing something to Amber and the gorilla, that adult word ... patronising. Yes, patronising them.
Mom and Dad are coming, edging their way through the crowd. They gasp too.
"Looks like you guys have made a friend!" Dad says jokingly.
Seeing the happiness on Amber's face from actually being understood, actually spoken to in her own language, Evie thinks, yes, she has made a friend.
2012-2016
Amber and the gorilla become minor internet celebrities after that. That's how they find out that the gorilla's name is Mama and that she was previously used for some kind of research where they taught her sign language, but she had to be put in the zoo after the researchers couldn't take care of her anymore.
They visit the zoo more often after that. Amber likes to see Mama and, apparently, Mama likes to see her too. Mama always comes up to Amber when she sees her, sitting right by Amber as she signs with her, only the pane of glass separating them.
Evie knows that dad and Danny only thought it was cute for so long. Soon enough, they got irritated with it, probably thinking it was sad to have a gorilla as a 'friend', even if they didn't say it out loud. Mom always made sure Amber got to see Mama though, even if she didn't really understand it herself.
Evie usually comes along with them too (sometimes with Danny) and Mama would sometimes talk to them as well. Mama - aptly named - always had a soft spot for children, the zookeepers told them, and she was trying for a baby with the silverback. He had a 'proper' name too but the kids always just referred to him as Big Poppa.
Mama had her own names for them too: Amber was "pretty girl" while Danny became "angry boy" as he grew into a teenager. Evie didn't like hers - recently, Mama just called her "sad girl".
Over time, the other gorillas became more comfortable with them too. Big Poppa especially would come up to them too, watching them curiously.
The last time they see Mama in the zoo, she and Big Poppa have finally had a baby. Evie and Amber come up to see them with Mom. Danny has decided he's far too grown up for the zoo - and Dad is already gone.
As usual, Mama makes her way over, this time cradling her baby in her arms. Big Poppa follows behind. Mama proudly holds up the baby in her arms for them to see.
Have name? Amber asks.
No sign, Mama says. No sign name.
Mama can't sign Mama's baby's name, Evie guesses, deliberately keeping the signs simple for Mama.
Yes, Mama says.
Before Mama can say anymore, a little boy shoves between Evie and Amber. "Mommy!" he shrieks. "There's a gorilla and its baby!. It's really cute!"
Mama backs off, startled.
Mom, seeing Mama's fear, speaks quietly to the boy. "Sweetheart, you might want to talk just a little quieter. The gorillas don't-"
"Hey! What you saying to my kid?" shouts a red-faced, blonde bobblehead of woman barrelling towards them.
Mom holds up her hands, stepping back a few paces, trying to soothe the boy's mother. "I didn't mean anything by it, I was just saying-"
"It doesn't matter," the woman snaps. "You were letting your kids hog the window anyways."
Considering the conversation over, the woman swivels back to her son, jutting her hips out deliberately to block Evie and Amber from the window.
Its okay, Mom signs to them, waving them over to her. We can just wait until they go.
I bet her name is Karen, Evie signs bitterly, knowing the mother won't understand her. Amber snorts and Mom lets out a rare, childish giggle, prompting 'Karen' to glare at them.
The boy, meanwhile, begins to bang on the glass, shouting at Mamma and Big Poppa. "Come hereeeeeeee!" the kid whines, "I wanna see the baby!"
Mamma shrinks back even further into the enclosure, eyes wide. Big Poppa, however, approaches the boy, grunting threateningly. The boy, mistaking Big Poppa's behaviour for playing, starts beating his chest at him, hooting. In response, Big Poppa rears onto his back legs, beating at his chest and hooting with rage.
"Stop it! Stop that right-" But Mom never gets to finish. Big Poppa is already charging at the boy, fast, so fast, slamming hard into the glass. The glass cracks under the impact and the mother and boy scream with terror. But the glass holds, only fracturing off into several thin spiderwebs.
Evie is shaking, shaking deep into her core. Mom is pale, hands held up to her mouth.
The mother drags the boy away, screaming for help. Amber is the only one who approaches the enclosure, trying to sign to Big Poppa and Mama through the cracked glass. Calm, she tries to say. Calm, calm, calm.
Mom snaps out of her shock after a few seconds and wrenches Evie and Amber away by their arms. Amber tries to wriggle out of mom's grip but Mom doesn't let up.
Yanking them out the room and marching them through and out of the zoo, Mom mutters to herself over and over, saying "we're going, we're going".
Mom pushes out them out into the car park, steering them towards the car. Too shocked to complain, Evie and Amber let Mom bundle them into the car.
Mom thrusts herself into the driving seat, her hands clutching the wheel. Evie can see she is shaking.
"That little shit!" Mom spits angrily. She sobs. "That bitch! They've gone and got them killed for that!"
The scarred chimpanzee outstretched the girl in his arms pleadingly towards Caesar. "Help her," he said again.
Overcoming his shock, Caesar pulled himself upright, looking down at the chimp. "Who is human … to you?" he managed.
"Eve … friend. Friend to apes. She help us."
Koba scoffed. "She human. Human not help apes."
Another, smaller chimpanzee shuffled out from the group. To Maurice's surprise, this one was wearing human clothes, dressed in a padded blue and white body warmer with a striped, knitted hat on his head.
"Eve not bad human," the other chimp said in a quivery but surprisingly coherent voice. "She good human. Good guy. Not bad guy."
Good guy? Maurice thought. Strange phrase.
Koba audibly growled. "Impossible! Lies! Humans … evil! Evil … in their blood!"
At this, the scarred male snarled at Koba, pulling back his lips to expose his jagged fangs. The wolf beside him barked. "You lie," he retorted. "Eve help us ... help us escape lab! They hurt her too ... make her sick!"
The chimp's words hit the apes hard. A human in a lab with apes? They were stunned at the thought.
Koba, momentarily shocked into silence, glared back at the scarred chimp. "No!" he insisted, confused and indignant. "Human ... lies. Human lie to you. You lie..."
The scarred male hissed and Koba tensed as if to spring.
Caesar swiftly held up his hand, instantly stopping Koba in his tracks, while also taking care to stare down at the angry scarred male. At this display of dominance, the scarred chimp backed off, hunching his shoulders, though there was still a defiant glare in his eyes.
Maurice thought over what the chimp had said. He'd never heard of humans being put in labs as well. But the way the scarred male and the strange chimp had defended her ... They clearly cared for her. And why else would they if she hadn't helped them? But there were other questions too: why had she been put in a lab with apes and why had she helped the apes escape with her?
Caesar was obviously thinking the same thing. "She help you ... out of lab?" Caesar asked doubtfully.
The scarred chimp nodded. "We ... all in lab. They hurt us. Hurt humans too. Hurt Eve. She help us ... escape. Help us … find you. But they did something … something that make her sick. That make other humans sick."
The girl must be sick from the disease that is killing off the humans, Maurice thought. He remembered when Koba reported finding some human bodies in a car and how he described their eyes, noses, and mouths, all dried with blood. Like the blood couldn't stand to be in them anymore, Koba had said. It certainly matched the girl's symptoms.
"Why … humans and apes ... in lab?" Caesar asked incredulously.
The thought of humans experimenting on other humans was odd, true, but Maurice supposed that there were no limits to the cruelty humans could inflict on each other.
The scarred male shrugged – a strangely human gesture. "Find cure. Try to find cure ... in human and ape."
Maurice looked upon the troop, saddened by their plight. He found himself believing the male's story. The apes had clearly suffered much - all of the apes, excluding the children, bore deep and obvious scars all over their bodies. It seemed the girl had suffered too - perhaps more so. Even if he hadn't known what sickened her, he already knew that she was almost certainly going to die.
Slowly and carefully, Maurice dismounted his horse and made his way towards the group.
Maurice ... Rocket signed, but Maurice held his hand up. Wait, he said. I will talk to them.
Feeling his friends' eyes upon him as he went, he continued regardless.
The disfigured chimp bared his teeth threateningly at his approach and the wolf sitting at his heels got up and started growling. From behind, Koba barked harshly in response. The rest of the troop watched him warily, some eyeing Maurice and the girl nervously. The ape-monkey's eyes bored into him. Maurice rumbled soothingly, showing he meant no harm.
Whenever he could help it, Maurice preferred not to speak at all, finding it harsh on his vocal cords. But now it could not be helped. "Maurice," he rumbled softly, thumping his fist onto his chest.
The scarred male's eyes narrowed, taking in Maurice's measure. Maurice met his stare, trying his best to not appear threatening.
For a few moments, Maurice thought he wouldn't get a response from the male until he heard the male grunt "Travis." Maurice smiled encouragingly.
"Bad Ape!" the strange ape with the hat said suddenly. Everyone snapped their heads round to stare at the strange ape. "Bad Ape," the strange ape repeated shyly, indicating himself. He then gave Maurice and the others an awkward wave.
Ignoring Bad Ape, Travis nodded at Maurice and relaxed slightly, allowing Maurice closer. The wolf, though clearly agitated, let Maurice pass, its body tensed as if waiting for a signal.
Looking down on the girl, Maurice felt a swell of pity. The girl was barely conscious, eyes rolling, seemingly unaware of everything around her. Now he was up close to her, he could see that she was wearing a crescent moon hairpin in her long, limp hair and a necklace bearing an orange metal leaf around her neck. Underneath the blankets, directly on the girl's chest, Maurice could see a thatch of white fur sticking out. Curious, Maurice reached out to touch the fur, flinching when it unexpectedly twitched.
Cautious but gentle, Maurice peeled back the blanket to reveal a wriggling, snowy-haired and pink-skinned baby orangutan. An albino.
Startled, Maurice looked up at Travis.
"Where … mother?" he said softly.
Travis's face darkened. He shook his head slowly. "Dead. Killed in escape. Eve ... care for her now."
"Name?" Maurice asked.
Travis shook his head - no.
Maurice nodded; his mind made up. He turned back towards Caesar.
We must take them.
Notes:
Thanks for reading my second chapter :)
The plan so far (as seen in this chapter) is to split the narrative between Eve's history and the story happening now, with Evie's history starting the chapters, though probably not as long as the one here. If you think that these parts are too long and/or should be structured differently, I'm happy to take any comments on.
Also, I've introduced Bad Ape earlier into this story than the movies as just makes sense that Eve and Bad Ape meet when they do as you'll see.
On a side note, fun fact - most of my OC ape characters' backstories, appearances and names are based on real apes that I've seen on various documentaries and YouTube videos. You might recognise some! The baby especially is based on the real-life albino orangutan Alba (look her up for more info).
Stay safe everyone :)