WARNING: Smut at the very end of this chapter. This will be clearly marked and is skippable.


Lydia

The seasons came and went and soon, three more years had passed in the Ape Colony. Once again, spring had come to the Muir Wood forest and the place was teeming with life.

Lydia was sitting, as she had so many times before, on the walkway in front of her hut, one leg dangling off the edge. She was deeply involved in the task of fletching her arrows, though she would sometimes get distracted by the occasional pull of a strand of her hair. Lake was sitting behind her, carding her fingers through the dark strands meticulously and trying to imitate the French braids Lydia had showed her how to make.

She was becoming rather good at it, Lydia noted.

Lake had always been fascinated with Lydia's long hair, ever since the human woman had arrived five years prior. The ape child had been keeping her distance for some time, noting her parents' mistrust of the human, but had softened up quickly when she'd spotted Ash and Blue Eyes making friends with Orion. Seeing as Lydia was, per definition, part of the "Orion-package", Lake had been forced to interact with the human female as well, and soon, the young female ape had been brave enough to ask the woman if she could touch her hair.

Lydia had seemed hesitant at first. Roy and Orion often groomed her locks, but she hadn't been sure how the rest of the apes would react to one of their young being so familiar with her just yet.

Lake had been persistent, though, and Lydia finally gave in at last.

And the ape had immediately expressed her love for the dark locks.

"So soft! Like rabbit fur!" She had exclaimed with such enthusiasm that Lydia, as well as most of the adult apes, had simply burst out laughing. Some human women might have taken such a comment as an insult, but Lydia recognised it for the high praise it actually was.

Rabbit fur was considered a luxurious pelt, which the apes often reserved for resting their heads on in the nest. Many of the apes had thought Lydia a fool when she'd stripped a few skins of their hairs to make a shirt of the leather underneath.

It remained one of her favourites to this day, as the leather was still soft and pliable.

Since then, Lake had jumped at every chance she could get to fiddle with Lydia's dark strands of hair, her touch so soft and careful that Lydia hardly noticed it sometimes. She was also particularly skilled at untangling knots, which Lydia had a habit of just yanking out in frustration.

The human woman finished her last arrow and sighed contently as she put it aside. Looking out across the Ape Village, everything seemed peaceful. The rain had been pouring for a week, making everyone huddle together in their respective homes as soon as the day's duties were over with, but today, it was a somewhat cloudy, but dry day of spring.

Lydia spotted Roy down below, deeply invested in a conversation with Rocket, and blushed faintly. Last night had been one of those… special ones, where they'd retreat to the cave. They had started doing that more and more often as Orion grew older. It was hard to nudge a seven-year-old chimp to the other side of the nest. Also, there wasn't really that much space left in the nest to do that in the first place.

He had grown quickly, her little Orion. Luckily, his confidence had followed suit and he was now an accomplished, strong and, if Lydia said so herself, quite strapping young male.

Despite being a year younger, his features were more rugged than Blue Eyes', who took more after his mother than his father in terms of looks. His face was still light-coloured and his fur was black as coal. Also, he was just as tall as his older friends, which Lydia had interpreted to mean that he'd be quite a large male once he was fully grown.

The females wouldn't stand a chance, the proud mother had predicted.

Well, perhaps Lake would, at the very least. Lydia had noticed her eyeing Blue Eyes quite frequently, sometimes distracting the young female to such an extent that she'd stop whatever task she was doing without even realising until someone, most often Lydia herself, nudged her with a knowing look.

Ah, Lydia thought, young love.

She let her gaze roam further as Lake kept working on her hair. She'd felt how Lake had arranged it into two French braids, one on each side of her head, and worked backwards to gather them into one braid on the back of Lydia's head, leaving the bottom part of her hair, as well as a few strands at Lydia's temples, to hang loose.

Her eyes landed on Caesar, then, who was on his way up the ramp to his home, high above the rest of the Ape Village.

Lydia couldn't deny that the Ape King had a certain… allure. His stern gaze commanded respect and his size was intimidating to most. But he also had a soft side, which most often came into view when he was near his wife.

Speaking of Cornelia, she was currently at the final stage of her second pregnancy and recently, a very tired Queen indeed. Lydia visited often and had even made a blanket for the child to sleep on as an early maternity-gift. Made of rabbit fur, of course. Nothing was too good for the new prince or princess of the Ape Colony. Both Caesar and Cornelia had received it with much gratitude.

Now, Lydia just hoped that the birth would go without a hitch. She didn't want to jinx it, but Cornelia had seemed a little under the weather for the last few days and Caesar had been extra jitty as a result.

She felt Lake drop the bottom of the braid against her back and turned to look at the ape with a questioning gaze.

"Well? Did it turn out well?" Lydia signed with a smile.

Lake nodded as she admired her work, a satisfied look on her face.

"Better than well." She signed back, then, after briefly adjusting a few stray locks, she retracted her hand and sighed wistfully. "Wish I had hair like this. You can do so many things with it." She shook her head, making her own, smaller braids at the sides of her head dangle, "Do not understand why you always keep it the same way. Shame."

Lydia only laughed as she rose to her feet and went to store away her arrows. "It can get tiresome after some time, Lake, believe me." She said when the young female huffed and rolled her green eyes.

"Why keep it long, then? I see you cut it sometimes. Just cut it higher." Lake challenged playfully.

Lydia placed her hands on her hips and regarded the teen with a sneaky glint in her eyes.

"If I did that, then who's hair would you arrange, then? Maurice's?"

Lake's eyes grew wide for just a fraction of a second, the thought of braiding Maurice's red hair so ridiculous she ended up snorting out a laugh in a rather unfeminine way. Lydia happily joined in with snickers of her own, until the two females heard a low, but not entirely humourless grunt from further down the ramp.

Turning around, thet were met with the old orangutan's wise stare.

Well, speak of the devil.

"Hope you two are not planning on doing that." He winked at the pair and huffed out a deep-sounding laugh. When he'd finished, he turned to Lake. "Sparrow asks for you. Says your lesson begins soon."

Lake's eyes widened and she hurriedly said her goodbyes to Maurice and Lydia before darting down the ramp and speeding towards the medical-hut. She had decided to learn from Sparrow recently, being very interested in medicinal herbs. She also took her lessons very seriously.

Maurice grunted to regain Lydia's attention, eyeing her hairdo openly. He held up his index finger and twirled it in the air, telling her to turn around so he could see Lake's handiwork.

Lydia smiled and turned around to showcase the teen's latest creation. She couldn't see it herself, seeing as she didn't own a mirror, but the approving grunt from Maurice told her that he liked it. When she turned back to face him, he nodded once, making his enlarged cheeks bounce slightly with the movement.

"Pretty. Lake has good eye. Suits you very well." He signed, making Lydia grin bashfully.

"Thank you, Maurice. And don't worry, I won't cut it short anytime soon, so you don't have to be scared of falling victim to Lake's braiding-skills." She winked the same way he'd done earlier, earning herself an amused grunt from the huge ape.

"Thank you. I don't think it would have suited me." He shook his head, as if the mere thought was enough to conjure Lake back to start braiding the long hair on his arms.

Lydia only just contained a laugh at the image as it appeared in her mind.

"Come and sit by the Law-Stone with me?" He reached out his huge, elongated hand to her. She grabbed it without question and he supported her down the slippery wooden walkway. Maurice was a good friend. One of the most steadfast she had, insisting that she should stay with the apes from the very beginning and opening his home to Lydia and her family before their own had been built. Nowadays, he still invited them over, even though they were actually neighbours and saw each other every day.

Lydia was extremely fond of the old orangutan, with his paternal demeanour and seemingly endless wisdom.

They settled at their designated spot, the earth still slightly damp from the last few days of rain. Lydia didn't mind much. She'd just wash her deerskin pants later.

Her conversation with Maurice was mentally stimulating, as always. The two talked about recent events in the village to begin with, but the topics they discussed soon became more philosophical as time progressed. The old orangutan was quite a thinker, and Lydia was more than happy to indulge him.

Soon, she noticed her son arriving through the gate with Ash and Blue Eyes, coming back from a fishing trip, carrying weaved baskets full of trout. It was Ash who spotted them first, though, and he started waving eagerly at Lydia and Maurice.

He still had a soft spot for the human woman and kept largely disregarded his peers teasing jabs. Lydia noticed how Blue Eyes rolled his eyes at Ash and waved at her and Maurice briefly, while Orion hooted at her and held up his hand. He displayed five fingers, closed his hand, then opened his hand again to display four fingers, indicating he had caught nine fish in total. A decent catch.

Lydia nodded in approval, her lips stretching into a wide smile. He was becoming excellent at fishing. He had more patience than most his age and had quite a knack for choosing the best spots to spear the fish.

Lydia knew Roy had played a huge role in teaching Orion this skill. While she often attempted it herself, Lydia never had much patience when it came to fishing. Orion couldn't possibly have learned anything from her in that regard.

Maurice nudged her arm to make her look at him and she was met with his kind eyes once again.

"It has been five years now. Since you came here. Are you happy? With apes?" He asked, though he knew the answer.

"I couldn't be happier, Maurice." Lydia replied truthfully.

"You do not miss human comforts? Ever?" He elaborated, jerking his huge head towards the direction of the city of San Francisco, far off in the distance.

She pondered the question for a minute or two, going through all the commodities she'd been depending on when human civilisation was still at its peak.

"There will always be things that I miss. Music, for one. I used to listen to that non-stop… and there are also certain kinds of food that I miss as well…" One of her eyebrows quirked up as she looked at him in amusement. "Mostly sweets and such, to be honest, but luckily, I can live without that. It's probably better for me." He nodded in understanding, contemplating her answer.

"Honestly, Maurice, I've got everything I could ever ask for out here. Drinkable water, a steady food source, a roof over my head," Lydia turned to smile at the village before her, eyes going from one ape to the next, "I've got a family and lots of friends, though it took some time to make it so…" His hand, rough and heavy, landed on hers as it rested on her knee.

"I am glad you were able to stay." He signed with sincerity in his emerald eyes.

She regarded the old orangutan with a confused look, touched at his words, yet wondering what had caused them. He shrugged when she voiced the question.

"Been long time since we last spotted any other humans. Two winters since the last sighting." He said matter-of-factly. "Was wondering if it was a concern to you. They are your kind, after all. At least on the outside."

She appreciated his concern, she really did. And she supposed it should be a given that she'd be bothered by having her own species seemingly disappear off the face of the earth with her none the wiser of the fact.

And yet it didn't bother her. At least not to a degree she deemed worthy of mentioning.

Had she really become so cold, so indifferent towards her own species? Yes, she had turned her back on human civilisation long ago, after having lost the last humans who'd ever meant anything to her, but did her mistrust towards other humans really warrant such indifference to their fate?

Does it even matter? She asked herself solemnly in her mind. Worry… or guilt at not feeling it, will not bring back the ones who have died. And it will not save anyone who might be left, either, she reasoned clinically.

"The apes are my people now." She said simply as she looked back at Maurice.

"Yes." He signed, patting her hand again. "You are ape inside."

She was shocked that he'd remembered Roy's words from five years ago. It was a mantra her mate always used when she doubted herself. Which she had done a lot in the beginning of their stay in the Ape Colony.

Her surprise must have shown on her face, for Maurice chuckled heartily. It sounded more like a deep grumble, as it erupted from his throat, but his slightly shaking shoulders told her it was definitely a chuckle.

"You proved it long ago, Lydia."


Roy

Roy found her sitting by the hollowed-out fireplace in the floor as he entered their hut. It was late afternoon after the last meal of the day and Lydia had elected to retire to their home early to deal with some skins, which she was currently occupied with. She briefly lifted her eyes when he let the animal skin that acted as their door fall back down behind him, greeting him with a smile and a soft "hey you" before she continued her work.

The dogs were nowhere to be found and Roy deduced that Orion had probably taken them out for some air. They hadn't been out hunting with Lydia for a few days, so they were steadily becoming anxious from the lack of exercise.

So, it was just the two of them, then. Interesting.

His thoughts returned, as they had many times that day, to the previous night they had shared in their cave. As Orion had matured, their intimate moments had been moved exclusively to that location, which also meant it happened less frequently nowadays. When they were both busy with their duties around the colony, they simply couldn't be bothered to get up and go all the way into the cave when the day finally came to a close, electing instead to pass out the moment their tired bodies hit the soft padding of their nest.

Last night had been the first time in an entire month, and afterwards, Roy had made a silent vow to make it happen more frequently again.

As the thought crossed his mind, he placed his spear on a rack near the wall and went to her.

Lydia's hands worked deftly on sewing a seam shut between two skins, her slender fingers grabbing the material with care. She had much practice in this craft by now.

As he kneeled in front of her, originally to examine her work, his eyes instead roved over her form. She was sitting in her customary cross-legged position, wearing only her deerskin pants and chest-guard. The fire crackling happily beside her provided enough warmth for her not to worry about freezing.

It also cast a warm light across the bare expanse of skin on her stomach, which immediately caught Roy's attention. He noticed how the flesh subtly moved in time with her breathing, enticing him with its rhythmical dance in the low light.

His gaze travelled up her slender neck to her face and he admired the more elaborate hairstyle she now sported, curtesy of Lake.

"You look beautiful." He said simply. It was true, after all.

Her hands stopped what they were doing and she looked up at him yet again, now with a lifted eyebrow. He couldn't help the smirk that found its way across his thin lips. Roy always marvelled at how expressive her face could be. Very often, she didn't even need to speak to him to convey her thoughts and feelings. A single look would do.

He reached up to caress her cheek with the rough pads on his index- and middle finger, tenderly tracing them down her jaw until they rested under her chin.

"To what do I owe this sudden praise?" She smiled as she put away her sewing work, eyes half-lidded and glinting in the flickering light.

"I speak only truth." He replied. "No reason behind." His speech had become much better over the past couple of years, he was proud to say. It was no longer so much of a strain to speak, and his vocabulary had also improved. He still communicated mostly through sign with the other apes, but here, alone with Lydia, he let his deep voice out for only her ears to hear.

She chuckled flirtatiously at his words.

"Oh, I think there is…" Her hands reached up to rest on his pectorals and his own long, hairy arms went around her waist as he inched closer, running his fingers up and down her spine. "I think there is a very specific reason, in fact." She added in a breathy whisper.

(Smut Begins Here - continues to the end of the chapter)

He smiled almost deviously at her, then. As he leaned forward and pushed her down onto the floor, her legs went from their crossed position to place themselves on either side of his hips. She lied there, eyeing him mischievously, and his own orbs once again went up to look at her beautifully woven locks. He reached up to bury his fingers in its soft depths.

"Shame. So much hard work. Only to be ruined." He mused as he pulled at the strings holding Lydia's braids together. It didn't take long for them to unravel from the complicated hairdo, spreading out like a dark halo around Lydia's head on the floor.

"Don't worry too much about it. She'll be more than happy to do it again, I'm sure." Lydia replied huskily. He lowered his head to drag his lips across her collarbone, one of his hands running down her side to untie the string at the front of her pants.

She gasped in delight as he yanked them down her legs and ran her hands up his biceps as he moved to loom over her once the garment was discarded. He then began unbuckling her chest-guard, working the fastenings with practiced ease.

"Our son could be home any moment." She informed him breathlessly. "Are you sure you want him to see us like this?"

While her question did register in his mind, Roy really did not care anymore, as he laid his abdomen against hers, lifting one of her legs to hook around his hips.

"It will not harm him. To learn by example." Roy said, lowering his head to kiss her chest affectionately. She arched her back in response to his ministrations, moaning quietly.

He knew Lydia didn't exactly agree, but he was too caught up in his desire to discuss this now and from the quickening of her breath and increasingly frantic grabbing of her hands, Roy deduced that she, too, had decided to throw caution to the wind.

And so, he thrust forward into her core, like he'd wanted to do all day.

She gasped in pleasure at the intrusion and quickly wrapped her legs around his hips to pull him ever closer. Her breath tickled the fur on his neck as he began to move his pelvis against hers in a steady rhythm that slowly, but surely would send both of them over the edge.

This was perfect. Right here, in his home, with Lydia, was where he belonged.

All was as it should be.

For now.