Author's Note: This one was rather delayed due to me being sick and bedridden, and then due to a flood of work immediately afterwards. Heck, it's not even Friday - but such is life, I guess, though it has bothered me really much that I've had to postpone so much recently. I hope you'll all understand, though.
Bad Ape
With a groggy, satisfied hum, Bad Ape stretched his hands up over his head in his nest of animal pelts. Broad rays of sunlight were filtering through the gaps around the hides that covered his hut's windows, warming his mostly-hairless body as they landed on him. It was tempting to just lie there all morning and listen to the sounds outside as the village woke up – the hustle and bustle as apes of all shapes and sizes got up and went about their daily business.
But it was this exact sound which also encouraged Bad Ape to leave the warmth and comfort of his soft bedding and so, Bad Ape opened his eyes wide and, with a sudden, excited jolt, sat up in his nest.
It was with a bright smile that he took in the interior of his home, as he did every morning nowadays. It wasn't the biggest of homes in the village, but it was far more spacious than the home he had made for himself in that little human-made cave inside the big house in the mountains. That place had been cramped, dark and cold, and the hard stones it had been made of had his body aching every night, no matter how much human clothing he had piled up in there.
This – this was much nicer. The hot was raised onto beams above the ground, which meant that the floor wasn't nearly as cold as what he had been used to in the past, and the wooden interior made this place feel altogether warm and inviting.
And, best of all, it was a place made by his friends specifically with him in mind. That alone had made Bad Ape love his little hut from the moment it had stood finished. Just being in here reminded him that he wasn't alone anymore and that there were others who cared enough for him to make sure he was safe and warm at night.
The bald chimp squeezed his eyes shut and drew a deep inhale, taking in the smell of the wood and the pelts that surrounded him. Sometimes, after all these years of being completely alone, it was hard to believe that he had been this lucky.
To have a warm place to sleep at night – a proper home!
To have friends! Lots of friends, even!
And to not be alone anymore! Even when after everyone had gone back to their separate homes to sleep and even if he didn't share his hut with anyone, he didn't feel alone.
Bad Ape reopened his eyes, wide and shining, and released the breath he had drawn in moments earlier, a smile on his face.
This was how he woke up almost every day now. Not quite believing, but relishing it nonetheless.
Outside, a cacophony of different noises could be heard – sounds of the village, the life of the friends he was now surrounded with.
And somehow, through all that noise, Bad Ape managed to single out the soft, barely-audible knock against the frame of his hut's entrance. A moment later, the thick hide that covered it was pushed slightly aside to reveal the pale, hairless face of a small human with long, light hair and big, curious eyes.
Bad Ape jumped to his feet, nearly tripping over the edge of his nest in excitement before he caught himself with a hand against the floor.
"Oh, oh, hello, Friend!" He greeted Little Nova with an enthusiastic smile as he straightened up – a smile which she returned with a sweet quirk of her own lips.
"I come now!" He assured the girl as he moved with hurried steps towards the entrance to his home, excited to get started with the day. Little Nova moved the covering of the entrance aside and moved to let Bad Ape pass through – so kind of her!
Bad Ape liked the human girl a lot. She was a sweet and gentle child, and she never seemed to get frustrated with him like others sometimes did. In fact, when his usual lessons with Friend-Lydia finished in the afternoon, Little Nova often approached Bad Ape and spent the time before the evening meal practicing more hand-words with him. In addition, it had become part of their daily routine for Little Nova to come over to his hut in the morning to wake him – though most of the time Bad Ape was already awake when she arrived, and they would walk together towards the place where Friend-Tinker's group of females would gather before setting out to forage for the day.
He was probably the only grown male ape to help with that task, though Bad Ape didn't mind it all that much. He had never been much of a hunter – as Friend-Rocket and the other males had quickly found out that one time they had brought him along. During winters he had mostly relied on human food rations, only hunting now and then the few times he had been able to find a gun and actually use it. In the summer, he had lived of roots, fruits, mushrooms and berries– maybe the occasional eggs from a bird's nest, if he had been lucky, which had made him an excellent forager. The females seemed to respect him for that, which was why it was one of the tasks Bad Ape enjoyed taking part in the most. It was so nice being able to feel useful again. And be admired for something he was good at – that was nice too!
Together, they made their way down from the small patio at the entrance to Bad Ape's home and towards the centre of the village, where each group, be they hunters, foragers or scouts, gathered before they would set out for the day, each in their own corner to keep things in order.
In the centre of it all, Friend-Maurice was already sitting at the big stone they had rolled to the middle of the gathering place back when Friend-Caesar had decided exactly where it would be. Around him, ape children were already crowding together – some more willingly than others – to learn from the old and very smart ape, as they did each and every morning. For the first half of the day, Friend-Maurice would use the writings on the stone to teach the village's children, showing them hand-words and how to write them using the letters on the stone. By the time most of the adults would return home, the children would be done with their lessons and Friend-Maurice would withdraw – to where, Bad Ape didn't know – while the young ones would be free to play as they saw fit.
And most days, a few of them chose to tag along with Bad Ape and Little Nova.
Speaking of which….
"You help today?" Bad Ape asked the child beside him, shooting her an inquisitive stare as he pointed towards the large ape and the children gathered around him. Sometimes, Little Nova would help her adoptive father with his lessons, and sometimes she would join Bad Ape and the females on their foraging trips.
She nodded her head and her long, pale locks of hair bounced around her shoulders with the movement.
Bad Ape smiled.
"Oh, oh! Okay!" He stammered and began nudging her towards the growing group of ape children. "I go, then! Go find food! We talk later?"
Dimples appeared on her cheeks as she shot him a bright smile and an enthusiastic nod. Then, at the sound of Friend-Maurice's distant, low hoot, she spun on her heel and hurried to him, casting one last, friendly smile at Bad Ape across her shoulder. He waved at her in return and continued to do so even after she had turned once more and darted towards Friend-Maurice's lesson.
So, he was going to pick berries and roots alone today. That was fine too. The ape females were nice – and it wasn't like they avoided him in any way, really – but most of them did not speak and only used hand-words, something Bad Ape had yet to get completely right.
Well, Little Nova didn't speak either, Bad Ape knew that, so maybe that wasn't really the reason… Somehow, she was just easier for him to read, her face seeming far more expressive to him than most of the other apes'.
The thought quickly left his mind once he heard Friend-Tinker's insistent hoot and turned to see the female wave him over with a friendly smile directed at him. His face broke out into the wide grin that had faded after having said goodbye to the human girl, and he darted over to the large group with a renewed spring in his step. Friend-Tinker was nice – just like her mate – and she always made personally sure that everyone was present before heading out for the day.
Today was going to be a good day!
In the landscape the apes had settled, berries and mushrooms were mostly few and far between, and the foraging group had to scatter over a wide area to pick out the variety of food they needed. More than once, Bad Ape had picked up scattered hand-words of his companions, words like: 'good' and 'have' and 'garden', as well as 'without' and 'hungry', and caught on to the context from that.
He hummed to himself as he sought out a place to look for food. At least he was getting better at understanding hand-words. Friend-Lydia had said it would take time but after five months, Bad Ape could already tell that it was working. Maybe soon, he would be able to have an easy conversation with just about anyone without help from Friend-Lydia or one of the other speaking apes.
He promised himself he would celebrate that day when it came, just like he had celebrated the day he had met his new friends.
Well, maybe not just like that time – they didn't have any human food packages left, but maybe he would be able to gather something extra nice for everyone? Or try to catch some fish?
Still, despite the females' worries and complaints, Bad Ape found that the soil was easy to dig through, and there were plenty of roots, wild tubers and the like if one knew where to find them.
As he had expected, he was pretty much by himself, not really following any one particular group of females, but only making sure that he wasn't slacking behind as they moved through the dry, sparse forest. He didn't mind it, though. It was just nice having others around him, listening in on their conversations and knowing that he had something to come home to. That in itself was a huge comfort.
Suddenly, however, around the time late morning turned into early noon, someone approached him. A young female, a bit taller than most, with skin that was dark around the eyes and light around her muzzle, and with her hair arranged in small braids at the sides of her head.
It was Friend-Lake, a female who often looked after Little Cornelius and came to visit his parents at their hut high up in the tree on the hill.
He hadn't talked much with Friend-Lake in the time he had been with these new apes, but she seemed to be a kind, young female – pursuing a position as healer, as far as he knew.
She crouched down beside him once she reached him, shooting him a friendly smile which he responded to with a wave and a curious stare.
"Why are you alone?" She asked with her hands,
"But I not alone." He responded, confused. Then, he pointed towards several groups of females, one at a time as he explained. "Friends over there, friends over there, and there and there."
She followed his finger as he pointed, giving a soft hum once she returned her gaze to him.
"But why not sit with them?" She persisted, seeming quite curious.
"Oh! Uhm…" He exclaimed, suddenly feeling a bit self-conscious as he had to explain himself. "My hand-words are not good yet."
Well, it was the truth – at least half of it. Another reason was that he really didn't know what to talk with them about. He had been separated from others for so long that small talk didn't come natural to him anymore and, most of the time, others seemed either confused at the questions he made, or uneasy with him silently following the conversation.
"But you understand me?" Friend-Lake asked, brows furrowed in what he understood to be confusion – at least he hoped he understood it. Just going by expressions was hard. Especially when he also had to focus on the person's hands to know what they said.
Nonetheless, he nodded his head.
"A little. Know few, simple words. Can guess rest." He shrugged, regarding her with an open expression.
She seemed to understand, luckily, and gave a nod of her own in response before she began digging through the loose soil.
"I will sit with you, then." She made a pause to speak with her hands and Bad Ape felt a jolt of joy inside his chest. How nice of her – it seemed he would have someone to talk with after all!
He nodded eagerly and joined her in looking for food buried beneath the earth, under trees and bushes and wherever else they thought there was a chance of finding something, and though the words spoken between them weren't very challenging, Bad Ape rejoiced in the simple fact that she had approached him in the first place and, more importantly, didn't seem bothered by the fact that he sometimes didn't understand her, forcing her to adjust and simplify her language – make workarounds to accommodate his limited skills. Other apes did that too, but often got tired after a while of having to explain the same thing four or five different ways until he understood them. Friend-Lake didn't seem to have that problem and, much like Friend-Lydia, was quick to figure out the words he definitely knew and kept using them whenever possible.
She was easy to talk to, Bad Ape quickly found out, and
It sparked a curiosity about her. As kind and hard-working as she was, Friend-Lake seemed… secluded. Those she spent the most time with were Friend-Ivy or her mentor, Healer-Sparrow, and when she wasn't talking with the small, silvery female or learning from the healer, she could be found taking care of Little Cornelius. In fact, if his parents weren't around and he wasn't in the company of Bad Ape and Little Nova, the Ape Prince could most often be found with Friend-Lake.
He hadn't thought anything of it the first couple of months, thinking that maybe Friend-Lake was his aunt or assigned babysitter but somehow, that didn't seem right. As far as Bad Ape knew, Friend-Caesar and Little Cornelius were the only ones related to each other by blood, and Friend-Lake didn't even look like either of them and she seemed more invested in the Ape Prince than any unrelated caretaker Bad Ape could remember seeing.
And so, he decided to simply ask – it seemed to be an innocent topic to him, anyway, and it had grown quiet between them a few moments ago.
"You… family of Friend-Caesar?"
She looked startled by the question and for a moment, Bad Ape thought he had said something that had upset her. Her eyes, green like the rest of the apes', widened in what seemed to him like horror, and her entire posture seemed to stiffen at the question.
Then, she shook her head hurriedly.
"No?" He asked, perplexed as he studied her. She had a kind face, but that didn't change the fact that he still wasn't good at reading others anymore after such a long time by himself. What did the hunch of her shoulders mean? The thin line of her lips? Why did she avoid his stare, all of a sudden?
Why was there a frown on her face?
Oh… Oh!
He had probably offended her! And now she was sad!
"Oh, no…! Is sorry, Friend! Please, don't-don't cry!" He stammered apologetically, reaching out for her but not really knowing if she would welcome his hand on her shoulder. So, instead, he let it hover awkwardly mid-air between them. "Why-why sad?"
No actual tears had been shed. In fact, all Friend-Lake did heave a shaky sigh as she sat up a little straighter, though she still didn't meet his eyes as she began to make hand-words to him.
Bad Ape subconsciously scrunched up his nose in concentration as he focused on the movements.
"It's fine. Don't worry. I'm not crying" Friend-Lake reassured with a small, sudden smile. He wasn't quite convinced that it was genuine, though. "But it is… hard to speak about."
Perplexed, Bad Ape let his mouth open and close a couple of times as he attempted to find something to say. And here he had thought he had picked an easy topic!
But… He was still curious – and he didn't like seeing his friends sad. Especially not a new friend he had just made that same day.
"You spend so much time with son. Friend-Caesar's son. Look after. Take care." He pointed out in a soft voice, still watching her as she began picking at some roots inside the basket she carried, probably to double-check them. "But no live with them. Live alone – like me."
It wasn't common for females to live alone. If they were without a mate, they lived with their parents, whereas it was slightly more common for males to leave the family's hut once they reached a certain age. If the female had a mate, she lived with him. And if her mate or parents had died, she usually either stayed with other single females or found a new mate.
But rarely alone like Bad Ape.
He scooted a bit closer to her, gently nudging her hand with his knuckles as he crouched by her side.
"If not family, then… Why…?" He asked simply, his voice small and gentle. He didn't want to offend her any more than he already had, but the flash of sadness he had seen on her face had made him even more curious.
At first, he thought she would reject the question. Get up and walk away like a few others had already done when he had asked a question that had unintentionally offended or saddened them. But to Bad Ape's relief, Friend-Lake only took a moment – to think, he assumed – before she stopped absent-mindedly picking at the roots in the large, weaved basket and turned her head to cast him a careful, sideways glance.
Perhaps she was thinking about whether she should even answer or not? If she didn't, that would be okay too. Bad Ape knew by now that most of these apes had been through things similar to him and that could be hard to talk about.
Then, Friend-Lake once again put her hands up in front of herself and began to move her them into words.
"Caesar had other child. A son. Same age as me." She said, still using slow, simpler hand-words.
Bad Ape appreciated that – he was getting better, even as they spoke, but it was still hard for him to separate the movements from one another to decipher the exact word in relation to the rest of the sentence, so slowing down and simplifying it helped him a lot.
"We were…" Friend-Lake paused and sucked in her bottom lip. "Mates… Future mates."
Bad Ape's eyes widened in understanding as realisation hit him like a sudden, heavy pile of snow sliding off a roof and landing on top of him. This young female had been intended for Little Cornelius' older brother!
Friend-Lydia often called Friend-Ivy her daughter-in-law… So, Friend-Lake must have been Friend-Caesar's daughter-in-law!
The young female ape pursed her lips, her brows drawing together as she kept her eyes downcast towards the ground in front of the two of them.
"But then, he…"
"He died." Bad Ape finished when Friend-Lake could not, seemingly surprising her. Maybe she didn't think he knew? Maybe she didn't expect him to
He shrugged, knowing that the smile on his face was a sad one
"Friend-Caesar told me… His child dead. Was why I help." He informed her softly, twiddling a tuber between his dirtied hands.
She gave a soft chitter in reply and when Bad Ape rose his eyes to look into her own with a meek expression on his face, her brow was now curved in what he figured was confusion. Or was it sympathy?
Then, she gently raised her hand and pointed timidly at him. It seemed to be a question. And he thought he understood.
"I had child" He nodded as he echoed the words he had spoken to Friend-Caesar that night before they had left his mountain home. "Family… Friends… Human kill. All dead now. Everyone but me. Alone for a long, long time."
While still holding on to the tuber he already had in one hand, Bad Ape started to dig for more with the other as he spoke. It was as hard a topic for him as it was for the young female at his side, and he was very much aware of how small his voice had grown as he explained his circumstances to her. It seemed that Friend-Caesar had not.
A soft, feminine hoot sounded from Friend-Lake, and he looked over to find her sitting there with a soft, sad frown on her face as she reached over to pat his hand holding the tuber.
Oh, this was a really kind thing to do. Friend-Lake was very comforting to be around. Bad Ape could easily understand why Cornelius was so attached to her.
He reached over to drop the tuber into the basket once she removed her hand again.
"But now, everything is good again. I'm with friends. Many friends. I wake up and everywhere; new friends!" He stated with a small, sincere smile. "You young – can start again. Find new mate – someone special. Can have good life and not be sad always."
He placed that same hand on her shoulder, by now forgetting to think about whether or not the move was welcome. Either way, she didn't seem to mind the contact.
"You still alive. Still here. So you should live, too. Stopping because someone close did, not good."
With the way she looked at him once he had said that, Bad Ape couldn't quite tell if she was impressed or incredulous. Her brows were raised and her lips slightly parted as she merely stared at him and for a moment, it was completely quiet between the two of them.
At least it felt like that, anyway. Sure, the birds sang their songs, the wind rustled the dry grass and leaves of the trees, and a short distance away, the rest of their foraging group was moving further and further into the forest as they continued to search for food. The sun's rays were still beating down on them through the sparse treetops, and the dry air still made the inside of his nose itch ever so slightly.
But Bad Ape didn't notice any of that. He was entirely focused on the surprisingly deep and personal conversation he was suddenly having with this young female – one he barely knew – about one of the most difficult things in life – living after losing.
And for a moment, he almost thought he had convinced her with his words. That he had made her see that life moved on – no matter if you wanted it to or not – and that she still had others around her who made it worth it to keep going.
But then, she shook her head and avoided his eyes once more, that same, sad look on her face.
"I find new mate… I lose Cornelius and Caesar… Lydia, Orion, Ivy…" She spoke sadly with her hands. "I will not be family anymore."
Bad Ape shook his head at that. That was a horrible way to think!
"No. No-no-no. You still are family! Never stop being family." He insisted, waving one hand distractedly in front of himself while the other was still placed on Friend-Lake's shoulder. "They love you. You love them. Take care of Little Cornelius. Help Friend-Caesar and Friend-Lydia. Still see them. Still visit. Still family."
"But we are not..." The young female spoke with her hands, ending her statement with a movement he didn't know, which made Bad Ape's stare at her blankly for a moment.
She seemed to realise the issue before he himself did, quickly shaking her head and correcting herself.
"We are not… of blood? To each other."
Of blood…? Ah! so she meant they were not related! Now he understood.
Because they weren't related, maybe Friend-Lake meant that she would lose her bond with Little Cornelius, Friend-Caesar and everyone else because they weren't bound by blood.
But Bad Ape knew that wouldn't happen.
"Friend-Lydia not of blood with Friend-Ivy, even if she is mate of Friend-Orion. They still family." He pointed out with a smile, continuing before she could make any protests to his logic. "Friend-Caesar not father of Friend-Orion. They still family. Friend-Lydia not even Friend-Orion's real mother and they still family!"
She nodded slowly after a moment of thought, eyes fixed on him and just then, Bad Ape imagined that this was how Maurice felt when teaching the children. A slight discomfort at being the centre of attention coupled with the thrill of being able to share hard-earned knowledge with someone else.
It was a good feeling, overall.
"Little Friend-Nova not real daughter of Friend-Maurice, but…?" He spoke, only to trail off an give her a meaningful look, wordlessly urging her to complete the sentence.
"Still family…" Friend-Lake echoed his words – well, it was more like she matched them with the corresponding movements, really. He figured it counted either way.
"Still family." He agreed with a nod, his smile growing brighter as he saw how she was beginning to finally understand.
"I have not lived long with friends… But I learn one thing from it."
He spoke as gently as ever, squeezing Friend-Lake's shoulder and giving her the most fatherly look he could manage.
"Blood is not only thing that make family." He spoke with a confidence he didn't usually feel – but this, what he was saying now, he was surer of than anything else. "You young. Can find new mate if you choose. Can find happiness – and still keep family from before."
At that, her lips started to quirk, first into a faint, barely-noticeable upwards curve, only for it to slowly turn into a full-blown, bright smile a few seconds later as she nodded in acceptance. It was like a light had sparked inside her eyes that he hadn't seen before, and Bad Ape felt immensely proud and accomplished for having put that light in them. She was a kind, young female. And brave too, much like Friend-Ivy, in fact.
She deserved to be happy and if he could help her – or anyone of his friends – with that, Bad Ape would do his best!
"Thank you." She spoke quietly, and Bad Ape almost fell over backwards at the sound. He hadn't known that Friend-Lake could speak up until that point, though he quickly realised that, just as it was with most other apes, this was because the act of speaking was so straining to her – she just didn't do it much.
Still, he thought her voice was very nice, and even commented on it, which made the young female giggle sweetly.
They spent the rest of the trip foraging together, talking from time to time as they dug through the soil. They didn't even bother to try and keep up with the rest of the females and at one point, they even got lost before they eventually found their way back and was able to return to the village with a basket chuck-full of food, chuckling under their breaths as Friend-Tinker rolled her eyes at them.
And in all that time, Friend-Lake's eyes never seemed to lose that newfound spark in them.
Later, Bad Ape met up for his early afternoon lessons with Friend-Lydia, and proudly told her how he had been able to interpret the hand-words the foraging females had used. He stumbled a couple of times in his enthusiasm, bouncing in his seat with eagerness to tell about his progress, but his human teacher didn't seem to mind much, simply staring back at him with a soft smile of interest on her face as she listened to him.
"I see hand-word clearly!" He exclaimed with eagerness. "They speak about the garden. Place where we grow food! I think- I think they said it's good…."
He paused, squeezing his eyes shut as he tried to recall the other word he had seen. Come on! He knew that hand-word! It was one of the first Friend-Lydia had taught him!
Suddenly, he opened his eyes wide once more and uttered a series of urgent huffs.
"Oh, oh! I remember! 'Have'! They said it's good we have! And 'hungry'! They said 'hungry' too! I see! I remember"
He recreated the hand-words for her as best he could while the human woman followed his hands intently with her pretty-but-strangely blue eyes.
He liked Friend-Lydia very much, he had decided early on. She could be just as scary as Friend-Caesar when she was angry but luckily, Bad Ape had never been at the receiving end of that. In fact, she seemed to be extra patient with him in particular and had a way of explaining things in a manner he understood. He supposed it helped that she could speak as she made the hand-words. That had made it a lot easier for Bad Ape to make the connection between the two than when Friend-Maurice did it, who usually only rumbled due to the strain speaking put on his voice.
Today, after his detailed retelling of how he had managed to understand the conversations between the females, Friend-Lydia seemed… distracted? Or confused? Or…
Well, he couldn't really tell – he only knew that she seemed to be thinking of something else, because she had stopped asking him questions concerning the hand-words and instead simply nod at his words as she pursed her lips. Her eyes, though directed at him
"Friend?" He spoke after a short pause, trying to recapture her attention. "Something wrong?"
Perhaps she was thinking of a way to explain to him that he had misunderstood? Maybe he had gotten one of the words wrong? Maybe the females hadn't been talking about the garden in the first place? Or maybe he had misinterpreted the word in such a way that the female had been talking about herself being hungry, not the apes as a group?
After all, he still had trouble with the smaller details in this way of speaking, where one little, added movement could alter the entire meaning of the sentence. That had been a struggle from the start.
Friend-Lydia blinked then, almost as if he had woken her up from a nap, and stared at him for a few, short moments before answering.
"Huh? No, nothing is wrong, Bad Ape – What you said just got me thinking, that's all." She said, offering a lopsided smile. "Sorry if I seemed a bit off for a moment there."
"So, I did good? I understood the words well?" He asked, now with a slight uncertainty.
Friend-Lydia gave a small huff of a laugh at that.
"You did, yes. All of those words are correct." She reassured with an approving smile, which served to completely remove all doubts from his mind. "I'm very impressed with your progress. You've come a long way in just a couple of months!"
He felt himself perk up at the praise, back straightening and shoulders squaring as a sense of pride settled inside his chest. It felt really good to receive such praise, and especially from someone who had devoted so much of their time to teaching him.
He proceeded to tell her about the conversation he had spent with Friend-Lake, watching as the woman's face changed from uncomprehending, to sympathetic, to surprised and relieved – happy, even.
Maybe he was getting better at reading expressions too, after all? Or maybe Friend-Lydia was just easier to read. Humans did seem to have more expressive faces in general.
"You know you could have asked me about this sort of stuff, right?" She asked with a raised brow, the dark hair of it clearly defined against her pale, bare skin.
Bad Ape shrugged at that.
"Forget, sometimes." He explained simply. Well, it was true – thoughts slipped easily from his mind and by now, he had lost count of how many things he had forgotten to ask because he had gotten distracted by something else – most often another thought or a change of topic. "But, maybe it's good I did not? If I ask you or other friend, I maybe never talk with Friend-Lake. Never help."
Tapping her finger against her thigh, Friend-Lydia leaned forward to rest her chin on the heel of her hand, staring at him with what seemed like a teasing smile.
Despite that, her words were genuine enough, though.
"That's really was really kind of you. And it was some solid advice you gave, too." She commended him, only for her eyes to narrow and her lips to quirk up into a slight smirk. "Though I hope you're not going to… try something with her. She's still my former adopted-daughter-in-law."
She winked at him, and Bad Ape's ears go slightly red. It wasn't like she never teased him – and he had a feeling that he completely missed it most of the times she did it, anyway – but this one was impossible to miss, even for him.
"Oh, oh!" He exclaimed in a flustered, incredulous manner as he shook his head, making Friend-Lydia laugh out loud. "Is not like that! She could be child! Friend-Lydia! No, no! no good!"
"Easy, Tiger – I'm just messing with you, that's all." She reassured and though he didn't quite get the phrasing, nor the name she had used for him just then, he understood that she really had meant nothing by it. "I'm just happy someone was able to get through to her without her balking or changing the subject. You really do have some people skills, my friend."
He smiled shyly and shrugged once more. Oh, he didn't know about that, really – but if Friend-Lydia said it, it was because she meant it. So, maybe he should believe it? Maybe him getting through to Friend-Lake was a sign that he was getting better at reading others? Maybe he would get closer to more people soon?
That would be really nice.
"And got lot of practice, too. Friend-Lake only speak once! I understand almost everything!" He stated proudly, only to grow quiet again when he noticed how Friend-Lydia once again tapped her finger against her thigh.
"I see…" She nodded, a smirk appearing on her face and suddenly, Bad Ape didn't know if he should've mentioned that last part after all…
A soft, easy chuckle left Friend-Lydia – probably due to his expression – before she spoke up again.
"Speaking of practice, you seem to have had plenty today so… How about I stop talking and then we'll conduct the rest of this lesson purely by sign, huh?"
His eyes widened in slight panic at the prospect, which only made the woman in front of him laugh even harder.
Okay, maybe he should have just stayed quiet for once…
The meal that evening was delicious.
Friend-Rocket and his hunters had brought home plenty of meat, and the addition of roasted roots and tubers made it a very fulfilling meal – most of all due to the satisfaction Bad Ape felt at having helped gather the ingredients. Though only a select few apes were assigned to cooking the meals, it still felt like everyone had helped. Like everyone played an important part in it.
He liked that very much. Having a place within a group again. Being able to help – and more so than he had ever felt he did back in the days before apes got smart and humans got sick.
Though, admittedly, those days were somewhat hazy to him, and he didn't know if it was because he hadn't been smart back then or if it was only because it was so long ago now that he had forgotten.
Bad Ape let his eyes travel over the large gathering of apes, all recently finished with their meal and most now only staying for the chatter. Even if he couldn't speak properly with most of them (yet, he reminded himself), it didn't take a particularly clever ape to realise that the evening meal was the time of the day everyone would gather around and share stories from the day that had passed. He watched with interest as the hand-words flew between individuals and trying to keep up was almost dizzying to him. Like earlier that day, he only managed to pick up on a few words, but was nonetheless pleased by the fact that he was even able to now.
In the middle of it all, he spotted Friend-Lake, who seemed to be deep in conversation with none other than Friend-Ivy. That was funny, he hadn't noticed that the younger female had moved from her place beside Friend-Orion and her parents.
Friend-Lake was signing in that same soft, easy way she had done back when Bad Ape had been talking with her back in the forest, though he didn't manage to catch on to what she was saying before she gave a sideways glance in his direction to find him looking at her.
He met her with a wide, friendly smile and an enthusiastic wave of his hand, not at all embarrassed to have been caught staring – the thought never even occurred to him, actually.
Friend-Lake seemed unfazed by his stare and offered an equally bright smile back, though the small wave she gave was far more discreet than his own. Friend-Ivy, following her companion's gaze, simply gave a smile, though there was something about the way she looked at him which almost seemed… surprised? Approving?
Like so many times before, Bad Ape couldn't quite interpret the meaning behind the way others looked at him, though he could at least tell that it wasn't anything bad. Friend-Ivy looked happy and so did Friend-Lake – more so than she had done since the day they had arrived here, in fact – and that was even after she and the other female had turned away from him to continue their conversation full of hand-words Bad Ape didn't know yet.
He didn't notice the talk between Friend-Lydia and Friend-Caesar, nor the surprised, yet grateful look the Ape King sent his way once his mate had finished discreetly recounting the conversation that he had had that day with Lake.
Instead, Bad Ape returned his attention to Little Nova, who was now poking his arm and asking – in her own, silent way – to come play with her and the ape children now that the meal was done – which he agreed to with much excitement.
The day was over before Bad Ape was truly ready to let go of it – as was the case most days by now – as one ape child after another were called home by their parents until, at last, there was only him, Little Nova and Friend-Caesar's son Cornelius left.
That was when both Friend-Lydia and Friend-Maurice approached them to pick up their respective children, the orangutan's lumbering strides looking quite cumbersome compared to the woman's long, easy ones.
"Ready to come with me home, Sweetie?" Friend-Lydia asked Little Cornelius, who only briefly cast a bright smile back over his shoulder at Little Nova and Bad Ape before he turned and darted into his adoptive mother's arms with a childish glee that managed to charm all of the adults present – and especially Bad Ape himself.
Little Cornelius was a good child, curious and full of energy, as most ape children his age were, but with a strange maturity to him that easily shone through, even to someone like Bad Ape, who was by no means good at reading others. The child was, overall, very concerned with the well-being of those around him, being compassionate and protective of others, and often being the first at the scene when one of his peers injured themselves during wild playtime.
And, as Bad Ape had said to Lydia on more than one occasion, Little Cornelius seemed to have the ability to sense when a fight was escalating between his playmates and would more often than not put himself in between them and put a stop to it.
Friend-Lydia barely had to crouch down at this point, but merely opened her arms wide and welcomed Little Cornelius as he jumped up into her embrace – though at around three years old, Friend-Lydia now had to brace for it and take a wobbly step back to steady herself as she caught him.
Bad Ape grinned at the sight. Soon, Little Cornelius wouldn't be so little anymore, and this sort of boisterous greeting would have to come to an end… But for now, he would enjoy the sight of a child greeting his mother with such joy. Though it was hard not to notice how different Friend-Lydia was from her child – and most others in the village for that matter – Bad Ape had to admit that it easily slipped his mind when seeing her be with her children.
"I take that as a yes." She declared with much humour, playfully rubbing her nose against Little Cornelius', which made the child gibber with glee. "Let's get back home before your father starts to think we've been eaten by a bear or something. Goodnight everyone!"
The pair waved at them all before turning away and trudging towards their home on the hill, Friend-Lydia's voice gradually growing fainter as she asked her child about his day.
Bad Ape finally tore his eyes from the pair as they disappeared into the night, only to come face to face with Friend-Maurice, who seemed to be staring at him very intently as Little Nova made her way over to the aging ape.
"Good talk with Lake." He suddenly said with simple hand-words to Bad Ape, catching him completely off-guard. He simply stood there, staring wide-eyed, carefully monitoring Friend-Maurice's hands as he continued to speak. "We all need someone to talk to. And we should all help. Death is difficult. Finding new place in life is difficult."
His movements were usually slow due to his arms' sheer size and the weight of his swinging fur on them, but even so, Bad Ape could tell that the orangutan was being extra deliberate with his hand-words in order for him to be able to follow – just like Friend-Lake had done.
Beside Friend-Maurice, Little Nova smiled proudly at him.
He scratched his arm in thought, a bit confused as to why the other ape felt the need to tell him this, but finding himself agreeing with his words nonetheless.
In the end, he nodded.
"I want to help. Friend-Lake is nice. Very kind. Everyone here nice. Deserve being happy." He spoke softly "But I don't know her that well."
Friend-Maurice gave a gentle rumble in return.
"Maybe that was good. What you said helped more than you know. I can see it on her." The large ape spoke, still in slow, easily distinguishable hand-words. "Sometimes, it is better to hear a thing from someone you do not know very well."
The nod he gave after that sentence seemed to have a sort of finality to it, and Bad Ape merely found himself nodding once more in reply. Well, it was probably true – sometimes, maybe it was better to hear something from a stranger rather than someone who knows you. Maybe it made an advice seem more sincere?
Admittedly, he didn't quite understand the logic behind that, but something in inside his chest told him that it was true and so, he didn't question it. Friend-Maurice was probably right – he was a smart ape, after all.
The large ape righted himself and half-turned from Bad Ape, clearly intending to leave the conversation at that and return home, only to stop in the last moment and, in a deep, gritty voice, add "Goodnight, Friend."
Bad Ape's jaw went slack for a second as he simply stared wide-eyed at Friend-Maurice. In the little-over four months they had lived here, he had never, ever heard the ape speak out loud. The closest he had ever gotten to hearing Friend-Maurice's voice was back when he had half-growled, half-roared at him down in the tunnels under the human zoo, and that had been too startling for Bad Ape to truly be able to remember the voice that had lied underneath the sound.
As such, it took a couple of moments for Bad Ape to find his own voice right now, and when he finally did, it was with an equal part surprised and excited stammer.
"Oh, oh! That- G-goodnight, Friend-Maurice! F-friend-Nova! Sleep-sleep well!" He told the duo, receiving an amused rumble from the ape as well as a sweet smile and wave from the girl before they both fully turned and started towards their own hut, leaving Bad Ape standing there, mouth agape and all by himself.
It took a short while for him to truly snap out of it and realise that everyone had now, in fact, left. It was dark now except for the occasional torch around the village, and the only apes besides himself out at this time were the members of the Gorilla Guard on duty for the night.
With that realisation, Bad Ape decided then that he should probably be heading back to his own hut as well, and he began walking towards his small home with hurried steps. He hadn't noticed how chilly it had truly become now that the sun had gone down, but the slight nip in the air was now beginning to become noticeable against his hairless skin. Maybe he should have brought his hat or his vest out, but with everything that had happened today, it really hadn't occurred to him at all.
It was easy to forget such a thing when surrounded by friends and warm cookfires.
Finally reaching his hut and pushing the animal hide at the entrance aside to get inside, it wasn't long before Bad Ape found himself snuggled up in his nest, surrounded by thick, warm pelts. A single torch fixed to the wall lit up the inside of his home, and he found himself staring at the wall as the shadows danced across the wood.
And as he did every evening, Bad Ape found himself thinking about the day that had just passed.
In a way, it had been just another day in his life, and yet it hadn't been like any other day at all. As always, he still marvelled at the fact that he had been lucky enough have a life like this after all those years alone, but also found himself pleasantly surprised with how he was finally starting to understand again – to connect with others instead of feeling like he was just latching on to them.
And though he didn't know Friend-Lake that well, it felt great to know that him talking with her had seemed to help – and that others could see it in her too.
He closed his eyes to the sound of crickets outside his hut, the feel of the day's waning warmth going over the skin not covered by the nest's comforting pelts. Behind his eyelids, he could faintly sense the flickering of the flame from the torch that kept his small hut lit.
To everyone else it might seem like he was alone right now – just like Friend-Lake had thought he had been alone today because he hadn't been sitting together with a group.
But he wasn't.
He had friends all around him, and though they were all in their own homes, together with their own families and separate from him, they were still there – and as always, that was the last, comforting thought that went through Bad Ape's mind before he drifted off to sleep.
Today had been a really good day.
