To say that Orion was distracted this morning was a gross understatement. The news Ivy had given him that morning bounced around inside his head and kept pulling his attention away from Cornelius and what he had wanted to show him. He felt rather guilty because of it. After all, he had promised to go fishing with him this morning, and he had just plain-out forgotten. More than that, he had actually not wanted to go at all after what Ivy had told him, suddenly finding the prospect of a lazy, intimate morning with his mate far more interesting than any other social interaction, promised or not.
It wasn't like he didn't want to spend time with Cornelius in general, however. In fact, the two of them would sometimes spend most of the day together. No, his little brother simply had a strange knack for interrupting at just the wrong moments in a conversation, much like he had done today. All the same, Orion still very much enjoyed the time he spent with his little brother and cherished every chance he got to teach him something new.
Would it be the same with his child? Would he teach them how to fish? How to hunt? Would they want to learn? Would they take to it easily, or struggle? Goodness knows he had struggled with fishing at first, though his father's patience when teaching him had rivalled even Maurice's. Orion hoped he could be just as patient as his father – goodness knows practicing with a lively and at times impatient Cornelius was sometimes a test in and of itself.
Orion shook his head. There he went again, pulling himself away from the task at hand.
He hoisted the quiver further up onto his shoulder, and the arrows clattered together in response.
Cornelius eyed them with obvious curiosity as they trudged further down the bank of the huge lake. The one down the hill from the ape village. They were going towards a small inlet not far from their home, where a wide creek flowed from the mountains and into the lake and where Orion knew from experience that the fish liked to gather.
"I didn't know you could fish with bow and arrow, Brother." Cornelius said, admiration in his voice.
Orion squared his shoulders.
"Did I not tell you I can fish in every way there is?" He shot back teasingly. Crawling over a fallen log, Orion extended his arm for Cornelius to grab with both hands, and the Ape Prince used it to playfully swing himself over the obstacle in much the same way he would swing from a branch in a tree. He landed with a dull thump on the ground.
"You did. And you promised to teach me all of them, too!" Cornelius reminded him with an eager smile, to which Orion responded with a nod and a laugh.
Today's lesson would indeed include bow-fishing, a technique the apes had taught themselves shortly before leaving their old home, back when they had first begun making their own bows to fight the soldiers. It was a difficult technique to master, but it had the advantage of not having to wait for the fish to swim within striking-range, such as was the case with a spear.
Now, Orion would readily admit that he wasn't as proficient with a bow and arrow as, say, Ivy and Mother. He much preferred his trusty old fishing spear, light and thin in his hand. Nonetheless, he liked to believe he was versatile enough to be able to teach Cornelius all the different fishing techniques the apes had at their disposal, be it with a spear, bow or net.
And perhaps I can also teach him some much-needed patience while we are at it, Orion thought with mild amusement as they came upon their destination.
The waters of the creek flowed along steadily, not at all rushing and foaming like the river back in the forest had been most of the time. Though wide, it wasn't deep, and only reached up to just below Orion's navel at the very centre. Cornelius would probably have a hard time at that depth, however. While slightly bigger than most of his peers – taking after Caesar in that regard, Orion assumed – fishing in water that reached just past one's ribs wasn't ideal for anyone.
Luckily, they weren't going to be standing in the water all that much today.
"Come," Orion called while pointing to some partially submerged boulders of differing sizes and shapes. Most of them were spaced rather nicely from each other halfway across the creek, around jumping-distance, and were most likely the result of a long-past landslide. "We will start at the top of those rocks. They will give us a good view of the water."
"To spot the fish?"
"Exactly."
They came up on the boulders, Orion dropping the weighted net he carried over his other shoulder, opposite the strap for the quiver. He would leave that on the bank for now and, if the bow-fishing lesson went well, they would move to the lake itself and try a few throws.
"Now, we are going to jump out to the rocks near the middle of the water." He explained as he folded the net so it wouldn't be tangled when they would actually need it. "Just make sure to- CORNELIUS!"
"What?" Came the confused reply as he turned around to face Orion. He had already jumped to the third boulder from the bank, not at all waiting for instructions, as per usual.
Orion reached up to rub the flat bridge of his nose in frustration.
"What did we talk about before coming out here? You must listen before you act." He said as he made his way towards the boulders as well, bows in one hand and quiver still on his back. "These rocks may be slippery. What if you fell and hurt yourself? Hit your head or cut something on a sharp edge?"
He did his best to keep anger and fright out of his voice, while still trying to convey the severity of the situation. Cornelius looked slightly embarrassed, but also somewhat… defiant?
"But why are we doing it like this if it's dangerous? I can listen all day, and I might still fall and get hurt." He responded cleverly, crouching down on his haunches and leaning his long arms on his knees. His eyes were large and curious as they waited for Orion's reply.
"Hunting is dangerous as well, but we must do it to eat." The older ape responded calmly. "Most things in life involves risk, and most apes tend to focus on the big ones. Like a mountain lion lying in wait or a flame outside the firepit. But small things can hurt you just as easily, if you are not aware of them. That is why I need you to listen. And why you need to tell me before doing something."
"And if I still fall?" Cornelius said, and Orion could tell that he was subtly testing the surface he was standing on with his toes.
"Then, I will catch you." Orion said with confidence. "On a hunt, each ape knows the others' positions. That way, they can help each other if something goes wrong. It is the same when fishing. We both need to know what the other is doing, because it is the only way we can help each other if something goes wrong."
"I understand, Brother." Cornelius said with an apologetic smile. "Sorry for rushing."
"All is well, Brother. Now," Orion replied with a smile before he leapt forward, landing on the rock beside Cornelius' own. The younger ape gaped at him, clearly impressed with the distance Orion had been able to leap, which was still too great for him to be able to copy – for now. "Let us see if we can catch some fish, hm?"
Cornelius nodded eagerly, getting up from his crouching position to follow Orion as they carefully leapt from one boulder to the other. Emboldened by the look of admiration on his little brother's face, Orion tried to remind himself not to get too cocky and actually follow his own advice. It would do that he fell and hurt himself just because he liked to impress his little brother with his knowledge and prowess, no matter how nice it was to be looked at with such idolising eyes.
Will my child look at me like that as well? Orion wondered, but quickly caught himself and shoved the thought to the back of his mind once more. Now was not the time for such pondering. He might be one of the best fishers in the colony – Rocket's words, not his own – but if he didn't focus, no amount of skill or experience would help him pass on his knowledge to his little brother, much less help him actually catch something in the first place.
When they had found a suitable spot, Orion handed Cornelius one of the bows and one arrow with a thin rope attached to the end. The younger ape tested the string of his bow and put the arrow in place, though he kept it loose as he readies himself, copying Orion's stance.
"Now you must observe. Have patience. Find a comfortable stance and focus on staying completely still." Orion instructed and watched as Cornelius nodded dutifully.
It took a long time for the fish to gather after the two apes had found their places, not that Orion minded in the slightest. He had grown to enjoy the peace and quiet required for fishing, and the opportunity to simply observe the beauty of the nature that surrounded him. The sun rising over ice-capped mountaintops, and rolling hills dotted with patches of forest. The songs of various kinds if birds and the
"Brother…!" Cornelius whispered beside him, excitement clear in his voice. "I see one!"
Orion followed the point of Cornelius' arrow as he slowly aligned it in the air, nodding with approval at how careful his brother was with his movements so as to not startle the fish.
"Good. It seems a decent sized one." He answered as he spotted the fish just a few paces ahead, swimming unsuspectingly near the shallow of the creek. "Make sure your aim is true. Breathe."
Cornelius had used a bow and arrow before. Mother had trained him herself, Orion knew, but it didn't hurt to remind him to keep his focus. It wouldn't do to get overly excited just yet.
With a whoosh, Cornelius's arrow shot through the air and for a split-second, Orion actually thought it was going to hit its mark. On the first try – that would've been amazing! Unheard of, even.
But even the Ape Prince wouldn't succeed at everything he touched, and the arrow missed the fish by a mere inch or so, startling it. Around it, other fish sped away as well, leaving the clear water seemingly void of life once more.
"That was so close!" Cornelius said and to Orion's surprise, his voice maintained the excitement from before, not a trace of disappointment or frustration to be found. That, to him, was more impressive than the fact that the arrow had missed the fish by little more than an inch.
This is the kind of thing I will look forward to as a father, he thought, seeing my child like this, excited even for the small victories.
"I will try it again!" Cornelius exclaimed and pulled in the arrow he had just shot at the fish. It stuck to the bed of the creek at first but relented after a good yank or two from the Ape Prince. He pulled the arrow all the way back through the water by means of the string, laughing heartily once he grabbed hold of it and raised it to reveal a huge, rather pathetic-looking lump of mud and entangled grass, the mass, thick and rather gross, dripping slowly back into the water. Orion laughed too at the sight.
"Quite a catch, Brother." He said humorously and continued to look on as Cornelius carefully dislodged the lump from the tip of his arrow. It took a while, the Ape Prince being a meticulous sort, but as soon as he had all the bits and pieces of filth removed and thrown it towards the bank of the creek, he returned his attention to Orion once more.
He seemed surprised to find the older ape still watching him with such interest.
"Why do you look like that?"
Orion frowned.
"Like what?"
"I don't know." Cornelius said with a shrug, putting his arrow against the bow as he prepared to take another stance. "You seem… different today. Happy but… weird happy."
The Ape Prince grimaced at the word 'weird', probably unaccustomed to using it, but lacking an alternative.
"I am just proud, that is all." Orion said, hoping the smile he offered his little brother seemed genuine enough for him to believe it. "You are learning quickly and making good progress already."
The raised brow that Cornelius sent his way told Orion that he wasn't convinced for a moment, but it seemed like he chose to let it slide for now as he gave a shrug and turned towards the water once more.
"If you say so." He said, and Orion very nearly drew a sigh of relief.
So, his little brother could tell he was distracted. Perhaps he was more perceptive than Orion initially gave him credit for. Either that, or Orion was being really, really obvious. Then again, he wouldn't be surprised if either was true. This was, after all, Caesar's son, and Orion would readily admit that the news of him becoming a father were hard to put aside, even for a moment. Still, it would seem like he would just have to try harder if he didn't want Cornelius to become even more suspicious of his behaviour. Goodness knows the Ape Prince was persistent when he caught the scent of something.
The lesson went on for the entire morning, spilling into early midday. Time and time again, Cornelius tried, more often than not coming out with nothing more than clots of wet dirt and grass at the tip of his arrow rather than a fish, though it didn't seem to dampen his spirits one bit. The one time he did manage to make a catch, the fish was barely of a size fit for eating, but Orion assured him that they would keep it anyway. It could still be used and being pierced through, it was dead either way. He also managed to catch some fish himself, all five of them of a decent size, so at least there was that. Orion, however, did also fail quite a few times, though he didn't know if he was simply out of practice when it came to this particular technique or if it was due to his distraction in general. Either way, he figured it was a good way to remind Cornelius of the fact that no matter your skill-level, there's always a chance you will fail. It was a good thing to have in mind, Orion figured, even though Cornelius really wasn't the type of ape child to become overconfident of himself in the face of too much success.
Then, as the sun stood highest on the clear sky above, Cornelius had a stroke of luck – or was it the first trace of skill? Orion would never know.
The arrow zoomed through the air and pierced the water with deadly speed and precision, and a barrage of splashes ensued as the fish Cornelius had caught made a few feeble attempts at escaping. The excitement was obvious in Cornelius' green eyes as he pulled in his catch, and they positively gleamed as he dragged the fish out of the water to reveal its size.
Orion gaped, impressed. It was a massive one, alright! Fat and still-writhing on the arrow in Cornelius' hand.
He looked triumphantly up at Orion and showcased his prize.
"Look at that, Brother! I did it! I finally caught a big one!" He exclaimed and nearly slipped off the rock he was standing on after doing what Orion could only describe as a victory-jump. He quickly straightened himself again, now with a hint of sheepishness added to his excitement.
Orion chose to let it slide, smiling big at his little brother.
"That one is bigger than anything we have caught today, Brother! I am very impressed! Just wait until Mother and Caesar sees it."
He was sure they would both be just as impressed as he was with this catch. Honestly, Orion was surprised that the younger ape managed to reel it in at all. Even now, the fish was still twisting and writhing on the arrow, though it was getting less and less erratic as time passed.
"Does this mean I'm already getting better at fishing than you?" Cornelius then asked in a teasing manner as Orion put the fish into the satchel where they kept their catches, which he then swung back over his shoulder. He couldn't help but burst out laughing at the friendly jab at his pride.
"Do not get ahead of yourself, Cornelius. Ask me again when you have caught more fish than me."
"Mother always says 'quality over… quanitity…? Qua-quarili…' – bigger fish is better than more fish!"
Another bout of laughter erupted from Orion's chest. Oh, he had definitely heard their mother say something along those lines, but he had never expected Cornelius to know what it meant at such a young age, much less be able to use it as a counter-argument. He could only marvel at how fast his little brother was growing up. It seemed only yesterday that he had been a small infant ape, only just beginning to grasp basic sign language.
He smiled and looked fondly down at his defiant pout. The Ape Prince had come such a long way since then, now that Orion thought about it.
If my child becomes just half as gifted as Cornelius, I shall be a very proud and happy father, he found himself thinking, realising only too late that he was going down that road once more and that this time, Cornelius had would definitely not let it go that easily. The curious spark in his eyes told Orion as much…
"You have that look on your face again." The Ape Prince pointed out, catching the older ape off-guard for a moment.
"I really do not know what you mean by that, Brother." Orion said dismissively, giving a huff of laughter that was meant to sound easy-going, but ended up sounding rather guilty instead.
Of course Cornelius caught on to that as well. He was Caesar's child through and through.
"I look the same as I do every day." Orion tried again and nearly winced at how poor an act he was putting up. Well, Mother had always said he was bad at lying.
Sure enough, Cornelius narrowed his eyes suspiciously, not at all believing it for a minute.
"No, I'm sure." He replied. "There is something different today."
"Perhaps you can keep thinking on that while we continue fishing?" The older ape tried again, his attempt on taking on the voice of a stern teacher failing miserably. "Unless you want to return to the village with only two fish."
Unsurprisingly, neither the stern-teacher-act or the challenge worked to deter Cornelius.
"You have a secret." He stated, and another triumphant grin appeared on his face. "What is it? Tell me!"
Okay, I take that thing from before back, Orion thought. If my child becomes even half as gifted as Cornelius, I will probably go as bald as Bad Ape from sheer frustration!
"If I told you, it would not be a secret anymore." Orion pointed out evasively. Really, there was no point in trying to deny it at this point. He would just dig himself into an even deeper hole – best thing he could do now was… what did Mother call it? damage control? "Now try to be quiet. You are scaring the fish away."
"It would be!" Cornelius insisted, completely ignoring Orion's admonishing. "If you don't tell anyone else, it would still be a secret. I can keep it, Brother! I promise!"
He most definitely could not, Orion knew. It's not that he didn't trust his little brother. In fact, Orion knew for certain that Cornelius was far better at keeping secrets than he had ever been, especially at that age. It was just that neither of them was particularly good at keeping secrets from Mother. She was better at sniffing out odd behaviour in her children than their dogs were at sniffing out rabbits in the forest.
"I cannot tell you. I promised Ivy not to tell anyone." He said. At least that wasn't lie.
And yet Cornelius frowned.
"You have a secret with Ivy but not with me?"
Shit…
"Ivy is my mate. Of course I talk with her about things I do not talk about with you." He tried to salvage it, hoping that Cornelius would at least understand that. "And it is a topic for adults anyway. It would not interest you."
But either he was simply too young to do so, or he simply chose not to. Either way, he persisted, leaning over from his rock and right into Orion's face with a deep frown that the older ape could swear was identical to that of the Ape King himself. It was almost scary to witness, really.
"That's just an excuse not to tell me." He said, arms crossed. "Come on! Just tell me! I'm big enough to know about adult secrets!"
Then, as he leaned forward even further, the frown on Cornelius' face was quickly replaced with one of surprise and horror. Orion had only a fraction of a second to react as his brother fell forward into his chest, having overbalanced on the rock he stood on and slipped.
Screeching in unison, the two of them fell into the water with a splash, the last thing Orion saw being Cornelius' look of instant regret, framed by the clear blue sky above as the older ape fell backwards.
