(If you've read the new chapter on War Technicalities, don't worry, you're not paranoid if you see the obvious similarities to this one. This chapter starts the exact same, in fact. They drift in different directions near the end, however - this chapter officially marks the split of the time-lines.)
Like the typical Maurice, the orangutan had to get the last word in, but despite herself, Haley hoped for more, and something less vague than what he had told her. Nevertheless, her wishes went unheard and only silence loomed across the troop as they returned home without any more interruptions.
Haley, Caesar's friend, could get lost along the way."
Over and over again, his words repeated themselves like a broken record in the young woman's ear, but, like a child who's confused by her parent's Shakespearian quote or the restaurant's fortune cookie, Haley couldn't understand what he meant. Blissfully ignorant, she touched her face with great interest, trying to feel some trigger to Maurice's hint on how she was changing. Naturally, she knew she has changed quite a bit, the burning sun and passing years have taken care of that, but she was growing, so change should be expected, so what was his point then – did he mean to say she changed in personality or soul, or maybe in spirit and beliefs? Of course not, she concluded – she hasn't changed at all. Again and again, she kept denying her intuition's search for the truth, and only a high-pitched screech clawing at her ears was enough to snap her out of her thoughts, the sound startling enough to make her fall the rest of the way down her horse as she was about to get off. Through Maurice's distracting and amused gibbers at her clumsiness, Haley took nearly no time at all before she saw the source of the sound dangling from Caesar's home about the village, waving to grab his attention in case her bellowing didn't. She heard Maurice grow silent as soon as he saw what she did, and while they watched their king rush up the spiral to his home, Haley felt her stomach turn – just like the rest of the troop, Haley knew from the midwife's alarming sound that she was not the bringing of good news.
And so, with Koba still not returned from his supposed hunt, Haley never went back to her own home and simply sat with the orangutan by the school, her anxious eyes permanently glued to the tree house. She still felt something was off about Koba's leaving, and she still wondered what Maurice's words meant, but her worry never wavered, nor did it allow other thoughts to bother her, though she never left to go see if Cornelia was alright either. Like Maurice knew, and like Haley knew Koba most likely assume the opposite to, it was not because of some hatred towards the queen ape that Haley didn't go see her, but rather the opposite. She will go visit later, when Cornelia's better, she decided – she knew the female ape would hate Haley seeing her in such a condition. Despite the atmosphere, Haley felt her lips pull into a sad smile at the thought; she could see why Caesar fell for Cornelia: she was stubborn, strong-willed, and always stood for what she believed, no matter what anyone else said.
Still, the fleeting moment of affection quickly shattered when a familiar uproar broke out at the village gates once again, the sound quickly setting Haley's teeth at edge. After almost no time at all, the same image unfolded in front of her: Malcolm shoved into everyone's line of sight like he was being put on trial. However, her scowl quickly faltered when her eyes flickered over his appearance – even from afar, she could see that he was in no worse state than when she left him at the river; in fact, he was standing tall on his feet, unlike the last time where he was dragged through the mud and kept of his knees. Bewildered, Haley sent Luca behind him a surprised and questioning look, which went unacknowledged when the large gorilla only grunted and looked away. Again, her thoughts were rendered irrelevant when something interrupted, but this time alarm bubbled up her throat, the sight of Rocket getting ready to go alert Caesar sending her shooting to her feet, Maurice's warning coo going unnoticed. "Wait!" Haley called to the chimp in a whisper as quickly as she could, and to her delight, she was able to stop him before he was able to steal Caesar from his ill wife – she knew Caesar would have felt a duty to his people and would have wanted to speak with Malcolm, and she knew Cornelia would have allowed him to do so, neither being something Haley would allow. Yet, when Rocket froze and gave Haley a look that demanded a much-needed explanation, her explanation went lost to her; instead, she simply kept her eyes on him with a silent plea flickering in their depths. She couldn't let him alarm Caesar; even the king of apes shouldn't leave his wife in that condition. No one could've been more surprised than she, however, when she saw Rocket's tense muscles slack under his nearly fur-less skin and he glanced to Malcolm with a defeated look. Without words, Haley somehow knew he understood, and somehow knew permission was given for her to do as she pleased. Though, as she made her way over to the human male, she needed to force herself to ignore the smoldering glares from the apes around her, even though her gaze appeared no different towards the older man.
"I need to talk to Caesar!" Malcolm insisted immediately, and although Haley almost wanted to commend him on his uncanny ability to jump right to the point, his sudden exclamation made her eyes darken at his daringness. Still, she could see the strength and determination in Malcolm's eyes, the one she knew bought Caesar's approval the day he arrived – it was the look that told the king of apes exactly how much Malcolm would do to protect his people when it's necessary.
This didn't matter.
"You can't." Haley spat venomously through the thick silence around her, but still nodded for the Gorilla Guards to ease back, which they did with one or two reluctant steps back. "He said no guns – that was his only condition." Haley explained, "You knew that and you broke it, so, seeing as we don't have a door, feel free to hit yourself on your way out."
"Carver's just an idiot!" He merely continued before attempting a quick step to his side, one that Haley countered with ease, "Please, will you just let me talk to him?" Haley wasn't sure if it was his tone or his choice of words, but they somehow made her eyes narrow suspiciously – he couldn't, could he?
"Like I said, you can't." She threw back carefully, skillfully structuring her sentence like a hook and rod so she could fish for the exact response she was looking for, "He's tending to his mate; she's ill." As if summoned by a medical term, Ellie was suddenly shoved into the picture a few feet behind her husband – she must have followed him – but it was Malcolm's look of dismay and confusion that captured Haley's attention instead. In just that one look, she knew she was right.
"But aren't…" He spoke carefully, though he unknowingly made Haley's heart clench and her blood run cold in horror – she never expected him to speak out about- "You said… I thought you were Caesar's mate?" Just for a moment – a single second – there was a pause in the air around them, everyone frozen while Haley's face grew beet red in shock and embarrassment, but time soon had to tick forward. It was almost as if the troop needed a moment to process Malcolm's words or to concur with whoever was next to them that they heard correctly, but as soon as the scenario processed, outrage screamed across the clearing in terrifying screeches and hoots. Even through his concern for the paralyzed woman, however, Maurice felt a tad bit amused by Malcolm's assumption, not at all surprised with how familiar the two are – though, this amusement quickly dwindled with every minute that the mob grew more out of control. Luckily, Haley wasn't unaffected – in fact, fury and frustration could physically be seen boiling to life inside of her, and finally, she had enough, her blush long-since faded away.
"Shut up!" She snapped at them over her shoulder, and to her own shock, the colony actually listened – some type of involuntary response, she gathered – and allowed her to circle back to Malcolm, just in time to see him relax after the fright the exclamations gave him, "He's our leader, so of course he's not my mate; though, you've had a run-in with the ape that is my mate."
"Please, Haley." Ellie quickly intervened and openly changed the subject, even though Malcolm seemed more curious about Haley's love life than anything else, "We need to talk to Caesar." Without pause, Haley wanted to deny their pleas again, but the desperation in her voice set the hairs on the back of Haley's neck on end. Forgetting that she had no power in the village, she felt torn between allowing them to go see Caesar or not, her jaw clenching while she bit back a lazy answer. Of course, she already knew at the river that they were clueless to Carver's impulses, and so, she knew they could be trusted, but they were human, so could they really be trusted or was it just her human mind giving them leeway. And so, as if searching for answers in the crowd, Haley glanced around her, studying one ape's face and them another, and in no time at all, her earthy orbs landed on a pair of tiny green spheres – Maurice.
"—just be careful which ape's example you decide to follow—"
Maybe, she wondered…
Of course, she already knew what Koba would do: he'd not only deny their offer, but he'd toss a spear at their backs as they were leaving, so what about Caesar? Would he allow them into the village again if it wasn't his son that was attacked, given that it wasn't them who caused it, or would he send them away? Would he remember how he struggled to keep his people safe and think about how the humans are trying to do the same thing? Would he think about the potential danger his rejection would cause for the village – his village – or would it not matter to him? And, whether it's the latter or the first, will she follow him… or her mate?
Eyes flickering away from Maurice's stare, his knowing look making it clear that he knew exactly what she was thinking, she looked back to Malcolm and Ellie, but then, as her gaze shifted from one to the other, it unwillingly glued to a pair of deep, green eyes behind them – Luca. He was clearly confused of what caused her to study him so suddenly, but still she could only see the creases around his nose and eyes increase under her watch – he didn't seem bothered at all, just puzzled.
Luca, the giant gorilla, was a member of the Gorilla Guard, but unlike the rest, he was different – he was their leader – and he was Haley's most unlikely friend. The Gorilla Guard, 'the protectors of the village' or 'the wall for others to hide behind' – they were the ones who took care of everyone and they were known for following the example that Buck left behind, a gorilla who was killed on the bridge ten years ago with his undying loyalty to Caesar still intact, but still it was Luca who set Haley free of her restraints when she was dragged to the apes' fort. But that didn't change the fact that she knew he would have destroyed her if Caesar wanted him to – no matter how ironically gentle the 6-foot-tall ape seemed to be – and he would have known what to do without Caesar having to say or sign a word, because he always seemed to know exactly what Caesar wants. Luca was the leader of the Gorilla Guard and the one who's mission was to protect their king, as well as to follow the unsaid orders he gives.
Maybe,'she wondered again, her eyes shifting back to Malcolm and Ellie, but this time it took her little to no time at all before she finally made up her mind: Caesar would've wanted to hear what the humans wanted, and although he might not be their biggest fan right now, she had an odd feeling that they had to see him. Unfortunately, she still couldn't allow them to take Caesar away from his sickly wife.
"Wait, wait, wait!" Malcolm and Ellie stepped back in alarm when they, once again, saw the familiar point of an arrow aimed their way, their throats growing dry in an instant, but unlike the danger they were expecting, Haley then simply stepped out of the way and nodded them towards the tree. Malcolm, thought he was glad, felt himself grow anxious at the sudden change of heart and grabbed his wife's hand protectively before he finally skulked pass the blonde woman and up to the tree house, her weapon and steps following close behind, along with the hulking gorilla he's come to know so well after being captured by him twice.
Hope you guys liked the little change there. After this, though, it won't exactly be this subtle...
Anyways! I do hope you're all enjoying this timeline so far!