It only took one wrong move for Tarzan to trip over his own feet, which allowed Kerchak to scoop his son under him and pin him down. He leaned over his son to gently play bite his shoulder, and Tarzan turned and twisted every which way to try and get free from his father. Kerchak allowed his son to roll away before he pinned Tarzan down once before his son could even plan his next attack and playfully mouthed him once more. Tarzan growled and tried to pull away from his father, then he felt a small jolt of pain in his shoulder.

"Ow!" Tarzan yelped.

Kerchak immediately released his seven-year-old son and sat up.

"I'm sorry," Kerchak apologized. "Did I get you?"

"I think your teeth did," Tarzan said, rubbing his shoulder. "I'm okay, though."

"Let me see," Kerchak insisted, nudging his son gently.

"No, really, I'm okay." Tarzan flashed his teeth at his father in a clear invitation to wrestle, hoping to resume their game. Kerchak shook his head at him, however.

"Let me see."

Tarzan sighed and turned his shoulder enough to reveal a small nick where one of Kerchak's canines had managed to pierce Tarzan's skin. A small drop of blood managed to pool enough to drip down Tarzan's back, but otherwise, the wound was very miniscule.

Kerchak felt a pang of guilt as he licked the small injury on his son's shoulder. He always tried to use as little pressure as possible behind his play bites with Tarzan, but the child's hairless skin was often sensitive to every scrap and pinch, and it was rare that Tarzan did not end up with some mild bruising or scratches from their roughhousing, whether from tumbling too hard or Kerchak being just a bit too rough. Tarzan never complained despite it all. In fact, his son only asked for more wrestling.

"I'm okay, Dad," Tarzan said after a few licks from Kerchak. "Really, it doesn't even hurt anymore."

"We should take a break," Kerchak said.

"Do you think I'll have teeth like yours when I'm all grown up?" Tarzan asked. "I know we're not exactly the same, but I still want to grow as big as you. I would be unstoppable!"

Tarzan climbed up his father's back to stand on his father's shoulders, where he pounded his chest with his palms.

Kerchak chuckled at his son and gave him a proud smile as he said, "I guess we'll have to wait and see."

"Come on, Dad!" Tarzan slid down his father's back before he jumped around the larger ape with several challenging grunts and flashes of teeth. "You have to show me the best way to pin down an opponent."

"I think we've had enough wrestling for one day," Kerchak said, though he was more concerned he might hurt Tarzan again and simply wanted to avoid another accident for the day. Though his resolve was waning as he watched his son pout at him.

"Oh, come on, we just started!"

"I know, but maybe we can wrestle tomorrow," Kerchak said, turning away from his son to potentially start checking up on his family again.

"I'm not done with you," Tarzan growled before running after his father and climbing up the silverback's back once more. He sat on his father's shoulder so he could meet Kerchak's eyes and give his best pleading face. "You have to show me!"

"What are you going to do if I don't?" Kerchak challenged, stopping in his tracks to look up at his son.

"I don't know," Tarzan said honestly, though he smirked as an idea hit him. "Maybe I'll bite your ear in return for biting me!"

Tarzan gently bit down on Kerchak's ear, not enough to hurt but enough that the pressure was felt, and he tugged gently. Kerchak sat down and jerked his head while swinging his shoulders forward, and the quick motion was enough to flip Tarzan over his shoulder and knock the child into his lap. Tarzan grunted as he landed on his father's lap, then looked up expectantly at his father.

"You want to know how I pin down my opponents?" Kerchak asked his son. "Like so."

Kerchak roared playfully as he grabbed Tarzan with his feet and hands and gently mouthed him once more, being very mindful of his teeth as he used them to tickle his son's sides, applying the lightest pressure he could. Tarzan squealed and squirmed in his hold, fighting between laughing and trying to escape.

Finally, he managed to slip out of Kerchak's hold and roll away from his father, but he came running right back to try and tackle him.

Kerchak fell back and captured Tarzan with his feet. He lifted his son into the air, holding him there for a minute while Tarzan tried to pull free and jump on his father.

Finally, Kerchak lowered Tarzan while simultaneously rolling on to his side. He released his son, but before Tarzan could get too far, Kerchak pulled his son into his arms, wrapping them around Tarzan's chest, effectively pinning his arms to his sides. Tarzan tried kicking at Kerchak's arms, but Kerchak grabbed Tarzan's legs with his feet, completely immobilizing his son.

"Now what are you going to do?" Kerchak growled in his son's ear before he carefully nipped Tarzan's ear in retaliation to his own ear being bitten. Tarzan scrunched his neck at the sensation with a giggle.

Wriggling slightly, Tarzan tried to find some give in his father's restraint, but it was proving futile. How on earth was he supposed to escape from this?

"Dad, no fair!" Tarzan complained. "I can't even move?"

"That was the plan," Kerchak said. "Do you give up?"

Tarzan really didn't want to surrender quite yet. He struggled again, yanking on his arms to try to pull one free, but that wasn't working. If this was how his father pinned down opponents, it was smart and overpowering. He couldn't think of any way to break free, so he huffed in frustration.

Kerchak snorted before he offered some sympathy for his son and said, "You can move your hands, can't you?"

Tarzan flexed his fingers thoughtfully before he grinned and tickled his father's stomach. Kerchak released his son and pulled away, rewarding the counterattack. He stood up and watched Tarzan jump to his feet and face him off once more. Tarzan made a mental note to use that the next time Terk managed to restrain him in a similar manner when they were wrestling.

Kerchak circled his son, who moved in a similar way, mirroring his father. With a grunt, Kerchak pounded his chest and let out a small snarl. Tarzan copied that as well before charging his father head-on, but when Kerchak lunged forward, Tarzan thought better of his plan and dove off to the side, running around his father and leaping for his side to crawl up his back. Maybe he could get Kerchak into a headlock. How else does one take down a silverback?

Kerchak began spinning in tight circles though, forcing Tarzan to grab a hold of his father to keep from falling off. After a few spins, Kerchak threw himself down onto his side, which caused Tarzan to tumble off his father from the sudden drop. Kerchak nearly regretted the move though as he reminded himself that his son was a little more fragile than the other ape children, but Tarzan retaliated quickly by jumping on Kerchak's head while the silverback was still lying on his side.

Tarzan wrapped his legs around his father's neck and his arms around his father's head, squeezing just enough to hold on should Kerchak try anything. All Kerchak did was weakly paw at his son a few times in an attempt to remove him, but Tarzan did not budge.

Kerchak chuckled as he said, "Not bad. A good way to choke an opponent if you needed to."

"Do I win?" Tarzan asked.

"I'll let you have this one."

"Yes!" Tarzan cheered as he jumped off his father and pounded his chest victoriously, letting out his characteristic yell.

Kerchak rolled his eyes at the noise as he pushed up into a sitting position.

"You still need to work on that roar though," he told his son.

"It's not supposed to be a roar, Dad."

"I would hope not." Kerchak lifted his son and settled him in his lap to begin grooming him as he often did after a wrestling match. It cleaned his son, but also gave Kerchak a chance to check for any injuries he may have accidentally caused that Tarzan was being stoic about. He licked the small puncture wound on Tarzan's should a few times before removing debris from his son's hair.

"Don't start fretting," Tarzan said, shifting in a way that told Kerchak he better pin his son down before he jumped away.

"Don't even think about it," Kerchak said, using his feet to hold his son in place. "You may run off when your bath is over."

Tarzan huffed but allowed his father to groom him while checking him over, earning a few licks over minor scratches. Because he was hairless, any injury he got while tumbling with his father stood out like a leopard in a dead tree in broad daylight. He didn't really mind the attention his father gave him, regardless of his protests. He loved how affectionate his father was during his grooming sessions, and he soaked up the love readily.

He heard a small squeal and looked over his shoulder to see his year-old sister shuffling toward them, Kala following behind her. Kaphi was starting to walk more on her own and brave moving further and further away from her mother each day, and Tarzan smiled as she crawled up to him and touched her nose to his in a small greeting.

"Hi, Kaphi," Tarzan said.

"How was wrestling?" Kala asked as she sat across from Kerchak and Tarzan, smiling as she watched her mate groom her son.

"It was fun," Tarzan said. "Dad bit me."

Kala's smile dropped and she gave her mate concerned eyes.

"Accidentally!" Kerchak corrected. "Sheesh, tell the whole story, son."

Tarzan laughed and agreed, "Yeah, it was an accident. I'm fine, mom. Dad was more worried about it that I was, but you know he worries about every little scratch I get."

For that, Kerchak blew a small raspberry on Tarzan's neck, making his son shriek and fall over. Tarzan wriggled free from his father and quickly shuffled over to his mother's arms, and she hugged him while laughing.

"Yes, I do know," Kala said, smirking at Kerchak, who rolled his eyes at her.

Kaphi began crawling up her father's arms and he turned his attention to amusing his daughter while Kala finished grooming Tarzan by removing a few leaves from his hair. Tarzan watched Kaphi mouth Kerchak's arm, and he looked up at his mother.

"Hey Mom, do you think I'll get big teeth like Dad someday?"

"Hmm, I don't know, Tarzan," Kala answered honestly.

"Dad doesn't seem to think so."

"I said we'll see," Kerchak quickly defended himself.

"Which usually means no coming from you," Tarzan said.

"When did you become such a smart mouth?" Kerchak asked as he snatched his son away from Kala before Tarzan even had a chance to blink, and Kerchak once again pinned his son down with his feet before he tickled Tarzan mercilessly with one hand while holding his daughter with the other. Kala only shook her head fondly as she watched her children try to escape their father's tickle attacks.