The gorillas cheered around him, several pounding the branches as they jumped up and down. Kala smiled down at him proudly while Kaphi joined in the enthusiastic cheering. Tarzan grabbed Sabor's corpse and raised her above his head, letting out his characteristic yell through the trees, joining in the cries of the apes.

Sabor was dead. Finally, her reign of terror against the family was over. He had avenged his parents and his older brother. In that moment, Tarzan felt a huge sense of empowerment and victory. The apes cheered him on before rushing down the trees toward him, surrounding him and congratulating him. Tantor trumpeted as he stepped out of the trees.

"Okay, everybody," Terk said as she pushed her way through. "Move aside. Outta my way! Best friend coming through. That would be me."

Terk sat next to Tarzan, Kaphi moving through the path Terk had created.

"And you," Terk continued, pointing at Tarzan, "don't make a habit of that, okay? There are other ways of getting attention, you know?"

"I'll try to remember that," Tarzan said with a chuckle.

"I was right behind ya if you needed me by the way," Terk said.

"Sure she was," Kaphi mocked playfully as she nuzzled against her brother. "I'm glad you're alright."

"Thanks," Tarzan said as he nuzzled his sister back, then winced as she cuffed him upside the head.

"But don't scare me like that again!" she scolded, looking very much like a stern Kala in that moment.

"Got it."

Kala chuckled as she walked up to her son, checking him over with a sweep of her eyes before nuzzling him as well.

"You have made me so proud," Kala said.

Tarzan felt a warmth grow in his chest. The family was still giving him praise and attention, and while Tarzan had felt acceptance in the family for a long time, this moment solidified his place in the group, his worthiness of remaining with his family. He had proved himself to be a great protector—a great gorilla.

In the distance, on a high ledge, Tarzan saw his father staring down at him, a pained look on his face. Afraid he may have overstepped his role in the family, Tarzan lifted Sabor over his shoulders and carried her up the trees and to where Kerchak was waiting. He carefully placed Sabor down in front of Kerchak, presenting her to his father before taking a few steps back submissively.

Kerchak stared down at Sabor, as if realizing what the victory truly meant for himself and Tarzan. After a moment, Kerchak looked up at his son with a proud smile on his face, and Tarzan slowly grinned back at him.

"Thank you, son," Kerchak said, touching his forehead to Tarzan's.

Suddenly, there was a loud blast in the air, a noise Tarzan became familiar with from poachers. He jumped back and glanced off in the distance. It sounded very close to the family, too close for comfort.

"Poachers?" Tarzan questioned. "This far into the jungle?"

"We must move," Kerchak said as the family appeared behind Tarzan. "Let's go!"

"I'll check it out and catch up later," Tarzan decided. He moved in the direction of the noise only to be stopped by Kerchak grabbing his arm.

"You will not. Leave this be for once and let the jungle do away with them."

"But Dad, if they're that close . . ."

"No, Tarzan. You just killed Sabor, that is an exhausting feat alone without needed to chase out any poachers. For once, let the jungle do its job and stay with the family. We move out."

With those words, Kerchak turned and led the family deeper into the jungle, keeping an eye on Tarzan as his son reluctantly followed him. Satisfied he was listening for a change, Kerchak nodded his approval and focused on the journey ahead. It wasn't until he was halfway to their new location did he think to do a head count, and he grew very agitated when he could not find one particular ape in the crowd.

"What's wrong?" Kala asked him.

"Tarzan," Kerchak said. "He's not here."

Kala glanced around, then sighed.

"He must have gone after the poachers," she concluded.

Kerchak sighed heavily himself, fighting back the rising irritation at Tarzan's actions.

"I don't know what I'm supposed to do with him," he said. "He doesn't listen to me when it comes to man. It's like he feels its his obligation to make sure he rids the jungle of them every time they appear, and he doesn't care in the slightest about his own safety."

"I know. But can you blame him? He didn't have a good impression of man, and they are his species by blood. It must be hard on him." Kala glanced around the family once more, as if to make sure Tarzan was not there. "He does a well enough job getting rid of the poachers though. Yes, it worries me every time he goes off on a heroic pursuit, but it makes him happy. He loves our home and he's just trying to protect it."

"I know. And I'm trying to protect him, even when I know he's old enough to make his own path." Kerchak closed his eyes. "I don't want him to make the wrong path; one that ends in his demise."

"He would never. He had you as a father after all."

Kerchak smiled at his mate, reassured by her words. He was prepared to keep moving to new grounds for safety when Terkina's mother came up to them with a concerned look.

"I cannot find Terkina," she said. "Or some of her friends."

Kerchak scanned the family, mentally performing a headcount once more and realized that several of Tarzan's peers were missing. Kaphi and her friend Asha were also missing.

"I bet they went looking for Tarzan when they realized he was gone," Kerchak said. "With Terk leading the troop, I'm sure. We should go after them before they get too far behind us. Everyone with me, I need all ears and eyes out for any sign of the rest of the family."

The apes turned around, following Kerchak in the direction they had just come from, everyone looking around and up into the trees for any sign of the younger apes. Kerchak was a bit annoyed at having to move the family around, but he knew it would be better to have as many eyes and ears out as possible to find the others quickly, scold them, and finish bringing the entire family to safer grounds. Splitting up was forbidden in gorilla travel as it presented many risks to the unprotected gorillas, and many could end up lost and have trouble reconnecting with the family. While Tarzan had an uncanny ability to track down his family again from anywhere in the jungle, not many gorillas possessed that skill. He would have several stern words with the no-doubt leader of the entourage.

Tarzan swung down from the trees with Jane in his arms, landing gracefully on the forest ground and setting Jane down on her feet. Tarzan looked into the clearing where Jane claimed to have "settled camp" with her other . . . humans. Tarzan was hesitant to call them "poachers," and very hesitant to call Jane "man." She was very different from most man Tarzan was familiar with, and she did not seem interested in harming anything in the jungle. This was all new to Tarzan, and he wasn't sure what to make of it all, or of the strange feelings that were stirring within him when he looked at Jane.

In the camp, Tarzan discovered may human related objects he had seen before at poacher settlements, some things he had never seen before, but he was most surprised to see Terk, Tantor, Kaphi, and many of his ape friends trashing the camp, making so much noise it was sure to be heard through much of the jungle.

"Terk," Tarzan called out, dropping to all fours, and shuffling over to her, surprising Jane. "What are you doing here?"

Terk turned and smiled when she saw Tarzan, running over to him and tackling him.

"We were looking for you," Terk said as she tried to pin down Tarzan. "Where the bejeezus have you been?"

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"Try me!"

"Okay, I warned you." Tarzan stopped wrestling with Terk, pausing in front of Jane. "I just rescued this human."

Terk froze and stared at Jane in shock, everyone else in the camp freezing as well and turning their heads to look at the newcomer. Kaphi walked over to her brother with cautious steps, sharing a look with him before looking back at Jane. Terk glanced back at Tarzan.

"Don't worry," Tarzan reassured her. "She's nice."

Terk looked back at Jane and took a few steps closer. Jane was saying something no one could understand, but she did not appear threatening. She reached out a hand toward Terk, who sniffed at her hesitantly.

Tarzan grinned at them until he saw another ape step out of the trees behind Jane, and his smile vanished.

Jane felt a rush of hot air hit her neck and she spun around, her eyes widening.

"Oh my—" she began.

Kerchak rose on two and pounded his chest as he released a loud roar.

Jane fell to the ground in terror, trembling as she felt around for anything to hide behind. She picked up a strange metallic object and held it over her head. Kerchak sniffed the object then sniffed Jane before roaring again, threatening the other gorillas to keep away.

"Let's move out," Kerchak said to all the gorillas, glad to have found everyone together and unharmed. He stepped through the camp, the rest of the family behind him.

"Dad, please," Tarzan tried to say to his father as he walked by him, "she's no threat."

"I told you to leave it be," Kerchak snarled, leaning in close so they were nearly nose to nose. "Do not disobey me again."

Kerchak kept leading the family forward, hopeful that Tarzan would listen to him and follow. Tarzan, however, wasn't sure how to feel as he watched his family walk past him, Tantor snatching Terk with his trunk while Kaphi submissively slinked after her father after a few seconds hesitation when she realized Tarzan wasn't moving right away.

Tarzan was torn between wanting to learn more about this beautiful human and following the only family he'd ever known. Kala seemed to sense his struggle, and she gently grabbed his arm and tugged him toward the trees.

"Come, Tarzan, please," she said. "We must go. Leave her, she'll be okay."

Jane was staring at him with a frightened but also fascinated look as Tarzan gave into his mother's pull and followed her into the trees, disappearing with his family. He followed after the gorillas in a bit of a daze as they moved further away from the camp, feeling all sorts of conflicting emotions. He had never felt anything other than hatred and anger at poachers—at man. So why did this one human make him feel so . . . weird? He didn't have much longer to contemplate it though.

"Tarzan," Kerchak called from the head of the family. "Get up here."

Feeling his cheeks heat up as several apes turned their heads to look back at him, Tarzan wanted nothing more than to shrink back and disappear into the shadows of the trees. At his mother's gentle nudge, Tarzan weaved his way through the family and to the front next to Kerchak. Years of practice and conditioning taught him how to pace himself to keep up with Kerchak on the ground as they traveled, so he was able to stay at his father's side as they kept heading deeper into new safer territory. He heard his father sigh heavily before he began speaking.

"I asked you to leave the poachers be," Kerchak began.

"These ones aren't poachers," Tarzan interrupted. "They are man, but they are different from the man I usually chase off."

"That does not matter, you weren't supposed to go after them," Kerchak said. "I understand you are an adult now, but I am still the leader of this family, and my rules are the law. If you wish to continue living here, you will respect that. Stay away from them. Do not let them see and do not seek them out."

"They mean us no harm, Dad."

"I don't know that."

"But I do. I've spent time with them."

The idea that Tarzan may bond with species of his own kind, grow some kind of attachment, and potentially abandon the family in favor of man was all too real, and Kerchak tried to ignore the sudden spark of fear and replaced it with a stern anger.

"You may be willing to risk our safety but I'm not."

That seemed to anger Tarzan, who leaped in front of Kerchak, stopping him in his path and pounding his knuckles into the dirt, pushing himself up into a very confrontational pose.

"Why are you threatened by anyone different from you?"

Any other ape would have found themselves beaten back into submission, but as angry as Kerchak was, he would not strike his son. Kerchak knew Tarzan was not looking to challenge his authority, just his rules. Still, he could not have any young apes thinking it was okay to threaten Kerchak in any manner, and he pushed up on his own knuckles, snarling slightly as he towered over his son in a domineering stance.

"Protect this family," Kerchak said in a harsh tone, "and stay away from them."

Kerchak and Tarzan glared at each other for a few seconds before Tarzan huffed and retreated to the back of the family. Kerchak softly sighed before continuing through the jungle, the family resuming their journey.

"Please, Tarzan," Kala pleaded with her son, "for once, listen to Kerchak about this."

Tarzan said nothing as he followed the family, taking up the rear. They finally arrived at a new destination where Kerchak quickly announced to the family that the new grounds would be their home for a while until further notice. Then, he proceeded to tell the gorillas to stay away from the strangers and to be wary. Tarzan listened in from a branch high above the gorillas, hugging his knees to his chest. He needed space now to think about these weird emotions stirring within him. Tarzan was confused: weren't all man supposed to be poachers? And what did that make Jane? She didn't seem like a threat at all, if anything, she seemed really friendly and curious about the jungle around her, just as Tarzan was curious about her world.

Kaphi crawled up the tree and sat next to her brother, allowing comfortable silence to fall between them.

"Are you okay, big brother?" Kaphi asked after a few moments.

"As okay as I can be," Tarzan answered. "I'm one wrong move from Dad forcing me out of the family like some of the other adults that have left, and I don't know what to think about the strangers. I learned something new today—I could speak their tongue! It wasn't easy and I had to really strain my throat, but I made noises she understood, and I learned her name."

"What was her name?" Kaphi asked.

"Jane. It's so different but I think it's really pretty."

Kaphi smiled softly at her brother.

"She sounds nice."

"She was. But now I can't see her unless I want to deal with Dad's wrath."

Kaphi frowned, glancing down at the family then back at Tarzan.

"Dad would never chase you out," Kaphi said. "Just like he'd never chase me out. You and I, we're stuck here. He loves us too much to send us away to find a different family group to become a part of."

Tarzan snorted at that.

"You're probably right about that, sis."

"I know I am. And maybe you're right too about the strangers. But we've never had positive experiences with them before. Remember the truce?"

"I do. But she wasn't hurting anyone."

"Maybe she will continue to not hurt anyone. And Dad will see that. In time. You just have to be patient."

"When did you get to be so wise?" Tarzan gave his sister an amused look.

"I learned from the best," Kaphi said haughtily.

The siblings shared a laugh, then Tarzan leaned against her.

"Thanks. I needed that talk."

Kaphi nuzzled her brother, then said, "Hungry? I think I saw some fruit ready to fall from some nearby trees."

"Let's go check it out."

Kaphi and Tarzan filled up on fruit for dinner before retreating to their nests. While they each had their own nests separate from their parents, they were still close enough to their parents that all four could snuggle close if they wanted to. As the day slowly darkened, the family turned in for the night, and Kala and Kaphi curled up close together while Tarzan kept to his own nest for a change, staring up into the starry sky. Kerchak was making his rounds, so the alone time gave Tarzan a chance to think back to the stranger he rescued from baboons. The look on her face when he left with his family stuck with him. Was she upset he left? Was she afraid of him now?

Leaves crumbled under heavy weight, and Tarzan quickly rolled over and closed his eyes as Kerchak drew near their nests. Kerchak paused near Tarzan first.

"I know you're awake," Kerchak said softly. "And I know you're upset with me. I am trying to protect this family, and that includes you as well. I am very wary of these strangers as I have been of the many that came before them."

"They're different, though," Tarzan said, though he didn't turn to face his father. "I know they are. I can feel it."

"Perhaps they are," Kerchak agreed. "They'll have to prove that themselves. And until they do, we keep away from them."

"How are they supposed to prove themselves then?" Tarzan said, looking over his shoulder at his father.

"If they are kind to the jungle, the jungle will be kind in turn. Patience, Tarzan."

There was that word again. Tarzan sighed and readjusted himself, facing away from Kerchak once more. Patience was a struggle for Tarzan. His curiosity would eat him alive if he tried to be patient and see what the jungle made of the strangers.

"You know, the jungle was very kind to you," Kerchak added. "It gave you a chance to live by leading your mother to you. The jungle has a way of knowing who belongs and who does not. It may not take long to see if these strangers have a place here. As long as they are respectful and mean no harm, I do not have a problem with their presence."

"They just have to prove it first," Tarzan said in a bit of a defeated tone. "Just like I did, right, Dad?"

Kerchak sighed, then laid down next to Tarzan in his own nest by Kala.

"That is not what I meant. You were very different from the situation these strangers bring. You were an infant and alone. These strangers come in numbers and with the capability to kill a gorilla from a far distance. I admit I was hard on you in your early years, but I feel I've more than made up for it. You of all apes have seen what man is capable of. Am I not wrong to be wary?"

Tarzan felt bad for bringing up Kerchak's treatment of himself when he had been real little. Kerchak had more than made up for that short span of his life, and he had already forgiven his father for it many times over, but it still hurt that his father's attitude toward anything new had not changed much. Sure, Kerchak said he was open to accepting the strangers should they prove themselves nonthreatening, but it reminded Tarzan of the time period he had to prove himself to his father. Why couldn't Kerchak just trust his words that these strangers were different?

"Sorry," Tarzan said at last. "This is just really hard for me and I don't even know why."

"Perhaps it's because these strangers are a link to a side of your species you have not witnessed," Kerchak answered honestly. "However, like the leopard, deceptiveness is an effective hunting strategy, and they may not be what they seem."

That made sense to Tarzan, but somewhere deep in his bones he felt that Jane was not like a leopard. However, he had not met the rest of the strangers at the camp. Maybe he could sneak out and get to know the strangers' intentions better, then prove to Kerchak himself that they meant no harm. There had to be a way to do it, a way to get Kerchak to see what Tarzan was seeing, though how he would do it, he wasn't sure. He would sleep on it.

"I may not say this enough," Kerchak continued, "but I am very proud of you, son. You are a formidable protector of the family. And with more teaching, you will be a great leader."

Tarzan smiled, unable to stop the flood of pride and affection from filling up his chest. He knew he should stay angry at his father for his paranoia, but he couldn't stay mad at his father. He understood Kerchak's fears too well, and while he didn't agree with the decision, he could respect it. He rolled over to face his father, moving closer so he could touch his forehead to Kerchak's.

"Thanks, Dad." Tarzan accepted a nuzzle from his father before pulling back. "Love you."

"I love you, too, Tarzan," Kerchak said, and content with their conversation, Kerchak drifted off to sleep.

Tarzan remained at his father's side, soaking in the warmth, but he could not sleep. He stared up into the night sky, unable to get Jane out of his head.

Jane is finally in the picture! I kind of breezed over parts we were already familiar with (Sabor's fight, Tarzan meeting Jane), and wanted to focus on the aftermath and the emotional conflict Tarzan is now feeling. Much more to come, thanks for sticking with this story!