#planet of the apes x reader

[death---dealer]

Customary ( Noa x Human! Reader ) Series. **UPDATED 7/8/2024**

Summary of the series: You were found by Noa, Anaya and Soona - on the brink of the death - healed back to health, you were faced with being let go, or staying with the Eagle Clan. Food, shelter and safety. The catch? Their Leader wanted to know about Echo ways of living and never bargained feelings into the transaction. (This will be updated as chapters are posted. ) SERIES PLAYLIST.

Chapter One: Customary.

Chapter Two: Gone Hunting.

Chapter Three: Wounded Pride.

Chapter Four: Head First.

Chapter Five: Sense of Belonging.

Chapter Six: Empathy.

Chapter Seven: Cross Roads.

Chapter Eight: Future.

Chapter Nine: Savior Complex.

Chapter Ten: Chimp Mosh Pit.

Chapter Eleven: The Grim Reaper.

Chapter Twelve: Taken.

Chapter Thirteen: If You Only Knew.

Chapter Fourteen: Thick as Thieves.

Chapter Fifteen: Oblivion.

Chapter Sixteen: Cross Contaminate. **ACTUAL FINAL CHAPTER SEVENTEEN* Traditional. ( Coming Soon. )

[maarslovesmonkees]

Love your writing already and excited for your future works :)

Would you be able to do a nsfw piece for possessive/jealous Noa x female reader with some marking/claiming?

\The Bite On Your Neck\

Hii thank you, that means so much😭🙏 Ouuu I love myself some jealousy from my ape men <3 I Hope you enjoy,:D 💞

Notes and warnings: Gender-neutral terms, Noa x Human!reader, Oneshot, NSFW, 1.2K words.

Noa wouldn't say he's a jealous man. He isn't the most confident in himself, sure but he does acknowledge his high status. No other ape would dare interfere with the bond you too share, s he never really had any thoughts to worry. Youve been part of the Eagle clan for more than a year now, or that's what you think. You don't really keep track of what day it is. Early winter is just settling in, and you were struggling as any other winter you've faced. Suddenly being insanely envious of the thick coat of fur the rest of the apes had. Over the past year, all the apes have warmed up to you, and have a good idea of echo customs; like freezing your ass off during winter.

You hang out with the sunset trio most days, specifically Noa, him being your mate and all. It was a surprising relationship blossom to say the least. Many were quite uncertain of how the relationship will turn out, but Anaya, Soona and Darr has always been supportive from the start and thats all that mattered to Noa.

You both try and spend as much time with eachother as possible whether is eating, sleeping, annoying him while he works with his owls etc. He loved spending quality time with you, just one on one.

—

“Help… with cold”, Anaya reached out a thick wool blanket for you to take. You took it gratefully wondering how he even got a hold of it. You quickly wrapped yourself around it, feeling bliss of the warmth it gave. You huddled close to the fire, as Anaya sat next to you. “Found when hunting”, He spoke as he chewed an apple, one of his favorite fruits. “Washed already…so not dirty”

“Thanks so much”, You smiled brightly at him. You then stretched your body, feeling the tension on your joints release as you’ve been huddled by the fire for a while. “I wish I had your fur so badly right night”, You whined.

You didn't notice Anaya not answering, as you felt hypnotized from the waves of the fire. You then felt a presence right behind you, then big furry arms go around your shoulders. You turned to see Anaya looking away, chewing his last piece of apple, seemingly nervous. Huffing a smile, you nuzzled up against your best friend.

“What it could feel…to have fur”, Anaya sat behind you, pressing his body against your back.

“You cuddle people for warmth a lot?”, I giggled and looked back to the mesmerizing fireplace.

“Not for warmth…Anaya likes cuddles”.

You felt your heart melt at your friends confession. You knew Anaya doesn't like being alone, and you felt a sort of pride being able to give him comfort. You were proud of the growth with your friendship with him, as he was very hesitant at the start, seeing his first echo and all. You became close friends with the goofball, seeing him as a brother.

A large thump of the ground, snap you out of your thoughts. On your left you saw Noa, staring at the fire irritaded, as Soona sat down right next to him, smiling at you.

Anaya let go of you, and proceeds to go and sit next to Soona. As the two talked, you shimmy your way next to your beloved boyfriend, snuggling close to him, resting your head on his broad shoulders. He put his arm around you, resting his head on to your, but you can tell he still seemed tense.

“Had a bad day?”, You sympathize with him as he's been doing quite a lot of errands for the elders. After his fathers passing, he has been held up doing a ton of eagle work.

He didn't answer, holding your body closer to him. Feeling the closeness gave you butterflies, then a great idea popped in your head.

You picked yourself up a little bit, then plopped down on his lap, resting your head on his chest. He took a second to react, but instantly put his arms around you, holding you nice and tight. He put his head down, nuzzling in your neck, deeply inhaling your scent. You shivered from the tickling sensation, giggling again.

“Noaaa that tickles”, You chuckled at him but you gasped as your body froze when you felt his teeth on your skin. It wasn't a bite, more like a nibble.

Your heart was thumping out of your chest as you looked to your side. Anaya and Soona still seemed to be distracted on whatever conversation they were having. You felt Noa sink his teeth gently in your neck, then licking the teeth mark that lightly showed.

Noa can already smell your arousal and stopped, trying to avoid the others getting suspicious. Noa nodded to the direction of your nest and you quickly understood.

—

“Oh fuck”, your voice muffled from the pillow your face was buried in.

Noa hips clashing into yours, his thick hands on your waist keeping you steady. Feeling your walls moving tightly around his cock, Noa couldnt conceal his groans of pleasure. You gripped the ground under you, then try to prop yourself up, feeling your back aching from the pose.

As you lift you head up, Noas hand covered your mouth, and you didnt have enough time to react as he bite down hard between our neck and shoulder blade, drawing blood. You scream into his hand, tearing up as Noa took his mouth off, licking the blood clean off your shoulder.

“You...are mine”, He grunted, his throbbing cock still thrusting into your puffy hole. “Noa's mate only”, you can feel him kissing the bloody mark, then sucking your neck.

Your tears falling down your face, as you felt your pleasure building up in your stomach, as you felt youself squeeze around him. He groaned from the sudden tightness, sweat falling off his forehead, he pulled you up and he finally climaxed inside you.

You felt his warm pool of cum get burried deep inside you, causing you to reach your high. Noa wrapped his arms around your body, slowly thrusting to ride out his orgasm. You shook in his arms, trying to regulate your breathing as you felt your entire body feel fuzzy and warm.

You rested your head behind you on Noas shoulder, finally able to catch your breath, as Noa slow thrusting came to a stop. You both kept kneeling in that position for a minute until Noa carefully layed you down next to him. He pulled you close, been cautious of the big bite mark, not wanting to cause you anymore pain. You buried your face in his chest and finally exhaling. You felt your mate caressing your hair gently, and exhaled a smile. You closed your eyes, feeling yourself drift off to sleep.

Noa looked at the artwork he made on your shoulder, feeling a sort of guilty pleasure forming around his stomach. He doesn't like hurting you, in fact he hastes it, but you were his and his alone. He knew it was irrational, but he couldn't help the feeling of possessiveness when anyone holds you close. Their face so close to your neck they seemed like they were about to mark you filled him with raging jealousy. Its time for everyone in the clan, including his best friend, to realize you're off limits. Youve been marked by Noa now, and your marked for life.

[teojira]

[Light] [Noa x GN!reader oneshot]

Summary: Noa wakes you up at an ungodly hour to go into the overgrown city.

Words: 2.5K+

Warnings: Mutual pinning (neither of you know yet), romance, Reader is insecure, self indulgence at its fucking finest. Gender neutral but Noa thinks you're pretty :)

A/N: I'm so in love with him it actually hurts LMAOO, literally a ache in my chest. I was listening to Light by sleeping at last while writing this <3 hence the title, I hope I got the energy right!

You weren't quite sure what Noa was planning, he had woken you up early, maybe an hour or two before sunrise.

Groaning and rolling away from his poking, he moves to trail a hand down to your side, jabbing his fingers there.

Your eyes fly open with a yelp, staring daggers into his head. You turn to him, and he has a small smirk on his face, laughing silently about the pout of your face.

He's already dressed in his normal attire, his feathered adorned to his person, a sling wrapped around his shoulder as well.

Noa watches your face take him in, and he hopes to anyone who's out there, to Caesar you can't tell how flushed he gets under your gaze. It's bad enough that everyone in the clan side eyes him because they know of his feelings for you. He hasn't worked up the nerve to tell you himself. He doesn't know what to do. He's both simultaneously enamored with you and your differences, but in the same vein, you're so different.

Sometimes, a part of him wishes he hadn't fallen for you. It'd be easier. It's easier to just be your friend and your protector, but falling for you was as easy as breathing.

You move to stretch out our limbs, groaning as you twist and turn, eyes still half lidded. The noise gaining his attention, his previous thoughts disappearing.

You're pretty like this, he thinks. You always do though, no matter what you're doing.

"What the fu-

Noa shoves a finger against your lips, gesturing for you to be quiet.

'I need you to come with me, important.' he signs, moving to grab at your hand, pulling you up. He forgets his strength a lot and yanks you into his chest. Your head knocks into him, and you yelp. In his defense, he didn't mean to!

"Sorry." He sniffs, using a large hand to rub at your forehead to soothe the ache there.

"This better be worth waking me up."

"It will be, come on."

Noa leads you down to the horses, a hand on the small of your back, pushing you to go faster.

"Noa, what is the rush? Is everything okay?" You dig your heels into the soft earth beneath you, looking at him with concern.

He's been unusually impatient.

It's early as hell in the morning, no one else is awake. Not even Dar is up and about and that woman is constantly moving.

"Everything is fine, you worry too much."

"I worry a normal amount, thank you very much." You stick your tongue out at him, moving a hand to rub at your eyes, to get rid of the crust lingering.

You both arrive at the hut where the horses are kept, you linger back as Noa goes inside to grab his. He's fast and efficient, checking the satchel strapped to the animal to make sure he has everything he needs for this impromptu trip he's taking you both on.

It's cute the way he gets in the zone, his eyes trained on his task.

Yawning, you're not processing Noa's words until he's right in front of you in the saddle. That was fast.

"Come, come. Do you want to ride with me or ride alone?" Noa always ask, and he knows the answer by now.

You always ride with him, just like you always go with him anywhere.

It's a running joke in the clan that you're Noa's shadow, always at his heels, asking if he needs anything or if there's something you can do in general.

You've come a long way since then, finding your place in the clan. Not needing to follow Noa like a lost puppy, but as it turns out, you can't shake the habit of being around Noa when you can. Without thinking, you find your way towards him.

A part of you is still insecure about your place among them, knowing just how different you are. Noa is your only true companion, you think. Dar is loving, but you're worried she doesn't like you, same with Anaya and Soona. No matter how much they say they love you, years of differences have made you insecure.

So you cling to Noa like a lifeline, despite knowing you shouldn't, surely he doesn't want to be around you all the time. It's not fair to him.

But Noa never let it show that he finds your differences bothersome, you couldn't lift what the others could? No worries, he'd adjust it for you, making you a pulley to help or helping you himself when he had the time.

Or if you didn't know how to fish or hunt, he'd take you and Soona, and Anaya would come with all three encouraging you and helping you learn. He'd ask his mother to teach you how to make garments and how to farm the earth. He always looked out for you, even if he wasn't around.

They never made you feel like a burden, Noa never made you feel like a burden.

How were you not supposed to love him? In every universe, you're sure you were to be in love with him in every single one.

"Help me up?" You ask sheepishly, lifting your arms up so he can grab onto you.

"Of course."

It's been about an hour or two, give or take on the ride to the overgrown city. Not that you'd know. With the warmth of Noa against your back and the steady movement of the horse, you've fallen asleep again.

Noa snorted when he realized, your body slumped into his, your hand loosely holding the saddles horn in a feeble attempt to not fall off.

He has to wrap an arm around your waist to make sure you didn't fall off or that what he tells himself.

Noa would never admit it, but he cherishes how easily you trust him, how comfortable you are with him, it makes him feel important, makes him feel loved. He'll give you shit for it, but nothing makes him happier.

You're only asleep for the last hour of the ride, breathing softly as Noa leads you both past the overgrown city, the hooves of the horse being the only noise being made.

"Here, wake up." He slows down the horse, pulling to a stop in front of a looming building, covered in greenery. He has not so great memories of it. Almost falling to his death would do that to you. But he won't take you that high. He'd never put you in danger.

His arm slips from your waist, moving to rub up and down your side as he tries and wakes you up for the second time today.

You let out a grumble. He feels it in his chest, and it makes him chuff, but open your eyes, blinking rapidly to get the sleep out of them.

Once he's positive, you won't fall without him propping you up. He demounts with an ease, his feet hitting the ground in a soft thump as he turns around to face you, holding his hands up so you can use him to get down yourself.

You move to grab his hands with your own, ignoring the spark that runs down your spine at the contact.

There are so many differences between you and Noa, too many to even begin to count, but the way his hands are similar to yours, the way he immediately holds you so gently, makes them seem insignificant. Is this what love is? It's weird.

Noa sets you down on the ground, smiling softly at you, then moving to wrap the reins around a piece of metal protuding out of the ground to ensure the horse doesn't go anywhere. Something he didn't use to do, but after the events of the last time he came into the city, he's not going to have that mistake happen again.

"We'll start climbing here." You crane your neck and balk at just how tall the structure is, it's a good couple of stories up, he's insane.

"Uh, Noa, I don't think you remember, but I can't really climb that high."

"I carry you, like I always do." He says it nonchalantly, shrugging with a shoulder.

"Noa, I'm heavy, no." It's always embarrassing when he carries you. It makes you blush, and you're terrified he can hear your heartbeat.

The look he shoots you is devastating.

"You always say that, you are not." He argues, looking offended on your behalf.

There's no point arguing with him about this.

You sigh and gesture for him to turn around so you can climb onto his back.

He does just that, crouching towards the ground.

You're always afraid of choking him out when you get on his back, so you take extra care to gently wrap your around around his neck, sliding your legs around his waist.

"Are you ready? It'll be a bit of a climb."

You let out a 'mhm.' Your brain too occupied with taking in his warmth and his scent, mind all fuzzy at holding him.

"Hold on tight." He squeezes your thigh.

The climb is uneventful, mostly you filling in the silence with what you've done in thr last few days, Noa nodding and offering a hum here and there.

He finally stops, jostling you a bit to look at what he's come to show you.

A smile creeps along your face. It's Eagle eggs, four to be exact.

Despite the Eagle clan hand raising plenty of the birds, they don't do well breeding with their intervention, so to see a clutch is rare.

"Pick the egg that speaks to you the most."

You stare at the nest of eggs, taking in each one's complexion. It's hard, you have no idea why you have to choose. You figure Noa just wants your input, so you take it seriously.

Within a minute, you decide to point to the biggest egg in the center. The eggshell is freckled, and it stands out the most among its siblings.

"I like that one." You say softly in Noas ear. He nods and scoops it up, taking care to put it in the sling.

"Was that it? Can we go home now?" You rest your head on his own, holding back from nuzzling into his soft fur.

"Yes, this is all I needed today."

After making a slow descent down the crumbling tower, Noa helps you get back onto the horse, throwing himself behind you. He moves the egg sling to be on his back, in order for you to be comfortable. (He wants you to lay against him so bad again)

The way home is filled with a comfortable silence, only breaking when you see fit.

It's always nice to spend time with Noa, but this particularly feels different, like something is innately changed in your relationship. You're probably imagining things though.

Noa stops shortly before the village, it not being more than an acre away.

Noa swings a leg off the saddle, falling down and reaching for your waist to lift you down as well.

He breaths out your name, continuing after a moment. "Before we go, I need to give you something. Close your eyes."

You lift an eyebrow at him, but do as you're told. It's Noa, you trust him with everything in you, so your eyes slide closed.

Noa ruffles with something, cursing quietly under his breath. It makes you giggle, you had been teaching him some human vocabulary, alot of curse words included.

You're a bit startled when you feel him brush your hair away from your face, his thumb gently brushing against your skin. The blush that threatens to overtake your face is insane, and you hope he thinks it's just because the sun is beaming down on the both of you.

You feel something be placed over your head, sliding down and stopping at your chest.

Noa takes a second to readjust it, making sure it's snug and resting comfortably on you.

"Open now."

Peeling your eyes open, you're greeted with a blinding smile by him, and your mouth goes dry for a second at it. Yes, he has always been handsome, but the way he's looking at you now, the way his eyes are shining with happiness, it's a lot to take in. He's so handsome and he doesn't even know it.

Noa doesn't notice your internal dilemma over him, nodding his head towards your chest, still beaming with pride.

You snap yourself out of your Noa fueled daze, eyes going down to your chest.

It's the egg you chose.

Confusion fills your brain for a second.

"This is your egg, why am I carrying it?"

Noa told you all about how his egg was crushed the first time he got it, and how a downward spiral that moment had lead to.

Even though he had Eagle son now, you had figured he still wanted his own, to say he had done it for his late father.

"No, this is your egg."

"What?"

"Your egg, your Eagle to raise."

"Noa-"

"Noa, nothing. You are part of us. You get an eagle."

"Noa, I'm not. This is special to your clan. Someone else should have my egg." You try and carefully slip the sling from your neck, but Noa beats you, his hands inclosing around your own to stop you.

"You are apart of the clan." He murmurs, pushing your hands down until they're at your side. His hands then come back to your face, holding your cheeks gently.

"You're not an outsider."

The lump in your throat is suffocating, your eyes well past the point of welling up. Salty tears having no consideration for how embarrassing it is for you to cry over this.

Noa hums, this thumbs coming up to brush them away, still smiling, his eyes willed with warmth and his smile just the more softer.

He pulls you in then, resting his forehead on yours, a hand against the back of your head.

You let out a shuddering breath, smiling so hard it starts to hurt.

"You're apart of me."

"Noa! My Eagle hatched!" You're sprinting to him, he just got home from exploration with Anaya. You've missed him, even more than usual.

You move to grab his hand, trying with all your might to pull him off to drag him to the Eagle area.

Anaya shoots a look to Noa, a smug smirk on his face.

"Noa you go, your mate needs you." He teases, dismounting his horse, grabbing Noas reins from him.

Noa sputters, quickly signing that no, you two are not mates, at least not yet. He hasn't even asked if you liked him yet! He's told Anaya this on the trip, many times, after many rounds of teasing.

You don't understand their signing that well yet, so you tug at Noas hand again, intertwining your fingers.

"Noaaa, come on!" You whine.

Noa is sure he'd do just about anything you asked of him, and then some. So he gets off the mount and runs with you.

Anaya snorts, shaking his head good-naturedly.

"Not mates, as if."

[a-boca-do-inferno]

good graces (caesar x human!reader)

summary: A remarkable ape catches your eye at the sanctuary.

warnings: angst, swearing, mild fluff

words: 0.8k

notes: just a little drabble... he owns me now i fear. enjoy!

gif credit

“Hungry?” You hum with a soothing tone, petting the orangutan’s head to catch his attention. He eyes you and signs positively, making you smile. “That’s why you’re my favourite, but don’t tell anyone. They might get jealous.” You tease and Maurice grunts in response, clearly amused by your words.

You were a volunteer at the sanctuary for a year now and you attempted your best to help the apes in light of the clear mistreatment they received from that blond asshole. You lost count of how many times you tried to get him fired, but the owner simply didn’t care enough for the animals to do something about it, so your only option was to show some kindness when you fed them or went inside to clean the cages. Most were indifferent to your presence there when it wasn’t food related, outside from Maurice and Cornelia, who had gentler personalities. Until something happened.

Someone.

A newbie came along—wearing clothes, no less. He was standoffish and kept to himself a lot, but the primates didn’t like him already, especially Rocket; and so you watched with an aching heart as he beat up Caesar and no one did anything to stop it, ape or human. You wanted to step in and do something, anything, even if it meant you getting hurt in the process, however it was out of your reach.

“That’s just how nature works, (y/n).” The boss tried to console you that morning, to which you only huffed in indignation.

As weeks went by, the newcomer got settled in, albeit not without his fair amount of struggles. Everyone picked on him and one day, you simply had enough. Stepping inside the area of the cages, your ears ringed as the animals screeched in excitement, probably thinking you were bringing food. You strolled towards Rocket’s cell and tapped lightly on it, catching his attention.

“You need to stop.” You sign firmly, although being fully aware Rocket didn’t know ASL as well as Maurice did. The other apes look at you with a mix of confusion, some even getting angry at the realisation you’re not there to feed them, and they start screaming again. You continue, your hands swift, “leave Caesar alone.”

As you said that, your eyes fell automatically on Caesar’s cage at the end of the hall. He stared at you quietly, his green orbs filled with curiosity and sheer surprise at your display of protection. Amidst the bullying he endured daily, the ape didn’t have time to take note of your kind acts, the hurt from being abandoned by Will the only thing in his mind—up until that moment, that is. The apes kept on shrieking while you sighed and prepared yourself to leave at last. A gesture from Caesar made you stop in your tracks, though. You never saw him speak to anyone before.

“Come.” He signs almost stealthily, blinking impatiently towards you.

You step closer to his cage and ignore the loud sounds around you, raising your brows. “You know how to sign?”

He hoots softly, suddenly excited at your interest. “Dad taught Caesar.”

You can’t help but grin, nodding slowly. “That’s amazing… I never saw a chimp sign before, only orangutans.”

He grunts and points to you, asking, “why defend Caesar?”

You consider his question for a split second and shrug. “Why not?”

He snorts happily at your answer. It’s like music to your ears, for you never heard him make such a sound before. He glances back at his cell, staring into blank space as he remembers the harsh treatment he was put through every day. “Everyone hates Caesar.” He signs simply. A statement, as if it was a known fact.

You shake your head vehemently, eyeing him with resolve. “I don’t hate you.”

As Caesar finds your gaze again, he seems deeply affected by your response, walking closer to rest his forehead against the cage. “Thank you.”

“No need to thank me. Just helping a fellow primate out.” You grin, touching his hand through the cold metal separating you both. 

He’s surprised by your touch, the warmth of your hand sending chills down his spine. He looks down at your fingers as his eyebrows raise, his own twitching without being able to grab yours in return. Caesar hoots once more, his expression softening. “Stay.” He pleads, his palm signing desperately.

You feel your chest tighten at the sight, giving him a bittersweet smile. “I’ll come back to feed you in a few hours.”

A whimper escapes him, Caesar’s body hunching forward in disappointment. A moment passes and although his demeanour deflates considerably, he grunts in acknowledgement, still eyeing you eagerly, “Caesar wait.”

You only chuckled to yourself and exchanged one last hand wave with Caesar, walking out of the cages’ room with your head down. Soon you’d have to tell Maurice there was competition to your good graces, now.

[uuuhhhmmmmmmmmidk]

Baby Caesar 🐒💖

Lo amo muchooOoOOoooo😭💖

Me dan ganas de abrazarloooO y jugar con él y y y y 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

[shwaesar]

More Caesar x Reader HCs

Still SFW but gets suggestive near the end (I'm working up to it ok I'm nervous)

You give him so many conflicting emotions and he never quite manages to come to peace with them. But he comes to peace with not coming to peace with them, if that makes sense.

He knows what he is and takes unapologetic pride in it. He's an ape. A creature forged by nature and nurture, a wild animal at his core, regardless of intelligence. Nothing can change that about him, and that's fine. He doesn't particularly want to change it.

But to love a human being feels almost like a rejection of all that. An ape can't love a human the way another human can. A human can't love an ape the way another ape can. So in a sense, you're both having to redefine your very selves just to try and make it work. To give each other what you want and need, while also adhering to your own wants and needs.

It takes a lot of time and patience to figure it all out, but you get there eventually. Or at least as close to there as you can get.

That thought still lingers in the back of his mind that he's not human enough for you, but on the rare occasion he lets those thoughts known, you're always quick to reassure him that you don't love a human. You love an ape.

'Love' is admittedly used in a nuanced way between the two of you. Love for humans means one thing, love for apes means another. But for you and Caesar, love means to choose one another, despite your many differences.

Maurice is honestly a life saver to have helping you both, educating you about ape romance and reassuring Caesar that his efforts in human romance are-..... well, it's the thought that counts.

He has no idea what he's doing but every now and then he'll pull something off that really cements his devotion to you. After all, he doesn't love an ape. He loves a human.

Flowers end up being his go-to gift, at least when he can get his hands on some. The forest is full of them if you know where to look, and he'll painstakingly pick the 'best' and bind the stems with twine before delivering them to you.

And you keep them in an old soda can filled with water, and about once every few weeks you'll have new ones to decorate your living space with, and Caesar can tell how happy it makes you so he keeps doing it and its honestly precious.

Gift-giving turns out to be a courtship ritual humans and apes have in common! But here's the thing-for humans, gifts are about sentimentality. For apes, they're about practicality.

Every now and then Caesar will bring you an 'ape' gift between more 'human' ones.

Once you've started eating more with the community and he doesn't have to bring you designated meals anymore, he starts surprising you with full on carcasses when he returns from a hunt. A testament to his ability to provide for you, at least in his mind.

They get progressively bigger too. Starts with a few hares. Then a boar. Then a stag.

He delivers you a fucking bear he found hibernating in the winter months, and you get a brilliant fur pelt out of it. Being able to keep you warm makes him swell with pride like nothing else, even if you can't help but feel a little bad for the bear.

You also receive a stone dagger after it's clear their usual weapons are too big and heavy for you. It's carved a bit clumsily, but the edge is sharp and there's a patch of rabbit skin wrapped around the handle to make gripping more comfortable. He feels a lot more confident in your ability to protect yourself once you have it, and seeing you use it is another thing that's makes his chest puff out proudly, because he has made sure you're safe, even when he's not around.

Of coarse, most of the time he is around.

And oh boy, when danger comes he is ready. Doesn't matter if it's a wild animal, another ape, another human- he will fuck a bitch up if they pose a threat to you.

The first time it happens is honestly a little scary. You run into a boar while foraging and it does not look happy, and neither does Caesar.

Blocks off your body with his own, fur standing on end, snarling and hooting aggressively at the creature to try and scare it off. His mind is racing with primal instinct the entire time- he has to protect his mate, has to be ready to go for the kill if it charges at you, he can't let his human get hurt-

It's also the first time you get a good look at his chompers, his lips pulled back to show them off in warning, and it suddenly strikes you how easily those teeth could be used against your own delicate flesh if he so desired, how effortlessly he could maul you, bite your fingers off one by one, rip out your throat-

Let's face it though, it definitely awakens something in you.

When the encounters over he has a nasty cut on his thigh from its tusks, and you get him home to treat the wound as quickly as possible. He's apologising the whole time for loosing his usual self control, for potentially frightening you. But then you tell him it suits him, and lord have mercy, once he processes it, you've awakened something in him too.

But that's a conversation for another post uwu

FOREHEAD KISSES

EXPECT THEM OFTEN

Even before anything's official, it's a gesture of trust and familiarity between the two of you. But when you're his mate, the romantic side of it is delved into more deeply.

Cupping each other's faces to hold the position of your temples touching, intense eye contact, deep breaths. It's a kind of intimacy that really burrows deep into you. Without words, he's able to tell you; I'm here. I've got you.

Human kisses are a bit trickier. He's familiar with the concept, he's seen humans kiss, but ape mouths are a lot bigger than ours and have a lot of different things to work around in order to really kiss something.

He's content to just receive them initially. Your lips are so soft and warm and feel so wonderful pressing against the corner of his own, or to his cheek, or to his open palm. Getting such a human form of affection from you carries almost a level of sanctity for him. Only you have ever kissed him. Only you will ever kiss him.

He'll take it to his grave, but he practices on the back of his hand sometimes so he can eventually return the favour.

Until then, the closest you get is him pressing his closed muzzle to your skin and just... inhaling your scent,

He tells you humans have a distinct smell, but individual humans have their own, more specific smell. When you ask what yours is like, he admittedly has to take a moment to think about it.

"You smell.... like home."

Sweet, right? WRONG. He just doesn't want to admit that he's been subtly making you smell more like him. Gotta make sure his territory is clearly his, after all.

AND SPEAKING OF MARKING TERRITORY

Biting.

He doesnt dare try it at first, too aware of the risks. Human skin is much too thin and sensitive for him to indulge in such a a way, no, he just can't bring himself to potentially do you serious harm, regardless of how badly he wants to.

You'd have to be the one to initiate a conversation about it. You can tell he's restraining himself here and there, from the low growls that slip out when he's embracing you, and with how his tongue drags across his canines, it's not hard to tell what he's holding back in regards to.

So you ask him to bite you. If it's a request, he won't worry that you're just trying to appease him.

He'd still cautious, mind you.

"Are you... sure?"

He says it while all but salivating, eyes dilated as he subconsciously scans your body for a good place.

"Don't want.... to hurt you. It will hurt. You... know that."

With just a little more insistence, he all but pounces at the opportunity.

Apes bite each other affectionately quite a bit, little nips here and there, harder ones usually reserved between mates. It holds meaning for them, displaying trust in the other person. You trusting him like that? He's never been more in love with you than he is in that moment.

He goes for the space between your neck and shoulder, carefully avoiding any major arteries. You feel his breath there first, as he does his usual snuffing and growling.

Then his teeth sink into you. Slowly, his broad tongue pressing into the flesh between them.

And the sound you make-

He pulls back abruptly, releasing you with a hoot of distress and grasping your upper arms to look over the mark left behind. Panic jolts through every fibre of his being, he thinks he seriously fucked up. Apes don't vocalise like that-it must be in pain, yes-you're in too much pain-he should never have-....

....

Oh.

....

Oh.

[inkmonster21]

Hahaha jealous Caesar when he spots you talking to an ape or human and he just scares them away with his imitating look making reader confused on why the human man isnt talking to her and then she sees Caesar do it. Making her tease him for being jealous.

I hope you're doing okay and that you remember to drink lots of water and refresh when needed, so you're not pushing yourself.

Jealous Ape

Caesar x Reader

A/N: thanks so much! I am feeling so much better today! Finally finished my antibiotics and I’m feeling like myself again! ❤️

~o0o~

Caesar observes you from afar, his gaze always watchful and observant. He sees the way you greet everyone with a kind smile, the warmth, and friendliness that radiates from you. There's something about you that intrigues him, that draws his attention and keeps his gaze on you. As you move through the colony, you can feel his eyes following you, studying you from a distance.

As you take a seat next to the female apes, the young chimps hoot in excitement, their eagerness to be groomed and fussed over by you evident. You offer them a warm smile and a friendly greeting, "Morning." The female apes greet you in return, the familiarity and comfort between you all evident. The young chimps chatter and clamber towards you, eager for your attention and grooming.

Caesar observed the scene before him, watching silently as the young chimps clambered and chattered around you. There was something about the way you interacted with them, the gentleness and care in your touch, that stirred something within him. He found himself growing fond of you, the way you engaged and played with the young ones, the way you handled them with patience and affection.

As Caesar watches you, he can't help but admire the way you seamlessly integrate yourself into the flock. Despite being a human, you had quickly become an accepted and respected member of their community. Caesar sees the way the other apes look at you, the way you handle yourself with confidence and dignity, and he cannot help but feel a sense of grudging respect for you.

You and your group had come to the apes months ago, offering a barter. Goods and materials for protection and access to the land that the apes lived on. But as part of the agreement, you had also offered something else - yourself. You had agreed to stay in the colony, to live among the apes, as a way to ensure that the humans would never turn on them again. Over time, you had become a permanent fixture in the colony, and the apes had come to accept and respect you as one of their own.

You had earned your place among the apes, slowly gaining their trust and earning their respect. Your calm and respectful demeanor had helped you integrate into their community, and you had come to feel like you belonged there. You had learned their customs, their language, and their way of life, and they had accepted you as one of their own. In many ways, you had become an unlikely ambassador between the worlds of humans and apes, straddling both worlds and finding a place for yourself in the middle.

Over time, Caesar began to spend more and more of his free time with you. At first, it was just occasional conversations or exchanges of pleasantries, but gradually, he began to seek you out more frequently. You found yourself enjoying these moments, the time spent in his company, and the conversations that flowed easily between the two of you. As the days passed, you grew more comfortable with one another, a strange and unexpected friendship developing.

Despite the growing bond between you and Caesar, you knew that pursuing a romantic relationship with him was not possible. The differences in your species made it impossible, even if you had felt differently. So you chose to remain silent on your feelings, keeping your heart locked away and hidden, despite the longing and affection you felt for the ape king.

You knew that Caesar could never feel the same way you do. The gulf between human and ape was too vast, and the idea of him returning your affection was simply wishful thinking. So you resigned yourself to silently pining after him, knowing that your love would forever remain one-sided and unfulfilled.

Caesar would occasionally leave small gifts at your door or give them to you during meals, simple gestures that showed he was thinking of you. You never failed to gush over the gifts, and he couldn’t help but smile as he watched your reactions. He was pleased to know that you appreciated his thoughtfulness, even if it was more out of friendship than anything else.

Caesar had spent several days gathering shells and twine, working carefully to braid them together into a necklace for you. The necklace was beautiful and delicate, the shells a beautiful array of colors and shapes, woven together elegantly with the twine. Despite the simplicity of the materials, Caesar was pleased with his work, knowing that you would love it.

As you pick through your food, you notice Caesar approaching. You look up and smile, greeting him with a simple "Hi, Caesar." Your eyes linger on him for a moment longer than necessary, taking in his stature.

Caesar was always vigilant, always on guard, but around you, he found himself able to let his body relax. He trusted you, deeply. Over time, he had grown to care for you, his feelings developing from mere trust into something more intimate.

Caesar moves closer to you, sitting down beside you with a gentle rustle of leaves. He holds out a small, crudely wrapped bundle, the gift he had promised to you. His voice is soft and a little hesitant as he speaks, "I brought you...a gift."

You smile as you extend your hand, ready to receive the gift. Caesar gently places it in your hand, and as he does, your soft skin brushes against his calloused fingertips, a brief but charged moment of contact.

As you both smile at each other and gaze into each other's eyes, there is a moment of connection, a spark of something more than friendship. The air between you seems to crackle with tension, the silence speaks volumes.

As you look down into your hands, you can't help but gasp at the sight of the necklace in your hands. It is beautiful, the shells a riot of colors and shapes, the twine woven together elegantly. It's obvious that Caesar had spent time and care crafting the necklace, and you can't help but be touched by his thoughtfulness.

"Caesar," you hum as you look at the necklace, admiring it with reverence. You could feel your heart swelling in your chest, touched by the thoughtfulness and care he had put into crafting this necklace, just for you. It was a simple gesture, but it spoke deeply of his feelings for you.

"It's so beautiful," you say, the words a whisper as you admire the necklace. The shells glimmer in the light, their colors and patterns creating a mesmerizing display. The twine is expertly woven, its thinness almost invisible as it holds the shells together. You touch the necklace reverently, tracing a shell with a fingertip.

"Thank you." The words come out as a soft murmur, filled with gratitude and warmth. Your heart is full of feelings you can't fully express, and there's an urge to reach out and embrace him. But you hold back, uncertain about crossing a line. You don't want to ruin this moment or risk losing the friendship you had so carefully built together. So instead, you simply look up at him, meeting his gaze with a look filled with emotion.

Caesar could sense your desire to embrace him but could also see the hesitation in your eyes. He understood the conflicted feelings that were churning within you. The line between friendship and something more was a delicate one, and he didn't want to force you to cross it if you weren't ready.

Caesar's voice is gentle and soft as he urges, "Put it on." His fingers wrap around the necklace, and he moves your hair gently to the side, revealing your bare shoulders. The movement of his hand is tender, his touch gentle as he positions the necklace against your skin.

You can feel your breath catch in your throat as Caesar's fingers brush against your skin. The touch is like a spark against a dry tinder, setting a fire within you. His hand is warm and strong, and the sensation of his fingertips against your skin sends your heart hammering in your chest.

The shells of the necklace rest gently against your chest, their smooth surfaces rising and falling with each breath you take. The feel of the necklace is almost intimate, the shells cool against your skin, a constant reminder of Caesar's thoughtfulness and care.

You found yourself grappling with conflicting thoughts and emotions. Was this necklace simply meant as a gesture of peace, a way to strengthen the bond between apes and humans? Or was it something more, a display of affection or care from Caesar to you? The line between friendship and something deeper was becoming increasingly blurry, and you couldn't quite make heads or tails of Caesar's behavior.

You look back at Caesar, the sight of his fond smile bringing a flicker of uncertainty to your heart. His expression is soft and affectionate, his gaze lingering on you for a moment longer than usual. It's a sight that both warms and confuses you, leaving you questioning the true nature of his feelings.

This wasn't the first time you had gone to bed feeling confused about your feelings for Caesar, and it certainly wouldn't be the last. The tumultuous emotions swirling inside you, the uncertainty and longing, kept you awake at night. The necklace he had given you remained on your bedside table, a constant reminder of your complicated relationship with the ape king.

The sun had barely risen when your group finally emerged from the woods, looking tired but satisfied. You quickly stood up from your perch on a log and hurried over to them, your heart filled with relief and happiness to see them all unharmed and safe. Without hesitation, you embraced your friends, wrapping your arms around them in a tight hug of greeting and affection.

You were eager to hear all about their journey, wanting to know what they had seen and experienced in the days they had been gone. "So," you say as you pull away from the hugs, "tell me everything. What happened on your journey?"

James, the former military officer who sat next to you, began to weave an embellished version of the story, describing their adventures with exaggerated bravado and humor. You found yourself giggling at several points, easily able to recognize the embellishments but finding them amusing nonetheless.

As James continued his story, you couldn't help but feel eyes on you. The sensation of being watched from a distance was unmistakable, and you glanced around, trying to identify the source of the gaze.

You turn around, trying to see who might be watching, but everyone else in the colony seems occupied with their own business. You absently toy with the necklace at your throat as you listen to James's story, your fingers tracing the smooth shells, trying to shake off the uneasy feeling.

You can't help but laugh at a particularly amusing moment in James's story, your eyes sparkling with mirth. Even as you chuckle, however, you still can't shake the feeling of being watched.

James, just as he was telling the next part of the story, turns towards you, a question on his lips. He looks at you for a moment with curiosity, as though he wants to ask something. Your anticipation for James's question is interrupted as he suddenly looks past you, his gaze drifting away. You turn to follow his gaze, your eyes falling on Caesar, who is standing nearby, watching the two of you intently.

Even without looking, you can sense the intense gaze of the ape king, and you turn to see Caesar's expression, his eyes narrowing at James. The look on Caesar's face is one of possessiveness and anger, and it becomes even more apparent as James leans slightly closer to you.

The sight of James being so close to you bothered Caesar, the possessive gleam in his eyes growing more intense. Caesar's body seemed to tense slightly, and his eyes flicked between you and James, his jaw clenching slightly.



James, perhaps feeling the intensity of Caesar's glare, leans back, creating some distance between the two of you. He looks slightly uncomfortable, and there's a subtle flicker of fear in his eyes as he glances at Caesar.

For the rest of the night, it was as if Caesar was constantly watching you. His eyes tracked your every movement, and any time a male human approached you, his glare would harden, warning them silently to keep their distance. It was a territorial display, a silent declaration of ownership.

You felt your limbs growing weary and your mind weary, ready for respite. "I'm going to head to bed," you finally say, getting up slowly from the log.

James stands up as well, his expression casual. "I'll walk you," he offers. "My tent's close by, so I'm headed there anyway."

You nod in agreement, and together with James, you begin walking towards your abode. The path is dimly lit by the flickering of distant fires, casting dancing shadows on the trees. The night air is cool and quiet, the sounds of crickets and nocturnal creatures filling the air.

You and James continue down the path, and soon you arrive at your house. Its simple structure is made of sturdy branches and leaves, and it blends well with the surroundings.

"Here's my stop," you say, gesturing to your house. "Would you like to come in for a moment?"

As you invite James inside, he looks like he's about to accept, but the sudden change in his demeanor is unmistakable. His gaze turns fearful, and he gulps, shaking his head. "No," he stammers, "I'll just... see you tomorrow."

With a swift sidestep, he walks off, his steps quickening as he leaves. You're left standing there, bewildered by the sudden shift in his behavior.

As you turn around, you find Caesar. He stands, glaring at James's departing figure, his eyes fixated on the human male as he scurries away. You cross your arms and look at Caesar, a mix of curiosity and slight irritation in your expression.

"What are you doing?", your tone is a mixture of annoyance and curiosity. Caesar's attention snaps back to you, his intense gaze meeting yours. There's a moment of silence as he regards you with an almost guarded expression.

"I was making sure you were safe," Caesar finally replies, his voice slightly gruff. As you look back at James's retreating figure, a small smirk tugs at the corners of your mouth. "Pretty sure I can take him," you remark, your tone light and almost challenging.

Caesar huffs in response, a sound that seems both amused and jealous at once. He regards you with a mixture of admiration and protectiveness, his gaze holding a hint of possessiveness.

Caesar's eyes linger on James for a moment longer before he looks back at you, his gaze focused and intense. His question, "Do you... care for him?" hangs in the air between you, the weight of his concern tangible.

Your eyes widen with surprise as the nature of Caesar's question hits you, and you exclaim, "James?"

You study Caesar's expression, trying to discern the true meaning behind his words. Is he worried that you have feelings for James? The thought is both shocking and confusing.

Caesar's gaze remains fixated on you, his expression a mix of concern and vulnerability. He's waiting for your answer, his body tense as if anticipating your response. There's a sense of anxiousness about him, a fear of what your answer might be.

Your curiosity piqued, you press further, asking, "Why?"

Caesar's gaze intensifies as he processes your question. He takes a moment to gather his thoughts before speaking. "I just want to know," he replies, his voice tinged with a hint of defensiveness.

As you shake your head and quietly admit that you care for someone else, your gaze averts away from Caesar. A mixture of emotions flits across your face - trepidation, vulnerability, and a hint of uncertainty. You swallow hard, the truth laid bare in your admission.

Caesar's expression softens slightly as he absorbs your words. The knowledge that you care for someone other than James seems to lift a weight from his shoulders, and his gaze warms a bit. However, there's a slight flicker of disappointment and longing in his eyes. He nods slowly, a quiet acceptance in his gesture. "Who?" he asks softly.

Your hand instinctively grips your necklace, your fingers tracing the smooth shells as a soft smile graces your lips. It's a subtle, unconscious gesture that speaks volumes about whom you care for.

As Caesar takes in the sight of your hand on the necklace he gifted you, his expression softens even further, understanding flickering across his face.

Caesar's tone is tinged with a mixture of disbelief and uncertainty as he points to himself. "Me?" The word hangs in the air between you like a question mark, his eyes searching your face for confirmation. Despite his doubts, there's a spark of hope in his gaze, a glimmer of belief.

You release a nervous breath, a mix of vulnerability and resignation coloring your words. "Don't act so disappointed," you say, your voice tinged with a hint of sadness. "I know it wouldn't... work out."

Caesar watches you, his expression shifting to one of realization and acceptance. He knows the truth, the reality of the situation, and yet... there's a part of him that yearns for it to be different.

Caesar steps closer, his movements deliberate and filled with a newfound determination. "No," he says firmly, his voice laced with conviction. "I am not disappointed... at all."

The distance between you shrinks with each step he takes, and his eyes search yours, filled with a mixture of hope and longing.

Caesar’s smile grows as he steps closer, his body now inches away from yours. "I am… glad," he says, his voice soft and sincere.

The proximity between you feels charged, the air thick with anticipation. Caesar gazes at you, his gaze affectionate and filled with tenderness.

Caesar's hand comes to rest gently on your cheek, his touch warm and tender. He then slowly, almost reverently, leans his head forward to bring his forehead against yours. The press of his skin against yours is intimate and affectionate, an unspoken gesture of affection and care.

As you stand with Caesar, forehead to forehead, the world around you fades away. There are no colony members, no humans, and no dangers to worry about. At this moment, it's just the two of you.

Your heart beats in time with his, and in this quiet, intimate moment, a silent declaration is made. You are his, and he is yours. The bond between you feels palpable, like a tether that can never be broken.

[ohwaitimthewriter]

Chase

Pairing: (HEAVILY) implied!Caesar x human!reader

Warning: yearning............

Summary: You played a game and didn't understand all the rules…

Words: 751

A/N: it's 2am and I wasn't expecting this to happen 😳

Enjoy your reading! 😁

Planet of the apes Masterlist.

You ran away.

Were you aware that he'd catch you? Caesar didn't know, but the fact was, he'd caught you.

His hand crept up your ribs, coaxing and gripping your ribcage lest you try to escape again. He didn't need much pressure to feel the toughness of your bones under his fingers, which suddenly seemed as fragile as a twig. If he squeezed any harder, he'd crush your ribs like autumn leaves on the forest floor. One sudden pressure and his natural strength would shatter the meager protective barrier of your ribcage.

Your ribcage was expanding to the rhythm of your laughter, which you were obviously having trouble holding back, and your hand had instinctively found its place on his forearm, your fingers gracefully snaking their way between his fur. Your skin was barely touching his at this point, and Caesar found himself obsessed by the pressure of your fingertips, which nestled more and more against his skin as your laughter compelled you to lean on him to keep your balance.

A laugh so intoxicating, so heartfelt that he found himself escaping a few playful exhales from his lips, sounding like he was taking several deep breaths successively.

And that's when your forehead met his shoulder. Your lungs under his powerful hand tried to catch their breath, but calming the jolts of your laughter was so laborious that you had to lean against his shoulder to support your body.

He had only one step to take, only one pressure of the hand to force you backwards, and no doubt he would follow your steps until your back met the tree trunk only a few meters behind you. His thumb unconsciously slipped between two of your ribs, and he knew that a single twitch could make you move as a result of the slight pain you'd feel.

But he didn't.

Your shaky breath brushed his fur, which stood on end at the warm sensation emanating from your mouth so close to him.

What had you gotten him into? He felt a bite in the pit of his stomach. A pleasantly warm bite that gnawed at his insides and made him salivate to the point where he had to run his tongue over his canines several times to restrain himself from digging them into the skin of your neck. This skin that taunted him, letting him see the pulsations of your heart through it.

Would you allow it? He didn't have much to do, his muzzle was already close to your neck and all he needed was a few centimeters, just one small movement to bury his nose against your skin and take delightful sips of your bewitching scent. All he'd have to do then would be to curl up his lips and, first, graze your delicate skin with his canines before letting his tongue trail along your jugular vein. Then, if, and only if, you'd let him, he'd come and taste the few pearls of blood that would crumble over your neck, marking you forever as his own.

His stomach didn't seem to be holding still as your breathing found its normal rhythm, your genuine laughter dying in a chuckle before ending in a single gasp.

Your head left his shoulder and, despite his determination to keep you as close to him as possible, he loosened his grip on your ribs to let you take a step or two backwards. Your smile cracked your face until it rose to your eyes, making them sparkle, and you had no idea of the turmoil still dilating Caesar's pupils, letting his gaze appear blacker than it normally would be.

“Next time, I'll run faster,” you giggled.

Caesar snorted and forced himself to ignore the pulse pounding in his skull to claim your ribcage again as his own, this time with both hands, so as not to give you another chance to pull away from him.

“Yes… you'd better do that.”

His husky voice sang a silent vow that you wouldn't get off so easily, and a wave of tingling settled deliciously in the small of your back.

Next time, Caesar would come and take what your alluring scent dared him to take without you being fully aware of it. Your scent that taunted his insides and compelled him to hold his breath to avoid immediately giving in to the thrilling impulse to make you his. This pleasant bite that gnawed at him, he was going to use it to court you… until the next chase.

[sivyera]

hi!! i loveee yr planet of the ape writings, blue eyes is literally my favorite!! but i was wondering if yu could do dating hcs for caesar?

thank yu so so sooo so much n i hope yu have a nice day/night!!

dating caesar headcanons

planets of the apes caesar x human!reader

a/n: sorry for taking so long, haha! btw guys i'm trying to write all your requests, i was just little off motivation for the past few days, be patient with me... also i'm probably gonna rewrite the dating headcanons i have with Blue eyes, i wrote it like 2 years ago so i'm not satisfyed with it haha, hope you like it!

༺☆༻

Caesar is extremely protective of those he loves, you are the love of his life so you can only imagine how much protective he'd be over you. he'd literally kill for you (which happened already but we are not gonna talk about that...)

when it comes to pda tho, it's something else. he usually keeps you close to himself but he isn't really touchy, maybe when Koba is around because he doesn't like the way Koba looks at you. so when Koba is around, he usually holds your hands or towers behind you

Marice is actually the only one who saw Caesar act all soft with you, because when the doors are closet and the two of you are alone, he's a whole different monkey

he keeps his hand on your lower back or brushes his fingers gently over your thigh, giving you a soft kiss on the cheek.

he has a huge soft spot for you like it's not even funny. Koba (or any other monkey) wants to go to the right? Caesar goes to the left. You wanna go to the right? Caesar goes to the right. and i'm just starting..

he always leaves you the best fruit or the nicest meat or the clearest water, he wants the best nutritions for you since you're much weaker than a monkey

he overall takes a very good care of you. he always makes sure you get enough and proper sleep, that you eat the best food, that you move through the day, etc..

he likes to watch you when you interact with the infants (baby monkeys) because they are always in awe when they see you and it's just so cute to him. see all those monkeys over you with their small hands touching your hair or fingers or ears, they love you and Caesar loves watching your smile

he usually keeps an eye on you through the day, even if he isn't near you, you can feel him and if anything happens, he's immediately by your side

i believe he doesn't sleep so good, he has a hard time falling asleep plus he's a very light sleeper so if you get him to fall asleep for at least few hours, consider yourself a magician

but even tho his sleeping is not so good, he loves to hold you. your presence actually calm him down so even if he's not sleeping, he's resting BUT he has to have you in his arms

when you're sleeping peacefully in his arms, he likes to watch you (it's like a habit already to him). he'd let his finger gently trace the outline of your earlobe while the moonlight shines on your pretty face and the only thing he listens is your steady heartbeat and soft breaths. he swears you're an angel...

he's very gentle with you overall, he knows how strong he actually is so whenever he's interacting with you, he's careful and gentle...

he lets himself be curious about you sometimes and even tho he lived with the humans and he knows them, you're different. you're his girl so he can touch you much more than he could touch Will

he'd explore your fingers, ears, hair, toes, everything and you swear that inside he's still a curious baby (only with you tho, no one else can see this side of him)

you teach him more words and he tries twice as hard with talking because he wants to communicate with you more, but sometimes he pretends like he can't understand just so he can hear your sweet voice

you're the only one that matters the most to him and he's able to start a war just to have you safe... and he's the peaceful guy

when he's not around, he let's Maurice to watch over you

whenever you make him something (like a bracelet or a necklace) he wears it all the time and refuses to take it off but there are times when that thing rips (because he was hunting and ripped it off by accident) and when that happens, he goes to you and tell you to make a new one. he doesn't want you to think that he doesn't value it...

no one dares to pick up on you, no one dares to touch you more than friendly, no one dares to flirt with you because Caesar is always behind you with his cold stare. so if any young males would try to hit on you, they'd quickly give up after they see their leader killing them with his stare

Koba of course isn't a fan of you since you're a human but he respects Caesar (till he don't) so till he lives with others in the colony, he tolerates you

Caesar tries to keep you away from any danger as long as possible but once again something happens, you're the first thing on his mind and he HAS to have you in safety

if he lost you, he'd go feral, literally. he'd kill every human on this planet even tho he's knew that it wouldn't bring you back...

sometimes his love for you scares him, because he was never this much in love but he loves every second of it

[junkienet]

✱ AFTER DAWN CARESSES ？ eagle master noa.

fluff ⌇ cute time with a partner undertone ⸻ ﹙ 𝒜lt ﹒ universe ﹚ established relationships. 𝒻.ᐟreader

LATE AT MIDNIGHT ◞ 09 : 27 o ' clock. ⸻ between entwined legs and arms.

underneath the canopy of bleak branches , the bubbling murkiness of the gelid grime ringlet your perspiring brow. you steep your corporeal weight on your hip—joint , stirring in the fathomless concave of the nest made of caramel—deerskin , shrubbery and withered leaf stalks. noa , master of birds , paladin of the eagle's clan , skates his elephantine thumb across the sun—peel of your cheek. the womb of his gloved palm in carved leather kneads the peach flesh , like seared bread. he whir's , gurgling beneath the thwack of accumulated drool under your tongue, the shore of your eye elongates and squash bellow the pumpkin—cushion of his fingers. you gulp the swell of saliva, cooling the structure of your larynx.

you rasp. " your hand is the same size as my cranium . " the ape crane his mandible , abstracted. his digits clatter on the beak of your head.

" cra—nee—um , hmm. " he scratches his throat, ambivalent.

you nod once , your fingernail galloping along the meadow of ochre fur that drenched the perimeter of his denuded , salmon—skinned ear. " cranium , yes. " you extol the arid tumult at the bottom of your dehydrated mouth. " you could crush it if you wanted to. " you babble in the cadence of a lonely nightingale.

the chimpanzee denies twice , muddling his snout , barbed of your human—kind ideality. he spits a smack of lips in the opposite route , undulating a drapery of your ravelled hair.

" i won't . " his shale timber of voice excavates into a nasal splutter.

you coil your head , distinguishing the crackle of the nest's teeny twigs. " but you could. "

" i won't . "

you broom the juncture of his scruff , blanding the pulsating pitter—patter of the crown of your skull as you perceive a scintilla of his viridian—green orbs , of wheat fields and groves , sumptuous. " i believe you . "

he sprain his upper—spine , the peak of his paw toes stroking the crook contour of his left kneecap . he panted a grunt , an abysmal clamor that hike's aerially , exultant .

" you have long nails . . . you could take my eyes out , " he glabber's with a sequence of drooped blinks. " if echo wanted to. "

you negate three times , slouching your forehead on his leafy , pompous bosom. " i won't. "

his herculean arm cascade parallel to an iron belt through the shoal arch of your waist , impelling you against his thorax.

" i believe you. "

SEXY JUTSU LIKE NARUTO ©JUNKIENET ╱ 2024.

[death---dealer]

I SO badly need a part 2 to Customary with Noa x reader 😭 pretty please!!!

I'M ON THE WAY DEARIE. I am so sorry it's so long but pls enjoy! Reblogs/Likes always appreciated. Maybe I make part three if anyone is interested! Thanks!

Title: Gone Hunting. Fandom: ( Kingdom of the ) Planet of the Apes. Rating: T. ( Mentions of blood, hunting game animals, animal mating. ) Words: 5.9K+ Pairing: Implied - Noa x Human! Reader. Summary: A week has subsided since you told Noa about the nature of romantic love. You wanted to avoid it, avoid him, but you had previously promised to go with him on a hunting trip. Was it a rouse for him to get you alone? READ THE SERIES HERE.

** Does Contain Mild Spoilers for Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes.

-- -- --

It had been a week since your last in-depth conversation and you still found that you were unable to look him in the eye. Noa seemed to not notice, or maybe he did and just didn't care enough to do anything about it. After all, the seriousness of the conversation, the floating vibration that still cramped your fingertips when you thought about touching him, the hardness that found its way to your throat when you attempted any sort of conversation with him… It was disheartening to think, but you figured he just didn't care enough personally to pressure.

-- -- --

“Love doesn’t need to be understood,” You were talking to him in such a hushed tone of voice, something that wasn’t frequent with you and Noa turned his head to the side ever so slightly at the sound of it. Breathy, he would say it was… And very, very different from the self-assurance you often carried yourself with. Wavering around the corner of words as if you were unsure of what you were saying. You were avoiding eye contact again, Noa mused, half tempted to look over his shoulder at what you had locked your gaze on. Probably something off in the distance, a tree fluttering with the slight breeze that shuffled the fur on his body and the hair on your head. An Eagle maybe? Noa was consciously aware that his own feathery friend was sitting behind the two of you, unwavering in their loyalty to him. He wanted to be jealous of something you were looking at, but Noa found himself locked on to you, baited anticipation to hear that voice again, the way it was speaking to him. So soft, so gentle, so… so… Personal.

“Love just needs to be embraced.”

Noa had his hand up to sign but you had turned to the side already, shuffling as quietly as you could. Quiet, but it was deafening to Noa. Every fall of your foot, every breath you were taking deep into your lungs and releasing quickly, tucking your hair behind your ear, the mere friction of that… All sounds were beating down on him like the fists of another Ape. Had he… Done something wrong? Asked something wrong? It was now very obvious that you were done talking, pushed against the wall metaphorically and had nothing else to say to him.

He’d encountered this countless times in the few months that you had been here. But, your inability to go on and explain further left Noa understandably frustrated this time around. Not at you, never at you… He curled his fingers at his side and sat back on his legs, almost burning a hole into the back of your head with his eyes. You were now moving to get the horse you came on prepped for the small journey back to the village. Not that you needed to, it was just something to keep yourself occupied, away from the thought that he was perceiving your words in the way he wanted to. You left it vague enough to leave it up to interpretation, by all means.

Turning his head to the side, he looked at his Eagle and pressed a curled pointer finger to their beak. It was not too far of a trek back, you didn't need to adjust anything with the horse…But it was far enough away that you felt comfortable to talk to him openly. It wasn’t that you wouldn’t with others around, he figured that Echo’s arrogance would run wild and you would want to boast to the Apes about how things were. How things were better for Echo’s than Apes but you never did that. He also heard another concept about Echo’s and that was privacy. And out of all things, Noa knew that privacy in conversations was important. He never understood why; Apes were social creatures and most likely knew everything ( or close to everything ) about their neighbors without plight.

Maybe that was why Noa was so drawn to… He stopped his thought process there and shook his head. He was quick to rationalize. No, there was no reason to be drawn to any of this, but he didn't want it to stop. Noa was even quicker to give into selfish ideology. He was holding his hand out there in the deep dark, hoping to the highest heavens that your hand would reach his.

-- -- --

Tilting your head to the side, a deep sigh left your parted lips. That wasn’t like Noa, though… He wouldn’t adversely reach out to you unless you were willing to reach out first. That’s how it’s been since the beginning and that’s how it remained, you never wanted to change it because it made you feel wanted… Wanted by him…

Your legs felt like they were going to fall off and that derailed your train of previous melancholy. There was a nice river he knew about, about three clicks away and Noa used the excuse of going hunting to drag you with him. You didn't necessarily want to go, you feared being alone with him for prolonged periods of time but surprisingly… It was a pleasant enough ride there on the back of your loaned horse. You believed it to be Soona’s, and you were fortunate that she let you use it occasionally. Not much was spoken, a few phrases here and there spotted between actually talking and Noa signing at you one handed as he kept another hand on the reins of his horse.

The sun was high in the sky, almost midday you figured, peering up at it through the thick branches of the trees. There was a thick smell of condensation clinging to the leaves of said trees; it had rained the night before and deliciously drenched everything. Ironically though, as that thought escaped your brain, your mouth went slightly dry as you looked ahead, only a few feet away from the rider in front of you. He seemed to enjoy the wistful silence that fell around the two of you, his eyes shutting for a brief second as he enjoyed the sensation of the sun peaking through the trees, blotching his body. You noted that his fur seemingly changed color at that. From a dark brown to an almost honey brown. What you would have given in that moment to see him fully bathe in the sun.

Grasping the reins tightly, you beckoned your horse a bit faster. There was a subconscious desire to be near him despite what happened. Hell, you thought to yourself and let a small blush take over your cheeks, you’d have ridden on the back of his horse if he had asked you. Of course, if he turned to face you and noticed your expression, you had a quick response. It was chillier than most days, and that was the smoking gun. You’d blame it on the cold hitting your cheeks. Simple.

But, with yourself already tangled in the thoughts, you proceeded on. You imagined that idea… Sitting so close to him, your chest to his back, heart beating quicker than you cared to admit. Your face resting against his shoulder to look forward, almost the same perspective as Noa himself… You desperately found yourself clinging to that aspect. To see what he saw, to know what he knew, to… To feel what he felt. Now, as you had gotten closer, you could see the evident water droplets lining along his broad shoulders. He must have bumped into a low sitting tree, maybe a bush, that distributed its lovely rain water against him. You could smell in your vivid imagination, how he must smell… Deeply ingrained dirt under fingernails, the Earth below your feet, toes curling into the sand, the brisk whisk of a hazy morning standing in a field of wheat by yourself, the allotment of sun brushing against delicate skin… That prospect alone left you feeling incredibly heady.

‘Here,’ He signed quickly, simultaneously slipping off his horse as he communicated. You were jealous of his ability to multitask like that, it was never your forte. But, Noa must have been doing it his entire life. He was taught to do that, taught from those around him… Observation was a good thing, you learned that from him. You knew that he liked to fidget things in his hands, but he was seamlessly able to sign in between that and not lose track of what his hands were doing before. You swallowed softly, being snapped viciously out of your fantasy.

Giving him a slight nod, you intently watched as he rounded his own horse and glanced up at you with those soft green eyes. Your interest was raised surely, but it was haltered when you got a full glance at him. He had his usual garb on; the cross-body sack, a few empty walnut shells tied near his shoulder with twine that would tickle his cheek if he looked over that twine encasing what appeared to be a leather band, worn from frequent use. He had it just in case he found something of interest to take back to the village, the band on his arm, yellow and orange in nature with a soft accent of tan, with adjacent and colorfully complementing feathers to show his status. They were strikingly blue and vibrant against the brown fur on his bicep, tightening anytime he would move his arm.

The band alone caused you to pause. Noa was large, larger than you by far. Not necessarily taller than any other Ape, but broad and encapsulating, and you found your eyes following him if you were in the company of others. He was the leader, and that band on his arm was more than a slap in the face at times. You remembered in most Ape clans it would be considered a luxury that he was the one personally taking you to go hunt. From the throes of hierarchy itself it was a privilege.

Noa’s eyes momentarily caught the sunlight, appearing more gold around his pupil before shifting back to their regular green as he pushed himself up to stand bi-pedal. They were gorgeous, even without the light hitting them.

‘Been here many times, with Soona and Anaya.’ Noa smiled fondly at that, letting his eyes shift away from yours to take in his surroundings. Wishing to do the same, you found yourself staring at him a moment too long before catching on that you needed to dismount your horse, needed to get your things together from the sack on the back of your horse. There was an assortment of berry bushes to your side, some appearing much more ripe than others. Black berries were sorely abundant and your eyes traced the light shapes of them against the green leaves that they were almost camouflage in. It was just now the beginning of spring, it made sense that some were ready and some were not. But, by your powers of deduction, you gathered that you were not berry hunting. ‘Easy hunting for an Echo.’

His silent words made you feel a swell in your chest. He was being… You didn't dare say considerate, but that’s what it felt like. Perhaps, more accommodating than anything else. After all, you were just a human to him, and he had nothing to gain from being considerate, but had much to gain by gaining your trust so he was more accommodating by nature. At least, that’s what you told yourself as you rested your hands on the base of the horse's shoulders, giving a sharp breath in as you hiked your legs over the side. If you were paying any attention to your surroundings instead of intensely focusing on not slipping, on not looking like a fool, you would feel a set of burning eyes watching. Observing… Obsessing…

Noa tilted his head with a gruff sound, too deep in his throat for it to be caught by your ears from the distance he held himself. Specked, almost amber-like gaze caught hold of your hands, how dainty they appeared to be compared to his own, your legs, how agile you were being, surprising for an Echo, he chuffed to himself. You were usually not like this, not balanced. He had once seen you slip on ice, which replaying inside of his mind was mildly amusing. He didn't help you up that time, and simply watched as you stumbled, trying to sign in between your slips. You could have asked for help, but you didn't. He wondered why from time to time until you explained to him embarrassment. Then it made more sense.

And ever since, he tried to keep a more mindful eye on you, on your movements; Of course, to make sure you didn't fall. He heard that Echo’s were not durable, not strong like Apes and a fall in the wrong way could cause intense problems. That’s just what he told himself though. If he were being more transparent, which he was not being, he’d have to succumb to the act that he needed to keep you protected out of his selfishness.

“Need help?” He verbalized, your feet dangling for a split second before you finally landed on the ground. A grunt left your lips with the action, your knees burning ever so slightly as weight was put back on them. Brushing your fingers along the side of the horse to calm them, you glanced over your shoulder at Noa, triumphant enough to gloat that you didn't need any assistance. “Just like Ape.” His signing was languid as if he were truly unsure if he was okay to make a comment like that towards you.

You grinned to yourself as you turned back towards the horse, shuffling to the side to get to your bag which was easy enough. Trying to ignore that sufficient pride that hit you like a moving horse due to Noa’s simple words, you dallied for a second longer than you really needed to, painting your fingers along the rough sew of your bag. He was just trying to get you to feel comfortable, it was nothing more than that. I mean… You thought to yourself with a snide chuckle. Was… Was flirting even a concept he was familiar with? Surely, they had to have some sort of form. You knew that grooming had to be a heavy part, it was a personal and intimate detail that often got overlooked when human’s thought about Apes and their threshold to be incredibly social with each other. You had seen it first hand, along with those tender moments of foreheads touching one another. Brow to brow, usually hands on the heads to keep each other near as possible, eyes closing as two slowly became one and---

You tucked your shoulders into your bag, more aggressive than you needed to and allowed the added weight to anchor you as you twisted to follow whichever way Noa deemed worthy. You also knew that they were quite sarcastic when they wanted to be, and you found it endearing at times. Especially when it was Anaya. In your head, you had dubbed him as the sarcastic one, Soona as the caring one, Dar as the motherly one, and Noa… was just Noa. No immediate words came to your mind when you tried to think about it. Maybe that was a good thing! Maybe, what was happening, what had been said, was just a crush and you were finally trying to blow past it.

He was staying on his legs for you, not wanting to move onto all fours as his pace would be too fast. Another accommodation, not a consideration. There was his heavy spear splayed across his back, being held by the strap of his bag. It swayed with his movement. Subtle, his shoulders would move ever so slightly as he walked. Following suit, it felt like you were playing a game as you grasped your own spear from your horse. It was smaller than Noa’s but just as effective and hunched it over your shoulder, holding it loosely as you took pace to match his speed. Noa was only a meter or two in front of you, leading, but you wanted to be right by his side. He looked back at you and you found your feet coming to a small stop before picking back up, a silent agreement being made there at that moment. You wouldn’t use words. You would only sign as to not scare away any potential kills.

-- -- --

“I don’t understand,” You muttered to him, your shoulders fraught with confusion. Noa’s green eyes swept from his hands over to you and longed to have it reciprocated. There was nothing though, you were pretty focused on the kill. He was holding a small rabbit who had no idea their demise had come at the hands of the Ape in front of you. It was roughly tied at the feet, binding it so he could keep it stored properly for the ride back to the Village. It was ignorant bliss that the rabbit truly lived in and now it was gone. You were envious of that - the ignorant part. Swallowing softly, you shifted your gaze to the side and pretended to be amused by the fire. He had been studying you, trying to gauge what your words were going to be. Hard, mean? Assuming something you shouldn’t have? You liked to do that and Noa liked to prove you wrong just as much. But, without any eye contact, Noa could not read you. Could not see your face, and could not make any judgments towards you as you asked him, “You--- you hunt?”

Noa knew you knew the answer to that but he obliged it anyway, “Small prey. Rabbit, usually.”

Simple enough answer, and you left it at that. And deep down, Noa’s accusation was correct. You’ve eaten fish frequently enough with the Clan. And as the sun began setting and dinner time rose, you sat quietly perched between Anaya and Soona, both talking over each other about mindless chatter and watched Noa eating a fish, dissecting it almost like he were a scientist of some sort, navigating around the small bones with ease and some sickening form of elegance. He had caught eyes with you then, a piece of fish sliding between his lips as he chewed it tentatively. The beam of the firelight in front of you was able to mask the disappointed look on your face as you realized that he was only looking at you because he sat across from you. Nothing more. Looking away quickly, you put much focus on your own fish, roasted to a tender crisp. Suddenly, Noa’s eyes were watching your moves instead of sinking into your gaze.

The way your fingers swept along the length of the fish, the way you muttered under your breath trying to get a mouthful of fish instead of bone, you felt too self-conscious to eat. You sat it down on a leaf in front of you. Another set of eyes were on you and before you could open your mouth to say something to the Ape leader in front of you, Anaya was signing, asking if he could have your remaining fish. You said yes, hastily looking away from Anaya after the confirmation but Noa was not looking at you anymore, preoccupying himself in conversation with his mother.

That same night as everyone was preparing to return to their own nests, Noa had found you. If he was seeking, you often left yourself open like a book if he wanted to come see you. It was very rarely at night though, and you took it in. Eyes glazed from the sky above, littered with all its tiny self-sufficient lights, boasted tonight by the moonlight, into green eyes that were almost too dark for their own good. You could have sworn there was something mischievous there but-- You pinned it on it being almost pitch black, a trick of the eyes. Of course, his pupils were dilated, there was no denying yours weren’t as well but you weren’t sure if you could justify yours being from the lack of light. He was on all fours as he approached you, your hands setting down the soft pelt that you had dubbed your favorite to use in your make-shift nest.

Nothing to write home about, a tanglement of tightly sprung together branches, padded by a few animal pelts. Off to the side,and tucked away safely, were your clothes. Only enough sets to keep you going. Two pairs of pants, three shirts, some undergarments… You could hear Noa and Anaya in your head at that thought. The day you were caught washing your clothes in the river, the curiosity they both had at that as Noa observed you wringing out the cloth between your hands. ‘Echo weird.’ Anaya signed to Noa as they let you be, turning to go down the river and fish. If you were observant enough, you’d have seen Noa turn back towards you, only for a split second before deciding to leave you to your duty. Which, Noa still didn't understand.

It was enough of a bed that it was comfortable and didn't leave you feeling like a wilted flower the next day. You wondered for a brief time what Noa’s must have been like and felt your shoulders dip in. You were ashamed of how yours must have looked compared to what was the norm. Was Noa’s nest comfortable? Was it warm? Could he look out and see the sky when he wanted to? You knew vaguely that his nest was perched above the rest, a right of passage that was torn between his mother and himself at the moment of his fathers death, at least until he found a mate and then it would ultimately become just theirs. You didn't even realize you were clenching your fists so tightly that your knuckles were turning mildly white.

“You want to go?” He asked, not putting in any context. He must have realized that, picking the conversation apart from earlier, before dinner. “Hunting with me.” He gestured towards himself with a hand in the natural form of a ‘C’. It pressed against his chest gently. He was gesturing to himself which made sense as he continued, “Usually go with Anaya and Soona but can take you alone. The season change, rabbits are more---”

He was murmuring which came to a slow stop, deep in his chest, it faded to the sound of an animalistic growl when you finally turned fully towards him. He was coming up with some way to get you to go with him, to be alone with him, you hadn’t given him barely the light of day since your conversation only a few days ago. Some pathetic attempt it was, Noa shouted in his head and dipped his head when you looked away from him. You knew how to hunt--- You wondered if Noa knew that. There were many times, especially recently as you had gotten disconnected from your fellow group of Humans, that you were forced to hunt. It was needed but not really your favorite thing. You learned quickly though with the Apes that often Females were left to forage for berries, vegetables, seeds and roots and Males were left to hunt actual game. Fishing was done communally, including the young as it was often their introduction to the world and concepts of hunting.

‘I’d just be in the way.’ You signed to him quietly, not wanting to wake anyone up with your tone. Noa huffed at that and tilted his head upwards towards you again. He was still on all fours, it looked like an almost defensive position like he wasn’t opening up to you completely. Bringing you bottom lip in, Noa once again as he so often enjoyed doing, watched. You nibbled once, then again this time harder than before. ‘Not very good.’

‘Better than Anaya, got scared of butterflies once.’ Noa joked, shifting towards you slightly. He looked at the pelt you had so delicately placed in front of you and for less than a split second, he lost control. Pull you towards him, push you down on that pelt and absolutely---

‘Maybe,’ You finally caved, snapping Noa back into reality with your hand moving. Hard. He kept himself grounded, hands resting roughly into the dirt below him. ‘When?’

He had just been hunting today. There was no logical way for him to explain that he wanted to go again to anyone around him. ‘Few days from now.’ He signed slowly.

-- -- --

A few days ended up being closer to eight, and you were left stuck. You had already promised to go hunting, but then the dreaded conversation seven days ago left you dispelled and not as eager to go. Crouched rather uncomfortably next to Noa, you watched him idly tie a knot around his spear. You could tell it got much use and that it was his favorite, though there were many other weapons the Clan could provide. As if he were controlled by another, he raised his arm without looking up. The eagle appeared without a sound, looking at Noa with small beady eyes that you couldn’t read anything from. But, from his reaction as he nodded to himself, raising his arm once again to dispatch his eagle brethren, he must have gotten information. It never ceased to cause you amazement that he was able to do that.

‘Close.’ He signed, drawing you back out of your almost hypnotic state. ‘Den nearby. Finished mating season,’ Noa didn't look at you with that sign, but it was different than his usual language. He was mildly stiff, shoulders drawing in together. You dared to say it was rigid, like he was unsure that it was the phrase he wanted to use. ‘Now many rabbits.’

Lips parting at that, you moved your feet to sort them away from turning numb. The crouching position was more comfortable for Noa, you decided. His spine was curved to sit like this for more extended periods of time, eyes gently grazing over his posture at that moment. He was surely comfortable as could be, shoulders hunching inwards ever so gently. There was a meager temptation from your part to move so you could be face to face with him but you doubted that he wanted that. You were fine next to him, you reassured yourself and swallowed hard. It was a sound that Noa noticed but didn't turn his attention to. Unwanted attention on you, in the past, has caused you to only run or flee from him. He figured he’d bid his time, patiently waiting for you. Your knees felt like they were on fire, calves were absolutely going to cause problems for you tomorrow. from sitting in the squat position for too long. You only lingered on that for a second though as his words finally hit you. ‘Babies?’

‘No,’ He was quick to respond, somehow knowing that his answer was going to calm you down. ‘Mature now, born few months ago. Fast development. Best age to hunt for them. Good meat.’

You nodded and processed what he was telling you. He was incredibly knowledgeable about this, showing off his skills at hunting with just words. How else would he know these things without actively doing it on a habitual basis? You swelled at that thought. That Noa was indeed a provider, a show off at times, but a provider none-the-less. Whomever he ended up with was going to be lucky to have that unwavering dedication which spurred your next inquiry. ‘Mate for life?’

You couldn’t bring yourself to look at him when you signed that. Last time the conversation about mating happened, you ended up not speaking to each other for seven days. He was piqued in it regardless. Were you asking just to converse with him, or did you truly not know the answer? Either way, he considered himself invested and shut his eyes in thought. Tilting his head to the side, he sat his spear in front of him quietly, only cluttering as it shifted against the rock you two were perched on. You were just making a light conversation piece, Noa decided and he wanted to provide an honest answer.

‘No, many partners over time.’ He was using both hands to sign before he dropped his green orbs to rest on you. Not just on you, but it felt like he was crawling inside of your skin with his next set of words. ‘Not like Ape or Echo.’ Obviously, he meant it in the broadened terms. All Apes and all Echo’s. Not just the two of you. Shaking that idea out of your head, you nodded your head in understanding.

‘Mating is fast for them,’ Noa went on, just desperate at this point to continue on the path of conversing. He knew it was making you nervous, he could hear your heart beating, he could smell the sweat build up on your forehead, on your palms. One part of him deceivingly liked it, the knowledge that he could get you like this, but then there was the other oblivious side of him that didn't counteract his thoughts and he found himself continuing. ‘Have seen it. Only seconds. Female…’ Noa only spared you a slight glance.

Just as quickly as his eyes met yours, they were gone and he was looking out into the dense forest. Not at anything in particular, but he was surely searching. If you didn't know Noa already, know the nature of his personality, you would almost wager that he finally picked up on the validity of the conversation and he was turning back into his usually reserved self. This was not a topic he’d have chosen to talk about with you. The mating rituals of a… rabbit. He couldn’t stop himself though. He wanted this, wanted you to know this. Maybe if he kept going, you’d ask another question and he’d give you another answer. It was rare when the conversations took a turn and Noa got to tell you about his own knowledge, he thoroughly enjoyed listening to you. But… This moment you found yourself in, you were carefully processing what he was telling you like you life depended on it. Like… You depended on him.

‘Female will sit and take it. Many times to ensure conception.’ You nodded again and felt a tingle run down your spine. You attributed it to being crouched still. ‘Male will fall off after. Anaya thinks from being tired.’

Biting your tongue to keep yourself from snorting, you found it comfortable enough to joke around a bit, ‘Male humans are the same way. One, two maybe three good thrusts then,’ You paused and weren’t sure how to conclude. ‘We don’t mate for life anymore.’

‘For what then?’

It was a legitimate question and it left you wondering if Noa would understand the reason, if he would be accepting of the reason. As a whole, he was still incredibly on the fence about humans and you knew that. You were careful in your answers when he wanted to know something, a meager fear that saying something too outlandish would cause him to go quiet without understanding the human element and he never pressed your answers when they were not something he wanted to hear. He’d sit, reflect and come back if he had any remaining questions. He deserved your honesty though, he would brashly give you the same without any hesitation. You sighed and flexed your back, trying to figure out a delicate way to put your answer.

‘Pleasure?’ Noa’s fingers moved fast. Your mouth popped open at his absolute audacity. You had to remind yourself that he had no clue that this was a very deeply private thing to talk about. You had explained to him privacy here and there, and while he accommodated it in most aspects like giving you your own small nest, giving you space to bathe, giving you space with him to talk, there were just some things that pushed the boundaries of what you wanted to tell him. And surely sex, mating like that, like he was implying, was pushing that and you were right up against it. Noa must have recognized that he fumbled asking you that, or at least, phrasing it so… so primally. He raised his hand to sign an apology, but you were faster than him.

‘Hardly,’ You signed that hastily, hands now resting on your kneecaps. You rubbed there, almost relishing in the way it felt. ‘Not many can have children. We do it out of survival.’

Noa’s face dropped at that, eyes flicking between the side of your face and your body language, trying to read the expression you had but he was having a hard time. Has he… Has he seen you make this face before? He racked his brain but nothing came immediately to mind. You looked like someone just told you terrible news. Your face was long with something Noa didn't understand. Your eyes were hooded, looking at the ground. Pressing your arms around your body, Noa recognized that as a defensive tactic. He pushed it. Foolishly. You weren’t going to talk to him anymore about it, about how it was for you before he found you, if you had… Had ever mated.

But, maybe that was for the best! Quash it before he knew the answer, before his curiosity got the best of him. It was for the best, he kept repeating inside of his head, that he didn't know. That you didn't tell him someone else laid claim to you already. Running his teeth along his sharp canines, Noa turned with thought. He had done it without care. Asking you such a stupid, pointless, meaningless question as if he himself knew pleasure like that. He didn't even know what he was talking about when he asked! He didn't…Even…. Know… Would he ever? He had to wonder. Know what he was talking about, the implications of what he suggested?

His stare rested on you, the side of your face as you were trying to process everything that just transpired. You were avoiding eye contact, a tell-tale sign to the Ape that you were done chatting. A soft breeze hit the air around you, Noa diving almost face first into the smell that wafted off you, the bouncing of the small baby hairs on the top of your head, not as long as the rest but trying to get there and the picking of your fingers at the fabric that had bunched around your knees. It was asinine to think that he would ever know with you. And he was even more so to think about asking let alone actually doing it.

What was he expecting? An answer? You so flatteringly telling him you had never been with anyone, that you opened your arms to him to lay claim? An Ape of all creatures. He chuffed at that and broadened his shoulders. But, the thought of you with another, any other, made him feel a surge of aggression, resting too uncomfortably at the back of his head like he had been crouching his head down to look at something for too long. Quicker than lightning, Noa bared his teeth and picked up his spear. With a free hand, he gave you only one command.

‘Let’s go hunting.’

[the-silverdew]

A/N: Some time ago i read something similar to this by @maarslovesmonkees that inspired me to write my own headcanons :)

Next part will be the characters from kotpota. I hope you all like this!

______________________________________

What do the Apes prefer? Pt 1

Pairings: pota Characters x Human! Reader

Notes and Warnings: headcanons, nsfw, afab reader

–What do they prefer: breasts, ass or both?

Breasts

Koba: the grumpy bonobo LOVES them, of course he is not one to voice these thoughts. He prefers to always be the one on top, but doesn't mind having you ride him just to have them in front of his face bouncing.

Also, imagining them full with milk while you carry his offspring just makes him burn with desire.

Blue Eyes: so you will have him playing with them often, liking or softly biting to see your nipples harden.

I feel that he would fall asleep grabbing them while spooning you.

Cornelia: she likes to hug you from behind and give them a light squeeze, caressing them so gently and peppering kisses all over your breasts.

Winter: definitely likes boobs a lot but is kinda shy to make a move to touch them so you could notice him looking at them when he thinks you aren't looking but once he gets the courage to initiate anything sexual be sure that he won't take his hands off them, gently massaging or fondling them but afraid he'll hurt you.

Ass

Luca: the gentle gorilla sits you in his lap and gives your ass soft pats or just rests a hand there. He adores how plump and soft it is, like a peach.

Ash: Like Luca, he likes it plump 👌🏻. He would playfully give you a slight smack or squeeze it when passing by.

Red: he stares at it when you don't notice. Everytime he's close to you, his hands itch with the need to grab your bottom until his fingers are marked into your skin.

Both

Lake: this sweet girl definitely likes both, she finds everything in you pretty and soft, can't help but want to touch and touch, even tenderly nip at your boobs. Another thing she likes is to hug you to press your breasts together and resting her hands on your ass.

Caesar: as i mentioned in my previous post, Caesar loves every part of his beloved, and he is always so mindful of his strenght when lovingly running his warm and big hands all over you.

Rocket: he doesn't really care for one or the other specially, your curves are all tempting to him and when you're in the privacy of your shared nest he will make sure to show it.

[teojira]

Really enjoyed your headcanons on Caeser and Proximus, do you mind doing the same with Noa?? 😊🙏

[Noa and day to day life with him!] [Headcanons!]

Summary: Noa takes you back with him to his home, and the clan accepts you as one of them. Even if you're concerned otherwise.

Word count: 1k (Jesus christ)

Warnings: None that I can think of! Can be read as Platonic or Romantic! You and Noa are attached to one another. (Yes, this is me projecting.)

A/N: Noa is so near and dear to me, I literally did not mean for this to be so long, and I STILL cut myself off. This is 1k words worth of headcanons for him, and it is not enough. I'm Noa's #1 fan, I am sorry to all my friends and family who have to hear me talk about him constantly.. Ask me for Noa anything, and I will give you the world.

Do me a favor and strap the fuck in for this it's alot.

I am so glad someone asked about Noa bc I got ALOT to say.

Noa has had it with humans, Mae put him, his clan, and countless others at risk, he should not trust humans, really he shouldn't, but he can't help it. She also betrayed you in the process, and now you're alone.

You agreed to help him and Mae against Proximus, you're the only one who actively goes up against Proximus as well.

Swinging and trying your best to try and get Proximus off of Noa, yelling and crying while the other apes just stare in fear. (Later on they apologize, but you don't hold it against them.)

It's a huge risk to invite a human with them again, but then he remembers Rakas words, Caesars words, and decides he can't told another's decisions over you.

So when he gently grabs your hand in his, looking down at you with a strained smile, blood seeping from his lips, you follow, back to his clans land.

Now on to the good stuff, it's kinda awkward finding your place among the eagle clan, the elders are gone, his father Koro is gone, there really is no guidance as to where to place you.

You drift mostly, either helping Dar or helping with the young ones, teaching them how to read and write, helping fish, farm, the basic tasks.

Dar loves you by the way, doting on you and making sure no one messes with you in a harmful way. She teaches you their customs and traditions, all the while playfully teasing you about Noa. She's a mom, she knows.

You're happy with your work, happy with your place among the clan. It's genuinely shocking how much they were willing to forgive and to not hold any grudges against humans after one ruined everything.

It helps that Noa takes accountability for you, somehow so trusting that you will not cause harm. His faith in you speaks volumes and you remind him everyday that it won't go to waste.

All he does is send you a sweet smile and ruffles your hair.

You find yourself helping Noa alot with crafting new tools and contraptions, being a second pair of eyes that can catch onto things he can't.

"Very smart." "Thank yo-" "For an Echo." and he does that stupid cute little sniff afterwards and it makes it tremendously hard to hit him.

He's such a little shit I fucking hate him.

You're his shadow when his duties permit, he's taken on a higher role of the clan, sometimes going out for days at a time but you're always at the edge of the Village waiting for his return, anxiously working your bottom lip until you see him in view.

You're both extremely attached to one another, Soona and Anaya become attached to you too, dragging you along in everyone's free time to go climbing, to eat, to hunt, just about any group outing has you as their fourth member.

Noa was worried about them accepting you, but they love you just as much as he does.

It makes his heart swell when he sees you and Soona together, giggling about something surely only you both understand while Anaya groans and complains about being left out.

It's like you've always been meant to be with them, to round out their group.

Soona and Anaya will offer to be the one to carry you this time, they do want to, genuinely, but Noa won't let them 99.9% of the time, He's used to your weight, he trusts that he can keep you safe the best. (Says the ape that literally almost died multiple times doing stupid shit)

"Noa worries too much, they will be fine." "Anaya is clumsy. Can't trust you to carry yourself, much less echo."

He tries not to carry you everywhere, but it is so much more convenient than waiting for you, so he scoops you up often enough that the stares don't bother you anymore.

Remember how in the movie, all the apes sleep together communally? Well you're at first extremely nervous about that, not wanting to ask what exactly are your accommodations because surely they don't want you there with them.

Actually, Noa does, so jot that down.

When you shyly move away, he raises his palm up at you, nodding to the space besides him.

When you don't move, he gently tugs you down, laying on his back and shutting his eyes. The clan hasn't really fully rebuilt and started to gather things needed for shawls and coverings, so it's not strange to him that you cuddle up to him to steal his warmth, peeking an eye open to see your face squished into his side, knocked out.

He wraps an arm around you, incasing you in more warmth.

This is a nightly routine until you finally take it upon yourself to throw yourself on him, he chokes out a breath as you make yourself comfortable.

Soona and Anaya usually join in, he cannot fucking breathe but he's so happy that it outweighs it.

When Mae inevitably shows back up, she sees you out in the distance, you look so genuine happy, so at peace with where you are. You even have some eagle feathers in your hair, integrated into their life that it shocks her.

It's enough to make her put the gun away, grasping at Rakas necklace like a lifeline, sucking in a deep breath to stop her from crying.

Maybe apes and humans can live at peace with one another after all. She hopes you prove her wrong.

ᴛʜᴀɴᴋ ʏᴏᴜ ᴠᴇʀʏ ᴍᴜᴄʜ ꜰᴏʀ ʀᴇᴀᴅɪɴɢ ᴀɴᴅ ɪ ʜᴏᴘᴇ ᴛᴏ ʜᴇᴀʀ ꜰʀᴏᴍ ʏᴏᴜ ꜱᴏᴏɴ!

[a-boca-do-inferno]

blueberry (caesar x human!reader)

summary: Man is insecure and, perhaps not so surprisingly, so are apes.

warnings: angst, swearing, fluff

words: 3.6k

notes: can be read as a standalone or a continuation to alone. this is set somewhere between the events of wftpota but he is alive in my heart btw. enjoy x

gif credit

“I don’t care”, you sign and huff, glaring at him. You needed to hurt him; like he had hurt you just now. You point to the cave entrance. “Leave.” 

Caesar shoots you a desolated look, standing in the middle of the rain, completely soaked. He can’t speak. Not this time. He’d done it so many times before, repeating the same thing over and over again. I will change. I will stop worrying. I love you. And now you could see the truth: no matter how much he claimed to love you, his sorrows would always be stronger than his feelings and you just had enough. You were a tired woman. And he knew that, too. 

“Okay”, he mumbles at last with a brief sign as he watches his step and backs away. 

He leaves with his head down and disappears into the dark of the night. You’re only left with the sound of heavy drops smashing onto the floor. The ground now felt like opening up under your feet, but it wasn’t always like this. 

Caesar stared at you with widened eyes, not noticing your presence until you spoke up. A smile spread on his face and he shrugged off his worries, his frown fading gradually. “You… lifesaver.” He gesticulated toward the food you carried with a grateful look. It smelled so good and he didn’t hesitate to grab the bowl of soup, sipping on it and letting out a sigh of relief. “Thank you... for everything”, he signed with his free hand after a moment.

“You’re welcome, now what do you want?” You teased and ruffled his head lightly. Caesar had become a good friend over the past few months. It felt like you’ve known each other for a long time, even before the flu. “Or were you just that hungry?”

Caesar snorted, still drinking the soup. “Both… I think.” He swallowed before adding hoarsely, “sometimes I just need… to see you.” It sounded like a lighthearted comment, but he wasn’t smiling because deep down he knew it was true. You made him feel like he never did with anyone, ape or otherwise. He recoiled in his spot, watching you with attentive eyes. 

And you, to your credit, chuckled quietly with pink cheeks, “well, here I am.” You sat in front of him and leaned forward, resting your elbows on your knees. “You know, Caesar, I’ve been thinking… Maybe you should come stay with me for a while.” 

You were well aware of his problem with loneliness ever since he lost Cornelia and couldn’t help but want to take care of him. Being a leader had its perks and many included a deep sense of isolation, especially when the very lives of a whole species depended on him to make it in this world. Humans were still a constant threat, even amidst the downfall of civilization, but you reckoned Caesar felt lonely long before the apocalypse from the few stories he’d tell you about Will. If anything, being surrounded by his own kind only alienated him more overtime due to the burden of the “crown”.

Caesar tensed up, his eyebrows raising at the unexpected offer. He stayed unmoving for a few seconds, however his demeanor eventually changed into one of contemplation. Perhaps it wasn’t such a terrible idea at all. He’d been greatly feeling the change in environment since they moved and doing things alone had always proven to be harder for him, if more familiar. Taking another sip of his soup, his thoughtful gaze traveled the ceiling. 

“Sure… you wanna live… with my drama?” He finally asked, with an almost amused expression.

“We can be dramatic together”, came the quick reply, as you carried a playful tone of your own. “But really, I think it’ll do you some good. It’s not permanent, I just wanna help you get a little more time to adjust while you sort things out with the council.” You grinned softly, “change is always overwhelming and some company might broaden your horizons, maybe even help with your decision.”

Caesar pondered your words, still with a humorous smile. “I could stay… for a while.” He added with some emphasis. 

“It’s settled then, you can move in anytime you want”, you stood up and patted his shoulder. As you noticed there was a hint of uneasiness lingering in his eyes, you hummed, “consider it my formal thanks to you for taking me in. Now we’re even.”

“Then I move in… tonight.”, he tried to play it off with humor, signing with a smirk. “Don’t like my place… anyways.”

In fact, deep down Caesar was glad to get away from there; especially because he was about to face the most challenging phase of leadership: letting go. By the end of the day, he was all settled into your home. He took your bed under your indignant protests that the floor was a “back killer”, in your own words. You had a way of making him sustain a smile for far longer than he was used to—which wasn’t often—and that was the sole reason for his compliance. 

As you were fluffing the makeshift pillows made out of animal skin, he organized his stuff in the small cabinet you made yourself. You were a handy carpenter. A quiet chuckle reached his ears and he shot you a glance. 

“I didn’t take you for the messy type, I thought all leaders were neat.”

Caesar rolled his eyes, closing the cabinet door. “I only clean… other people’s messes”, he signed with a wry smile. He turned around and leaned against the wall to face you properly, his grin fading into a sterner look. “I’m glad… you’re here.”

“And I’m glad you’re here with me, that way I don’t have to worry about your insomniac ass wandering in the cold”, you threw a stick at him, sitting on the bed with a small beam. “I really do worry and care for you, Caesar. I hope you know that.”

Caesar caught the stick with ease and met your gaze with warm eyes once again. He was clearly touched by your words and his shy grin turned into a real one, despite the tiredness on his features. He came over to sit beside you, much closer than before. 

“I know”, he replied huskily, gently caressing the nape of your neck with his thumb. “And I hope you know… I care about you.” You shivered under his touch and your lips reached for his rough palm as you kissed it. His breath hitched at the sensation of your smooth skin and he touched your foreheads, shutting his eyes.

It was now but a distant, bittersweet memory haunting you while you gathered your things and left your tent-like home with him, preparing to move in with Maurice. You had a close bond with the ginger ape due to his calmer nature; sometimes you even assisted in his classes, too, and he knew better than anyone about the shortcomings of your relationship with Caesar. This time was no different and he offered you shelter right away. He had always been supportive of you two, but never judging when you had a falling out with the boss.

Maurice knew better than anyone as Caesar got older, his stubbornness and overprotective nature only got bigger. You left out a humourless laugh, walking into your new home. Man is insecure and perhaps not so surprisingly, so are apes. And with insecurity comes obsession, along with an unhealthy need for control. Yet you always had too much understanding in your heart. Caesar just needed help, you thought, as you would peck his head whilst he slept soundly on your lap. It was so rare to see him that serene, and you cherished every second of it. 

He still had trouble sleeping; nightmares and such. Your heart ached with the ever present reminder that you just couldn’t make all his pain go away forever, no matter how hard you tried. And God, did you try. Rocking a grown chimpanzee’s body to make him go to sleep wasn’t exactly in your plans when he brought you into the colony, but you gladly took the task. You loved the guy, after all. 

And wouldn’t it be stupid to even doubt that? Still, that’s what Caesar did on occasion. He wasn’t easily upset, but when he was... It often got ugly. You were never a fearful girl, but seeing his angry fits deeply affected you. Soon talking to him became a constant walk on eggshells and if he noticed your change in behavior, he never really spoke on it, which was perhaps his biggest flaw; not communicating. But he was a leader, and a perceptive one at that. Even though he never said it out loud, it must have been clear that you couldn’t take it anymore. There was something telling about the way he simply let you go a few hours before, with no fight. 

“Comfortable?” Maurice eyes you carefully, bringing some blueberries with him to cheer you up. 

You can’t help but grin at the sight. “I am. Thank you.” You sign back and nod, taking a deep breath as you gaze around. “Caesar?” You hum, curious of where he might be. You hadn’t seen him since last night’s argument.

The orangutan shakes his head slowly, pointing at the forest, “he hunts… when angry.”

You snort. “Sounds about right.”

Maurice grunts in agreement, signing softly, “you two… end?”

You take a moment to consider his question. It looked like a break up, didn’t it? Although you weren’t sure if apes even used the concept of “breaking up” with their mates. Every couple you knew in the colony seemed happy together. No trouble in paradise. You shrug and look down. “Maybe.”

“Caesar is… difficult”, he rasps, causing you to smile despite yourself. That’s the understatement of the year. The ape adds, “you like blueberries… for a reason. They’re not… always sweet.”

You scoff at the comparison. No wonder Maurice was a great teacher. You sign with amusement, “except I can smash a blueberry if I don’t like it, but with Caesar, I can’t.”

Maurice laughs deeply. “Fair enough.”

As the night fell again, you watched the apes gather around the fire to hang out after another tranquil day from a distance. Since the war, things were slowly returning to normal and you felt a mixture of relief and anxiety every time the thought crossed your mind; growing accustomed to peace those days was dangerous. Hope could be a friend, but also a great enemy in the apocalypse. Caesar had taught you that through your many late night talks after you made love. A light blush came across your cheeks as you sighed and tried to shake off those memories. 

Dating another species was already a challenge on its own, now add being the leader of a colony on top of that, you were surprised you two had made it that far. When Caesar found you all alone hiding in a cave, struggling to survive on your own, never in a million years did you think that creature would become your closest friend and even lover. He didn’t like or didn’t see the point of those nomenclatures, sure, as he only ever referred to you as his family. If other apes outside Maurice and Blue Eyes knew about the implications of it, though, no one dared speak on it. Yet it didn’t make it any easier to digest whenever you stopped to think about it, even more so amidst his angry fits.

You finished preparing for bed and lay down in silence, staring at the stars. Another summer had begun with the difference of Caesar’s absence by your side as you tried to sleep. You took a deep breath and wiped away some stubborn tears, turning to face the wall. You closed your eyes for a brief second and when you opened them again, a large silhouette appeared on the stone surface and you slowly shifted back to find Caesar standing tall, eyeing you silently.

“Talk?” He signs hesitantly, his expression difficult to read in the dark. You only nod and he approaches you, and as he steps in an angle under the moonlight, you see he’s got a deep cut across his abdomen. You immediately sit up, looking alert. He smiles weakly and waves a dismissive hand, taking a seat beside you. “It’s… fine. Not… serious.”

You frown nevertheless, tracing his bruise and inspecting it. “What happened?”

“Bear.” He murmurs hoarsely, with an amused gleam in his green eyes. You grunt in displeasure and he asks with an almost mocking tone, “worry?”

“Of course I do, Caesar.” You huff indignantly and it only makes him smirk, but you keep glaring at him. “You think it’s funny?”

“Yes”, he says, reaching out to take your hand over his furry stomach. He comes closer, bringing his forehead to yours, “I’m… sorry.” You take a deep breath, closing your eyes. You’re not sure what to say, but he fills in the silence with a low sound, “miss… you.”

“You’re a stubborn old man”, you pull away to look him in the eye, albeit your voice stays tender. He looks humoured by your choice of words. “But I missed you too.”

Caesar’s expression softens significatively. He produces another coo, “forgive?”

You smile and bring his hand to your lips, kissing his knuckles. “Maybe.”

“Brought… present.” He rumbles after a moment and you watch him leave in silence, coming back shortly with a bowl full of blueberries. You grin and Caesar hoots quietly, feeding one to you. You blush and accept the gesture, causing him to nuzzle your face gently, “Maurice… advice.”

You roll your eyes. “That turncoat.” 

Caesar only snickers and shrugs, making a face as he tries a blueberry. He signs and pushes the bowl towards you, shaking his head in comic disapproval, “sour.”

It’s your turn to laugh.

[phan3145]

Title: Slippery Slope. Fandom: Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes. Rating: T. ( Cursing, intensity) Pairing: Eventual Noa x Human!Reader

***Note: I have no idea how this became 6.6K words, I just like writing in Noa’s POV apparently 😭

Chapter 3: Homes and Shelters

Noa

He heard what she said, but could not understand the meaning behind the words. She was too intelligent to think he would fit in the hole with her. He would rather weather the rain than try to fit both of them under that piece of wood. Surely, she would as well. Was this an empty offer in hopes of a peaceful end to their meeting? Was he meant to decline? She was watching him closely, but did not offer any assistance as to how he should respond.

Huffing, he chose the safest option, “Will not…fit.”

She looked confused for a moment before letting out a series of noises, which he assumed was her version of hooting. It certainly wasn’t a cackle, but the noise was still pleasing to his ears. Her hand covered her face then, she seemed to be thinking. Finally, she shook her head, letting her hand slide down before dropping back to her side, “Not here. Do you remember the massive rock formation before coming here? I assume you had to climb it to follow me.”

Climb it? He more or less just leapt to the top, but he supposed for a human climbing would have been necessary. She didn’t need to know that though, so he agreed, “Remember it.”

She showed her teeth, Echo’s version of smiling. She nodded her head in that direction, “Good, go there. I’ll meet you.”

She crouched on the ground then, leaving him confused once more as she dropped down into the hole. He took quick steps to approach her, watching her hands reach for the wood that would cover her. He found himself in the same position as before, his strength halting any progress she made to pull the heavy object on top of herself.

She looked up, only slightly surprised, sighing, “Not this again. What’s wrong?”

“How do we…meet there?” He wondered, “Why not…go together?…Why are you…back in the…ground?”

“I have to open the door,” she said, as if that somehow explained everything. He felt his brow furrow with frustration. Seeing this, she continued, “The entrance is blocked, you can only open it from the inside. To get in I have to go through here.”

That’s when he noticed. It wasn’t just a hole, a larger pathway underground laid behind her, so dark he hadn’t seen it before. He assumed this was a hiding place, not thinking anything of it when he had stopped her from covering herself before. This was a way into her nest, no wonder she had seemed so afraid when he stopped her.

“A…tunnel?” He offered.

“Yes,” she nodded. “I’ll meet you at the front of the rocks…Noa, let go, you’re letting water in.”

At that, he noticed the rain had picked up and water was indeed soaking into the dry dirt beneath her. The scraps of cloth she used to cover her body were already smeared in dirt, but with the rain it soaked through and clung to her legs. Her chest covering was also wet, he assumed from when she had hauled him up from the river. He hadn’t noticed before, but now he could see there wasn’t a single part of her that was dry. Even her hair had quickly taken in the rain, branching strands allowing individual drops to fall down her face, just barely missing her eyes.

It…bothered him. He knew Echo’s got cold easily, and they were frail as a species. This rain had a biting chill to it, still being too early in the season to be comfortable. He worried that without fur she would get sick from cold. She was smart, he admitted to himself, surely there would be a fire in her nest. If not…maybe he should make one for her so she could stay warm.

With that thought, he let go and took a step back. She gave him a curious look before she decided not to waste anymore time, shutting the wood over top of herself. The noise he heard once it came all the way down surprised him. It sounded almost like…metal.

He leaned forward, wanting to get a closer look at the cover to her tunnel. He saw the edges, having run his hand over it enough to know that it was wood. A second glance revealed that it was actually a trick. Rusted metal was slotted into wooden branches, and rope was hooked around notches carved into the branches. He pulled at the rope, feeling no give. His fingers traced the ridges, following it’s length to the top of the covering.

He stopped, reaching the middle to find more layers of rope, tied and crossed over one another. They held dirt and tiny sprouts of plants that would mimic the floor of the forest. He moved to the opposite end, remembering that he couldn’t pull the object off of her completely. It had been connected to the ground somehow. Brushing rocks and dirt aside, he could barely glimpse two stumps buried next to one another. Holes had been carved into each one, and more rope was threaded through and tied to the back end of the cover. He wondered how much upward give there was, attempting to raise it once more when his arm was jerked downwards.

Shock was immediate. Why could he not open it now? He paced back to the front, pulling upwards only to find a finger’s worth of space. He lowered himself to the ground, squinting his eyes to see there was rope tied to a metal protrusion on the inside. Unless he wanted to break it, which he easily could, he couldn’t get in from the outside. She blocked off her entrances after she was done using them.

His instincts warred inside of him. This Echo was similar to Mae, very careful and seemingly very mistrusting. He had practically forced her to speak, only now realizing that she had never answered his question. Why had she saved him? Why avoid the question when she seemed so honest about everything else? Perhaps, she did not know herself. In that way, she would be different from the two humans he met before, doing something good just because it was right. Not all humans were alike, just like how all apes were not alike. Would it be fair to pass judgement on her so early?

He sniffed, acknowledging how complex all of this was. While the Echo had been honest with him, from what he could tell once she did start talking, he had doubts that her claim of being alone was true. She was intelligent, but she could not have done this by herself, she must have had help.

Backing away from the cover, he began to walk in the direction of the rock ledge he had followed her from. After a few paces he stopped, looking from the cover to the stone structure, only now seeing the direct path. There were no trees or bushes, just grass and a few wild flowers. Roots would have gotten in the way of the tunnel. That seemed obvious now, but he was truly impressed by how simple it was.

He wondered how long it would take the Echo to get inside of her stone nest, imagining moving while crouched was slower for her than it was for him. Thinking back though, she hadn’t been crouched, she’d been on her hands and knees. It was unusual, not something ape would do…but then again she wasn’t ape.

Reaching the rock edge, he did not have the running start he had before, and from the back it was even steeper. The rain had picked up enough he could feel it on his skin beneath his fur, so he decided scaling up would not be in his best interest right now. He found himself scaling the side instead, which was considerably dryer. The rocks formed in a naturally slanted edge, the top keeping the side he was climbing from being water logged.

Choosing to go around instead of up would also allow him to get a better lay of the land. He would need to remember that this is where she can be found. For safety reasons. He had no intentions of coming back here unless the Echo posed a threat. If she remained true, then after this he would leave her be to live out the rest of her days…how ever long that may be.

He swung himself around the side, landing towards the front of the stone structure. He paced for a moment, wondering where her ‘entrance’ was. He still saw only stone, no opening big enough for something Echo sized to pass through. Hesitating, he wondered if she had tricked him, if this was a trap. Or, perhaps he was in the wrong place?

A noise caught his attention. Eagle Sun was overhead, alerting him with warning chirps as he descended gracefully, looking to land. He quickly raised his left arm, but to his surprise, Eagle Sun glided past him. It landed on a stone ledge to his left.

“Stubborn bird,” he grumbled.

Eagle sun took no offense to the term. The rain left his feathers oily, the water sliding mostly off of him as soon as it landed. He dared not bother the bird further, only recently getting in its good graces. Eagle Sun meant a lot to his father, and now, in a short amount of time, he had come to mean a lot to Noa. Eagle Sun preened at a wing before turning to chirp once more, pulling him from his thoughts. Seeing Noa’s gaze returned to him, Eagle Sun began to peck at the rock next to him.

He huffed, the bird probably found a tasty bug to munch…

No.

That’s when he saw it. A rock, whose layers went against the grain of the other rocks around it. It was surrounded…but not attached. Had Eagle Sun just showed him the Echo’s nest? He approached tentatively, scratching Eagle Sun under his chin as a reward. Feeling sufficiently praised, the bird then launched himself back into the sky. Odd, to leave so suddenly, but not his concern at the moment. He would return.

Over the pounding of the rain around him, through the bottom of his feet, he sensed movement. A heartbeat. He tracked it, sensing it closer to where he now stood. More sounds of movement became audible to his ears. He waited, not actually knowing what to expect. Water dripped down his face, threatening to slip into his nose. Wiping it away, he called the Echo’s name. A new muffled sound was heard from the other side of the rock.

“Just wait, I had to change.” Her voice soothed, “I’m about to move the rock, don’t stand too close.”

He heard more metal, a grunt from the echo, and then the rock was pulled aside. In front of him was an opening, it was wide enough for him to fit, but he would have to bend as he entered. The height only reached to the middle of his chest. He hoped it was bigger on the inside, otherwise he was starting to believe this Echo enjoyed being in small spaces.

He bent at the waist, allowing his head to enter first, comforted once he saw the mouth of the rocks open up. He would be able to stand with ease, even stretch if he so desired. His first few steps were hesitant, scanning his surroundings to make sure there was no ambush waiting for him in the dimly lit space.

She stood in the center, hands in front of her, as if she knew that he was scanning for potential threats. The way she read him made shame burn in the pit of his stomach. He felt it was justified at first, and perhaps it was, but the more he thought about their situation, the more he saw how unbalanced it was. She was the one putting a lot of trust in him; inviting him into her nest and saving his life. Between the two of them, he was the one who hadn’t shown her trust.

Thoughts of Proximus and the events that took place in his Kingdom weighed heavily on him…and now it was causing a chasm sized rift between him and this new Echo. He never expected to meet another one, but that was not the point. The one in front of him was watching him, eyes searching his for some sign he didn’t know how to give, confusion consuming his mind.

He wondered what she had meant by ‘change,’ but looking at her now, it made sense that she had changed the cloth covering her body. He was unsure what to call what she was wearing. Mae had worn pants, which he found this Echo wearing too, but Mae had also worn a shirt. What she wore looked similar but not quite the same. There were two layers now covering her torso. One piece of cloth covered her chest and stomach, and the second layer wrapped around her arms and sides. It was similar to his mother’s robe, but…more. He had never seen an Echo wear two. Was there a purpose?

She tilted her head and raised her brow, questioning his too long stare. He looked away then, taking a moment to shake the water off his fur. From the corner of his eye he caught her raising her arm up, shielding herself from any splashing. He thought to tease her for that, but was distracted before the words had even formed in his mind. His attention had been pulled towards the massive stone next to him. This…was what she moved?

Unconsciously he felt his hands raise, gripping the rock to test its weight. His arms opened wider, wanting a better hold as he attempted to move it. He was able to, but only just. His concern equaled his confusion, how did she move this?

“It’s easier to seal than it is to open.” She offered, taking small steps towards him. He didn’t move, allowing her to explain, “I brace my back up against the wall, and I use my arms and legs to push it in place. Moving it to where it is now, I use the chain wrapped around it. Sort of a lever and pulley system. It’s still really heavy though.”

His eyes scanned over the chain, wrapped around ledges of rock and looped over several times. The metal is rusted, much like the cover outside had been. He noticed she had wrapped cloth around the length of the end. That is probably where she grips it from….still very dangerous.

“You…can lift…by yourself?” He questions.

Her eyebrows raised in a mocking way, “I lifted you, didn’t I?”

He made a sign of annoyance with his hand, arguing, “I helped.”

“Oh, did you now?” She hoots again, that same sound from before making something inside of him sing.

“More…than rock.” He huffs in a sort of finality.

She swivels her head in a sort of half agreement, turning away from him to go deeper into her nest. He decides to follow her like a shadow, curious as to how she survives living under a rock.

He must admit, whether she carved this herself or the formation was already like this, the space was impressive for an Echo. She kept a small fire going off the ground, on a natural shelf next to a worn spot in the rock. The smoke exited from there cleanly, and behind the fire was something shiny that bounced the light of the flames off of it and around the nest. It was not as much light as a torch would give off, but it was enough to give vision in the darkness. Echos did not like the dark, he remembered this from Mae. She always huddled by the fire on their journey, choosing to look away from Noa in favor of facing the darkness.

You never know what’s out there, she had said. Usually, nothing was out there that an ape had to fear, but an Echo? Echo had to fear everything. He moved on from the fire, noticing an alcove below it with woven baskets, three of them to be precise. One was filled with peaches, another with apples, and another almost empty basket that held…

“These, are grapes.” She explained, picking up the basket and plucking a fresh one out of it. She popped it into her mouth, “It’s a shame that I have to walk so far to get them, but where they grow is amazing. I go every few weeks and bring back a basket, I’d bring more but they would turn into raisins before I could finish them.”

Strange, he had never seen these before. She noticed his curiosity, offering him the basket. He hesitated a moment before taking one. It was round, and felt like it could be easily crushed, like an egg. He knew it wasn’t poisonous since she had already had one, but he was still hesitant when he allowed it to fall into his mouth. He was careful to bite it with his canines in case it was harder on the inside than it looked.

It was not hard. Juice exploded inside of his mouth, the outer layer of skin barely tougher than the inside. He could see the appeal, sweetness coating his tongue differently than a peach or an apple would. He liked it, it was a new flavor of sweet. New and different, but not unwelcome, much like the Echo in front of him.

“It’s good, huh?” She asked, looking like she already knew the answer.

He nodded, wanting more but not daring to take what she did not offer. He still felt as if he was standing somewhere he should not be, that slight level of danger not leaving the back of his brain. Looking down at the basket in her hands, she sighed, “Why don’t you finish them for me? You’ve had a rough day, seems like you could use a treat. Besides, if I don’t start working on these, they’ll spoil.”

He took the basket from her with unsure hands, looking from side to side as if he was meant to do something with it other than hold it. She turned her back to him, grabbing an apple before making her way to the corner opposite him. It was away from the fire, but he could see raised from the ground a slab of stone. Not round like a normal nest, long and rectangular like a drying table. There was cushioned material on top of the slab, many sheets of cloth piled on top. She lowered herself onto it, crossing her legs before taking a bite out of her apple.

They stared at each other for an endless amount of time it seemed. She was waiting for him to do something, but much like before, he didn’t know what. He broke eye contact with her to look at the new fruit she had presented him with. Grapes…dictionary…cackle. He was learning quite a lot from her. He plucked a few more of the fruits from the basket and shoved them into his mouth, chewing thoughtfully. Noticing her lowered position, he decided to follow her example, crouching on all fours on the ground. The basket was placed in front of him so he could grab handfuls at a time. His gaze traveled to the open mouth of the cave, the rain still coming down.

After a moment, his eyes turned back to her and found her also looking towards the outside world. She took another bite of her apple, eyes distant as she seemed to be thinking on something. He understood that, turning his attention back to the rain outside. He was not always able to stop his head from thinking sometimes. He would think of how to finish a project he had started, or come up with a solution to a problem that was not directly in front of him. Sometimes he needed that, his body and heart becoming still in a way that would help him figure out what he should do. The new responsibilities weighed on him, wanting to be the best thing for his clan but not knowing how he could accomplish that. Fixing things was easier.

Then there was Caesar. Raka’s tales would keep him up at night, wondering how one ape could make such an impact that he was still known after all this time. The first elder…possibly the wisest. His laws were simple, but even the core of his clan held similar beliefs to his original laws. And there were more…more that would be lost to time in Raka’s books that no ape could read.

Fear struck him then, would the true Caesar be lost to time? Raka was the last of his followers, trying to teach Noa in his last few days of life what he knew, but it didn’t make any sense. Raka had been a follower his whole life, surely he could not have covered everything in a few short days.

What was he to do? Caesar had a vision, living in a world where apes and humans lived side by side. That vision was lost somehow. Why? What had happened? Even Mae hadn’t filled in all of the gaps, she had given him more pieces to the puzzle, but it was incomplete. He knew, if he could complete the puzzle, he would understand the vision, the answer that would bring peace among the species. The idea alone, of apes and humans living side by side, was nice.

Like this. This was nice.

The quiet was…peaceful. She did not feel the need to speak any more than he did, so they both sat eating their fruits. They were not fighting, or trying to kill each other. In fact, she had done the exact opposite as she had saved him. She had even fed him…when was the last time someone else had given him food? Probably not since he was a youngling. Of course, food was collected in large amounts, whether it be fish or fruit, but they all had to add to the collective once they were no longer younglings.

He found his eyes returning to the Echo, taking the time to look at her while she seemed entranced by the rain. Does she even realize the compassion she showed him today? The mercy in saving his life? She was more of a follower of Caesar than he was, not knowing for certain that if their roles were reversed that he would have done the same. Maybe he could teach her of Caesar? Maybe they could learn together?

Her eyes suddenly shifted, locking with his, surprising him with the quick turn from distracted to focused. “Your eyes are burning a hole into me. If you have something to say, you should say it.”

His eyes widened in shock, and his mouth decided it didn’t want to work. All he could do was continue to stare at her, trying to put all the words he wanted to say in the right order. He found he could not, and the longer the silence stretched the more he felt the courage to tell her his thoughts slipping away.

She hummed, standing to bring the core of her apple to the fire. She placed it in carefully and watched as it burned. Her arms came to wrap around herself, and the shift in her posture told him she was uncomfortable…nervous. What had he done? Was his staring that insulting? He didn’t mean to.

A deep sigh escaped her, then she swallowed, “What happens now?”

She had not turned to face him, and he found himself even more confused. How did she expect him to answer that? Did she mean in this moment or in the future? Was she thinking about the future?

“Apes are…territorial, yes?” She asked, attempting to clarify. He grunted in way of answering, picking up the basket as he pushed himself into a standing position. She swallowed again, “Am I in your territory? I knew your clan was somewhere nearby, but I have no idea where you’re actually located. If you’re on the other side of the creek…would me staying on this side be a possibility?”

This surprised him, he took a few steps towards her, “You would…leave?”

She turned to face him then, her eyes widening. She must not have heard him stand; her uneasy gaze trailing from his feet, to the basket in his hands, and then back up to his face. Whatever nerves she felt at his closeness seemed to ease once she met his eyes, sensing no immediate danger. Still, she took a step back, fingers digging into the material of the cloth around her arms, “If you tell me to. I don’t really have a choice.”

“This is..your home.” He said, though it sounded more like a question. He returned the basket to its place, eyes squinting at the Echo’s sudden change.

She huffed, “This is not my home. This is a shelter, a safe haven…but a safe haven can be as temporary as the rainy weather. I would miss it, sure, but I can’t go against an entire clan. I’m just one person, and even if I wasn’t, it’s your world Noa…I’m just trying to survive in it.”

Her words, her body language, it pulled at something within him. Though she had said she was the only human here many times, now, in her eyes, he could see that she was truly alone. For all her courage before, she saw what he had not until this very moment. He may not have harmed her, but her very existence could potentially pose a threat to his clan, meaning that this peace between them only lasted as long as he allowed it. He had the power here, she was at his mercy.

“S-Stay…” he found himself saying. It was gruff and weak sounding. He tried again, much clearer, “Stay…there is no reason…to leave.”

“There’s not?” She takes a step towards him, “Then I’ll ask again, what happens now?”

“Do not…understand,” he was able to say this time around. “There is peace between us.”

“Yes,” she agreed. “What about your clan? Surely you have to inform them of my existence, the two other apes at the river saw me. They’ll report me to your…leader? Council? Highest ranking ape?”

He chuffed, “No one higher…than me.”

Her entire face fell at that, eyes widening, “You…wait…you are the leader of the Eagle Clan?”

His chest puffed out at that, “Yes… I am the Master of Birds…there are elders…they provide council…but it is my decision whether you… stay or go…I say…you stay.”

Her breathing seemed to become more shallow by the second. She nodded her head, walking over to her nest and sitting down. His head tilted, confused by her actions. Her eyes darted left and right, not truly seeing anything as she wrapped her arms around herself even tighter. He took small steps towards her, crouching once he was close enough to push his face into her line of sight. Only then did she truly see him.

“You are…alright?” He asked.

She opened her mouth, only to close it. She shook her head, “I’m scared.”

His head tilted again, brow furrowing, “Why?…Said you could…stay…you are safe.”

She laughed humorlessly then, the sound making him want to curl his lip. That sound was awful, like eating non-ripe fruit. “Noa, you can’t possibly know what it’s like to have everyone and everything you love ripped away from you. To have a home and a family one day, and then the next day you are alone and surrounded by death. When you are alone, like I am, there is no safe. And you…you’re…”

She did not finish, shaking her head again. He was sure he knew what she was thinking despite her hesitation to say it. He was ape. A very powerful one at that. She was human. Vastly different, and yet not so different that he did not understand her fear.

His hand nudged her knee, “Understand…more than you…think.”

Her eyes searched his then, “If our roles were reversed, how would you feel? What would you want me to do to show you that you could trust nothing but my words?”

He thought about it, only coming to one conclusion. He stood, towering over her at his full height. Her head craned to look at him, not afraid but curious about his sudden movement. He extended his arm then, waiting for her to take it. She did, very hesitantly. He pulled her up, a small gasp of surprise as his other hand came around to grip the back of her neck. She stiffened immediately, and he allowed it as she locked her other arm against his shoulder in an attempt to keep her distance from him. He would not force her, wanting her to understand on her own that there was no danger with him. He stood still, keeping his muscles loose but firm in their hold, waiting for her to relax on her own. It took her longer than he would have liked, her breathing quick and harsh as his eyes remained focused on hers.

He tried to keep his breaths even, scenting her fear now that they were this close. If he was calm, she would be calm. He hummed slightly, a few sounds he would use when around newborns. It was meant to calm them when they were meeting new apes for the first time. It seemed to work, he felt her body relax. She let out a long breath through her mouth, the arm against his shoulder going slack, trailing down his forearm before dropping all together.

He was pleased by this, but still wary as he noticed her eyes were unable to meet his. They darted from her hand in his, to his opposite arm that snaked around her shoulder, out of her line of sight, and back to his face. He would have to continue without her eye contact for now, deciding instead to close his eyes as he began to bring their foreheads together.

He needed to bend his knees to match her height, but he didn’t rush it, slowly tilting his head downwards so she would understand what was happening. She did not fight him as they met skin to skin, her breathing even and her scent neutral. He could feel her heartbeat, slightly elevated, but not much more than it had been before. Then he felt it, on her next exhale of breath she increased the pressure, resting her forehead against his. He felt a smile tug at the corner of his mouth, allowing his breathing to match hers.

“Thank you,” he breathed against her, eyes opening.

Her eyes flicked open in surprise, finally meeting his. He hadn’t realized she had closed them as well. She held his gaze then, her voice a whisper as she asked, “What?”

He slowly pulled away, watching her match his movements, “You saved my… life…have not said…thank you yet…Rude of me…you have…my trust.”

“Trust?” She parroted.

He brought their heads together again, a brief touch as he reassured, “Trust.”

She nodded slightly, and he felt the up-down glide of her skin against his. It made the hairs on his neck rise, her skin so much softer than an apes. He felt her pull away, head turning towards the cave opening before she announced, “The rain stopped.”

He pulled away, taking a step or two away from her for good measure. She didn’t seem fearful anymore, which he was grateful for, but he noticed a pink tint across her face. He shrugged it off, ape ran warmer than human. Better that he warmed her quickly in this cold, wet weather. He bent down, leaning forward to see better outside.

“I should go now,” he reluctantly admitted. “Said I would…return by nightfall…Sunset has started.”

“I’ll walk you out,” she offered. His brow rose at that, watching as she returned to the fire, grabbing the basket that still contained a decent amount of grapes. He was ashamed to say he did eat at least half of them. She made her way to the exit, carrying the basket in her arms. She ducked her head and passed through the open mouth, turning and giving him an expectant look, “Whenever you’re ready, Master of Birds.”

Her teasing put him at ease, deciding this ‘walking him out’ was an Echo custom. He reached the mouth of the cave, but before he could bend she thrust the basket into his arms, something she was in the habit of doing it seemed. He chuffed, “Ate more…than enough.”

She brought a single shoulder up, “Then take them with you, share with your clan. Or, save them all for yourself. You can return the basket to me the next time we see each other.”

Next time.

He hooted, “Have no choice…but to share…if I take them now…Sunset Brother will…scent food before…I step into village...he is like…vulture.”

The response he received made him stand up straighter, proud to hear the cackle she released. She let out a contented sigh as she stepped away to make room for him to leave. He lowered himself then, ready to depart on a joyous note, but stopped short when he scented something familiar.

He straightened, scenting the air.

“Noa?” The Echo questioned, “What’s wrong?”

Anaya…and Soona…but where…SOONA!

Without realizing what he was doing, the basket was flung from his grasp, and a full open-mouthed snarl ripped from him. He heard as well as saw the Echo scream when he lunged for her, grasping her shoulders and pinning her to the ground below him. The whizzing of the weapon past his ear gave him enough time to shield the Echo’s left side as rock met stone and exploded into many shards around them.

He heard Anaya and Soona then, hooting and hollering as they made their way towards them. He sighed through his nose, Soona was a little too good with her sling. He remembered the Echo below him then, raising himself off of her to make sure she was not hurt.

The sight below him hurt worse than if Soona had struck him. When he had taken her to the ground, he had immediately framed his hands around her so he would not crush her. He could also leverage his body more to one side to protect her from any falling rock. In that time, she had brought her arms up to wrap around her head and her throat in a protective manner. Her legs were curled inward and he could see her body trembling.

To make matters worse, though it seemed such a small thing, her body was wet again from the soaked ground beneath her. He remained frozen, unsure what to do. Anaya and Soona were practically on top of them now, the sounds of their footfalls pounding against the ground.

“Noa!” Soona gasped, “You are…alright!”

Anaya added, “We saw…you go into Echo nest…but did not see…come out!”

Before they could get close enough to touch him, or the Echo, he screeched out several warning hoots, shocking both of his friends into stillness. Unfortunately, it caused the Echo to flinch and curl in closer to herself. He sighed through his nose then, leaning down to nudge her shoulder with his knuckles. She let out a high pitched whimper that made him quickly tear his hand away from her.

Shit.

Anaya grunted then, forcing his attention back to his Sunset Brother. Without making a sound, which was rare for Anaya, he signed, Echo is scared. Need to move away. Slowly. Do not touch again.

He normally wouldn’t mind being advised by Anaya or Soona, but at that moment something inside of him bared down in his gut. He wanted to ignore him, he wanted to tell them both to leave, that the Echo would be safe with him. She was scared of them, not him.

But then he saw Anaya’s expression, and he was reminded of that night his brother had admitted to being scared in Proximus’ kingdom. Whatever she was going through, Anaya would understand better than anyone else. His head also reminded him of the events that took place before he and the Echo found themselves on the ground. He had reacted, like an ape would, but with no time to explain, the Echo probably only heard his snarl and saw his canines as he lunged for her. She was scared of them right now, all of them.

He did as Anaya instructed, backing away and motioning for them to take the same amount of steps back. Soona, looking guilty, signed, Did not mean to scare her. Thought you were trapped or hurt.

He quickly signed back, Not a threat. Saved my life. Could be helpful to Eagle Clan.

Soona hesitated then, signing back, She is Echo. Could be dangerous. Helpful how?

Not sure yet. His hands slowed before he signed with vigor, Something tells me that if we trust her we will find out.

Soona huffed through her nose, Do not understand. Another Echo. Could end badly like the last one. Will trust her for now. She saved your life.

He clasped his hand on Soona’s shoulder, her hand coming up to hold his. Trust, just like he had told the Echo. This is why he trusted Soona and Anaya above all other apes, with the exception of his mother. Speaking of Anaya…

He tensed and snorted his nose at Anaya, who had snuck away during his and Soona’s silent conversation. He was in front of the Echo now, who had not moved a muscle outside of her trembling from the position she had been in. He moved towards Anaya, but Soona held him back, signing to him, Wait.

Anaya, crouched on all fours, moved to his belly in a similar way he would sleep sometimes. His face was close to the Echo’s, or at least where it would be if it was not for her arms. Anaya made small hooting and humming noises, similar to what he had done back in her nest. Anaya’s sounded far more playful than his had, where he was trying to soothe, Anaya was trying to encourage.

He was stunned when he saw her slide her arm away from her eyes, the one covering her neck soon following. Anaya hooted happily but did not move from his spot. He was sure he had never seen his Sunset Brother hold this still since they were both newborns. The Echo looked Anaya up and down in the face, and something in her eyes must have alerted Anaya that her attention was his. He saw Anaya slowly rise up into a sitting position, almost losing his balance but hooting happily when he caught himself.

Then the Echo smiled, easing her body up into a sitting position. She didn’t quite mirror Anaya, she was still guarded in her place on the ground, but she had opened up to his noises. Her eyes blinked rapidly, for what purpose he wasn’t sure. Once she was done, he saw her take in the scene around her. Her gaze swept from Anaya, to Soona, and then to him, and something in him softened when he noticed she visibly relaxed more when her eyes found him.

He nodded towards her, attempting to assure her that Anaya was fine. Said Ape noticed her new posture, looking between her and Noa before pointing to him, “That is Noa…and Soona…and Anaya.”

Anaya pointed at himself to finish off the trio, hooting happily as she seemed to follow. She swallowed, on edge before she breathed out, “Hello, Soona. Hello, Anaya.”

Soona practically fell over, looking to him as if he had been untrue with her. He supposed he had not explicitly informed her about the Echo’s ability to talk. At this point, meeting two humans already that could talk, this should not be such a surprise to her. Anaya took it in stride, raising a hand in greeting, “Hello, Echo.”

[shwaesar]

Halfway

Caesar X Reader Oneshot (SFW)

Summary: Apes grow and age a lot faster than humans. Caesar had noticed it on more than one occasion; his adoptive father had hardly changed at all while he lived through his adolescent years, and his father had seemed to have always been an elderly man. Now that he has another human taking such a special role in his life, he feels the need to educate himself on the subject.

TW: Mentions of Death and Age Differences (THIS IS A LOT MORE ANGSTY THAT ORIGINALLY PLANNED IM SORRY IT JUST KINDA HAPPENED)

"We are... similar. In age." Caesar spoke meditatively, watching from his seat in your shared nest as you disrobed for the night. You never stripped fully, not if you could help it. Even with the chimp's warm, fur covered body beside you, your skin was much too sensitive to be left bare to the elements while sleeping, especially when summer still had yet to settle over the woods in its entirety. Your outer layers were removed one by one and placed in a pile, on a makeshift table of stone. A thick jacket. A sweater. Your jeans, too, were set aside in favour of changing into some sweatpants. They were much too big for you, and a makeshift belt of twine synched the waistband to keep them from falling down your legs, but he could tell you treasured the item of clothing for its comfortability and didn't feel the need to interrogate you about it. "But you... call me old. Why?"

The question wasn't asked in an accusatory manner, but it still took you off guard. Glancing over your shoulder, you caught his eyes raking up and down your form, taking in the intricacies of your anatomy. Compared to that of apes, yours was certainly odd. Longer legs, shorter arms, more space between your hip bones and ribcage.. It had always fascinated him - the ways you were different, both physically and internally - and you supposed that was the reason behind this topic of discussion. He'd taken note of how you aged in a way that didn't mirror him, and wanted to understand it.

"Because you are old." You replied teasingly at first, earning a huff of amusement that tugged at the corners of his lips.

"You know.. what I mean. If I am old, are you not... also old?"

A hand was extended towards you beckoningly when you finally approached. Kicking off your boots, they were left at the foot of the nest as you clambered into it and situated yourself next to your mate, in the juncture beneath his shoulder. His muzzle was pressed absentmindedly into your hair, allowing him to inhale your scent as you mulled over your next words.

"Well... to apes I probably am, sure." Conceding, at least partially, your fingers rose to thread into his beard. Like most of his fur, the outer layer was coarse and rough, but got softer the closer it was to his leathery skin. When you first met, it was a dark, earthy brown that turned to a muted blonde in the right lighting. Now though, discoloured streaks had began showing up here and there, making his more advanced aging all the more apparent. "But you won't catch me going grey anytime soon. Im still pretty young in human years."

"Human years.." he repeated the phrase skeptically, prompting you to wave your free hand to dismiss it.

"Figure of speech-my point is... even though we're around the same age, we're at opposite ends of our lives, y'know? Humans-we live a long time, so we grow up slowly. Cornelius is just over two years old, but a human baby would still be learning how to walk at that point." You couldn't remember for sure if that was accurate, but it sounded right. It had been a long time since a human baby was born intentionally, and even longer since you'd seen one, so you could only make an educated guess. "And Blue Eyes-you told me he just became an adult, right? Do you know how old he is exactly?"

Caesar paused at that. His eyes wandered up to the thatched ceiling above you as he did the math in his head - something he was by no means amazing at, but had enjoyed learning. Apes understood the concept of years, but didn't often use numbers as humans did. They measured time in the passing of seasons, and an apes age would be equated to their physical development rather than the length of time they'd been alive for. This made calculating the specifics a bit tricky, although it didn't stop him from eventually giving you an answer.

"He-.... will be 8, once the cold months return." He nodded self-assuringly. "Won't be long.. before he starts thinking, about having his own children." And as he continued, his chest puffed out proudly. Being able to see his son become a father himself was something he'd never have believed possible, when he was Blue Eyes' age. When he really thought about it, he wouldn't have even believed it if someone told him he would become a father. But before he could linger on it-

"I'm closer to Blue Eyes than I am to you. In terms of... maturity."

That made him falter. His brow furrowed as he tilted his head to look at you again, the cogs in his mind turning to make sense of what you'd just told him. In truth, maturity probably wasn't the right word to use, but you couldn't think of an alternative that he'd be familiar with. What you meant was that you were at a similar stage of life to Blue Eyes, and thankfully, that's how he also interpreted it. Still, it left him contemplative.

"..... I am.... approaching the halfway, of my life. After, I will be.. closer to death, than birth. Ape death-natural death-happens when... when we are in our 30's, most often. Not always, but-" swallowing the rising lump that had formed in his throat, he forced himself to relax again. Caesar was no stranger to mortality, he'd bore witness to many deaths and births alike. He knew he would die at some point, knew what it meant to die, and had long since accepted the fact that it would one day come for him. Your mortality, on the other hand..

You shifted in his embrace, draping an arm across his midsection to stroke absentmindedly at his sternum. He was a closed book in many regards, but as his mate, you'd become familiar enough with his body language and facial expressions to read him in ways others couldn't. It was something he found both a blessing and a curse, as he was essentially forced to share his burdens with you, regardless of whether he wanted them known. And of coarse, it didn't help that his emotions ran high whenever you were the subject plaguing him, making his rising discomfort all the more noticeable.

He continued.

"Humans... you are children for such a long time. Adults, even longer. Your halfway will be.." Then, however, he trailed off. Again, sensing his mood turning, you took his hand and brought his palm to your lips, kissing it affectionately. In turn, he reacted without even thinking about it, letting his fingers cup your jaw as his thumb stroked your cheek. ".... long after I am... gone.."

"..... I know."

"I am... sorry.."

"Sorry..?"

"For-... for making you mine. Without considering all this, first." A pang of guilt struck his gut, making him take a slow breath to steady himself. "You are... so, so precious to me, my love.. and I have forsaken you... to a lifetime of grief, once... I have passed.." Another breath, this one slightly shaken. Holding you more tightly, he grit his teeth and let a wave of self-hatred wash over him. How selfish he was, for indulging in you so thoroughly. How cruel, to leave you without his care and protection for such a long expanse of your existence. To only be a part of that existence for a fraction of its length, intertwining with you in ways that would bond you forever, while forever would be something he couldn't share in. His eyes grew distant and glassy, before he blinked back the tears that were threatening to well up.

In actuality, it was something you'd considered quite a lot, even if only to yourself. The thought of growing old without Caesar at your side was one you'd had to come to terms with early on, for both your peace of mind and his, with regards to how much you intended to invest emotionally in him. That emotional investment wasn't something you really had any control over, of coarse, but it was something you could make... easier on yourself. Ultimately though, you'd come to the conclusion that the sting of inevitable loss was worth it. You would love him without restraint, and continue to love him, even when he was no longer able to love you back. Because moments like this; cuddled up next to him in your nest, basking in his presence and warmth, hearing his voice speak to you so tenderly, with such care and adoration... you might never have them otherwise. And you treasured each and every one.

His hand was still cradling your face. With a loose squeeze, you interlocked your fingers between his own and proceeded to press your lips to his knuckles one by one. It was such a human thing, kisses.. the soft delicacy of lips on rough, coarse flesh was yet another point of interest to Caesar. There was a time when apes in captivity had picked up a vague mimicry of it from humans, but with such large mouths and less controlled facial muscles, it had never managed to be quite as romantic as the original. With the development of their own customs and culture, the borrowed gesture was eventually abandoned in favour of one they made for themselves. One the two of you partook in quite regularly, in fact.

But while pressing his temple to yours was an intimate, loving act, your kisses were something else entirely. They were almost like a religious experience, as you graced him with a kind of touch not really meant for him, almost worshiping his physical form in a way that wordlessly declared your attraction, your devotion..

Yes. Kisses were, undoubtedly, a very human thing.

But that's why he liked them so much. Because only you, only his human, could ever love him in such a manner.

"I forgive you."