The Hard Facts Of Life

Chapter 1

She raised one hand, which had a small almost healed cut on it from one of the sick horses she was tending, and with the other hand, she used a finger to smooth a little bit of the salve over her cut.

Mary hesitated for one moment, then blurted out,

"I ... I am sorry ... about Papa."

Not wanting the human girl to see her starting to cry again, Mary turned and quickly slipped away. She knew where Maurice kept a flashlight he had borrowed from Karin. Borrowing it herself, she slid towards the outer walls of the village. When the gorilla guards back were turned, little Mary slid off silently in to the night, being careful to shield her little light source from view.

She had been right. There was certainly trouble when she arrived at Karin's house.

"Child, you know how dangerous the forest is at night, even for Apes," Maurice began. "But especially for little Apes! What were you thinking?"

Oh, Maurice, don't scold the poor little thing so much," Karin finally put in, putting an arm around the trembling Mary. "Can't you see she's upset about something? I'm surprised at you!"

"I'll get you some cool water, sweetie," Karin told Mary and she tactfully disappeared in to her kitchen and left the girl alone with Maurice.

Normally, Maurice was a great comfort. The darling older Orangutan could make almost any situation feel better. But this time, aside from being angry at her for sneaking out, Mary saw he was troubled as well.

"Mary, child, I am sorry for being so harsh. But what are you doing out so—" Maurice began to sign.

Before he could finish, and with a small wail, Mary flung herself in to the Orangutan's arms. As she clung to him, and he wrapped his long arms around her, she began to sob unconsolably.

"Oh, Maurice. Papa, he... he has..."

"I know," Maurice rumbled softly.

Mary was so startled by what he said that she stopped crying almost instantly.

Pulling away from him a little so she could look up in to his face, she gasped,

"You ... you know?"

Maurice sighed heavily and nodded.

"I just don't understand," Mary wailed miserably. "How could he? I know he hates humans, but ... but ... Is that what Papa thinks females are for, any of us? Will he make me submit to Stone, then?"

"Wha-a-a-t?" Maurice growled, drawing out the word ominously.

Mary clapped her hand over her mouth, horrified by what had just slipped out. She had never meant to tell that, not to anyone, not even Maurice.

"Here you go, sweetheart," Karin said, too loudly, as she came back in and sat down a glass of water on her old coffee table in front of her sofa. "You drink all that down. Maybe you'll feel better. Maurice, can I see you for a minute?"

Mary obediently drank the cool water as Karin took Maurice towards the back of her house. She could not hear all the human woman's words, but a few slipped out here and there. "... stay here tonight ... with you in the morning ... her Father comes looking ..."

Mary shivered. Would her Father come here after her? She had certainly never meant to draw Koba to Karin's house. She always suspected one of the reasons Karin chose not to live with Maurice in the village was her Fathers fault. He had not gone out of his way to make the woman feel welcome, the little time she had spent with them.

Maurice came back in to the room alone.

"Karin wants you to stay with us tonight, Mary," he told the young girl. "Is that alright with you?"

Mary blushed.

"I'm sorry, Maurice," she apologized, still looking firmly in to her water glass. "I didn't mean to intrude on your time with Karin."

Maurice sat back down and put his long arm around Mary's shoulders.

"You aren't intruding," he told her. "Karin's straightening up a room for you right now. You will go home with me in the morning."

"Can I come and stay with you at home, too?" the girl asked.

"We'll see," Maurice replied a bit evasively. Before any permanent decisions were made, he knew Mary needed to mend her fences with her Father. Maurice, more than most, knew how much Koba totally loved his child. Koba would have to explain things to his daughter about Haley.

"Now, what is this about you submitting to Stone?" the old Orangutan asked.

Again, Karin saved the day ... or night as it was.

"Okay, I've fixed a bed for you, Mary," she came in telling the two Apes. "Come on and let's see if you like it. I'm sorry it might not be as comfortable as your nest at home."

Maurice started to follow, but Karin held up a restraining hand. She motioned Mary ahead in the dimly battery-lighted hallway.

"First door on the left, honey."

As Mary went ahead and in to the room, she again heard broken phrases from Karin as she spoke with Maurice.

"... I am a female. a womans touch ... call if we need you."

Despite herself, Mary almost smiled as she sat on the bed. Surprisingly, it did not feel all that uncomfortable. And when Karin came back in, she sat down on the bed next to Mary. As Karin opened her arms to the girl, Mary went to her Motherly embrace. Her arms were not nearly as long, of course, but Mary thought Karin could give hugs that were almost as good as Maurice, and better, sometimes. The two females young and older talked quietly together for a very long time. Mary was even able to tell Karin all about what had happened with Stone.

Then, at last, Mary could fall asleep, emotionally exhausted.

A/N

This story is dedicated to and was inspired by a story called war Technicalities by Mrs_Splinter:

https://www.google.com/intl/en/options/

Please check out her story. It's AWESOME! And, so much thanks to her for letting me temporarily mix my own OCs up a bit in her corner of the Ape universe.

And, thanks to her for giving the okay for me to publish this. She's just an AWESOME person!

To know who the heck Mary is, you can check out my own story, You Are Not Ape:

https://www.wattpad.com/story/116994842-you-are-not-ape

And to know who Karin is, check out my story, Angel of Mercy:

https://www.wattpad.com/story/116778431-angel-of-mercy

I thought this might be a one shot, but it looks like it's turning in to its own little fic. There will be at least one or two more chapters here.