The Scars On His Heart

Chapter 11 ~ Slow and Steady

Months passed by and life in the colony went on peacefully. Serena was glad to be on good terms with Koba. It made life in the colony more relaxing when you didn't feel somebodies eyes trying to burn holes into you. They didn't talk or seek each other out but, they didn't ignore one another either.

Koba would pass by while she was working on something and if they met eyes he gave her a slight nod of acknowledgment and she would give him a smile in return. If Serena happened to be with the horses he would hand her the reins so she could groom Night. Otherwise, the excited giant horse would just run to her anyway, dragging poor Koba along.

One thing that warmed her heart though was how kind he was to Kovu. As Kovu noticed the non-hostility between them and the one time Koba reacted to being hit in the head with a ball. Kovu had arrived out the one eyes ape sometimes. If Koba was working on a spear in the evening Kovu would silently approach him and sit next to him as he watched.

The first time this happened it had made Serena worry but Koba had merely paused and looked down at the young ape in confusion. They met eyes and after just staring at one another for a second Koba simply continued to work on his task. Both apes, young and old, sitting in comfortable silence. Seeing how Koba didn't react violently, Serena decide to let the young ape be. She noticed how Ceasar seemed to smile at Koba's behavior with the young ape. Blue eyes would sometimes join the duo, explaining the process to Kovu as they both watched the master at work.

So after dinner, Kovu would rush over to Koba and watch him with whatever he was working on that night. At first, Koba's friends seemed to stare at the little ape but, after Koba's acceptance, they simply ignored him. When it was time for bed, Serena would simply call Kovu and he would come to her waving a quick bye at the scarred ape. Koba nodding was his only way of saying "goodnight".

~

The day was bright and sunny. There was still a chill in the air but, the weather was pleasant enough so the colony of chimps had decided to venture out into the woods to gather as many edible roots and game as possible. The females would be harvesting the roots and the males hunted for game.Not that the females couldn't hunt. It just as most of them were mothers or too young. It was not practical.

Serena and the group of females ventured out into a quiet area of the woods. It was in a beautiful meadow, that was lightly covered with snow. They were not alone, a group of guards was watching as the females searched for food in the snow.

Serena and Kovu were harvesting some mushrooms they had found. The young ape eager to help out. He was distracted though when a ball of snow hit him in the back of the head. Laughing softly at Kovu's bewildered look, Serena and Kovu looked back to see who had thrown it. Kovu ended up with another ball of snow right in his face.

It seemed that the other young apes had gotten bored of searching and had started a snow fight. Kovu shook his face free of snow and looked up to his mother in question. Those green eyes wide and pleading. She could never resist the ape equivalent of a puppy dog eyes.
"Go on and have fun. Just make sure to stay where I can see you." She smiled as his eyes shined with excitement. He ran quickly to the group, cupping a ball of snow quickly in his hands so he could get back at the one who hit him first.

Serena moved on to another patch of mushrooms and had found a small bush of berries. Recognizing that these were edible she picked the ones that were ready to eat placing them in her basket along with mushrooms. It was such a nice day to be out, even if it was cold.

She tensed and felt a chill of fear go down her spine when she heard a loud thud and a grunt of annoyance. It was Talon, one of the younger gorilla guards. Apparently, he had been rushed by the crowd of children. They were all jumping on him and laughing . She relaxed as saw there was no danger. She had to give it to the gorilla. He didn't seem to happy being a plaything but, he just laid in the snow as the children jumped all over him. The females though took pity on the poor big guy and rushed to shoo the children off the big gorilla. Talon sat up but, decided to stay playing with the children. He would pick them up and launch them into the air. Or let them hang on his mighty arms as they swung off.

Turning again to the task at hand, Serena wandered a little farther into the woods when she spotted another berry bush. Feeling a presence behind her, she turned recognizing the young healer who showed her kindness when she first arrived in the village. Serena had learned that her name was Ivy. She smiled in welcome at the female and scooted over a bit so she could join her. She was enjoying the silence but, decided to initiate a conversation with the healer. Other than Cornelia, Serena didn't speak with any other females. It would be nice to make another friend.

"I never got to thank you for your kindness when you helped me when I first got here. " Serena started smiling shyly as she looked at Ivy.

"No thanks needed." She signed, " I would help anyone in need." she smiled.

"Still, you didn't know anything about me," Serena continued," For all, you knew I could be a bad human."

"No, could not be a bad human. A bad human would not take care of a baby that was not hers. "

Serena thanked her, resuming her task. A few minutes into picking more berries Serena felt the hair in the back of her neck stand on end. The sounds of the forest had also have ceased. Before she could look around she noticed movement in the corner of her eye. In reaction, she pushed Ivy out of the way. She felt a heavy weight land on her chest but, before she could register what was happening she felt a sharp pain as something bit into her shoulder. She screamed in pain as she pushed against the black beast that was attacking her.

Her surroundings erupted into chaos as mothers gathered there children and climbed up high to escape the danger. Guards surrounded her as they attacked the beast. It snarled as it avoided being attacked by a spear, releasing her and jumping back to avoid any more attack. In a haze of pain, Serena looked at what attacked her. She couldn't believe it was a black panther. Before she could wonder what a panther was doing all the way out here, she heard a small whimper to her right. She looked to see it was Kovu who was frozen in place, his eyes filled with unshed tears.

The giant cat had noticed him too and decided smaller prey would be easier to take.

"Kovu!" she screamed trying to move to protect her baby, but before any guard could react to save the young chimp, the black panther landed on the baby ape with a roar. Serena felt her heart shatter as she looked helplessly as everything seemed to go in slow motion. Her vision blurred with tears as she watches the big cat go for the kill. Its large jaws opening to close around his head. Serena had moved to her stomach, wishing her body would cooperate with her as it refused to move. All she could do was reach towards Kovu as if that would stop the predator from attacking.

As the cat was about to chomp down Kovu's head, there was a shriek of anger up above. It startled everyone from tearing their gaze from Kovu and the cat. It had also stopped the panter as it looked up at the noise. Before anyone could see what had shrieked a dark blur tackled the large cat from its side, knocking the beast off Kovu.

It was Koba, he landed on top of the feline and with his bare hands forced it jaws open. With a mighty roar as both predators struggled for dominance, he pulled the jaws apart until a sickening crack was heard. When the cat went limp, he gave it a few mighty hits against its chest before deeming it safe to leave it. Koba and Serena's eyes met and reminded of green eyes she snapped her gaze to Kovu. Ignoring the pain in her shoulder and chest she rushed to Kovu's side as tears ran down her cheeks.

~~~

Hello everyone, I know its mean to end it here but, Its late and I should be going to bed. I apologize for the long wait but, life is starting to return to normal for me and I really do wish to finish this story.

Dark SpiritDemon