Secret Meetings

The Aftermath: Out in the Open

Blue Eyes gave an inaudible sigh and straightened his slightly bent back, all while trying to adjust his position to take pressure off his already sore backside. He had to resist the urge to lean his forearms on his knees, and tried his best to focus on the meeting at hand. That in itself was difficult, though, since he'd gone the last day without a wink of sleep and his body was still weary from all the fighting.

"Apes were betrayed. By one of our own," his father was saying to Dreyfus and his advisors, while Rocket and Maurice looked on. Thankfully, it was rather loud in the otherwise silent room, and helped the young prince to stay awake.

"He wanted war. I did not. Then he. Shot me. So he could. Blame humans. And lead apes. To battle."

Right now, they were discussing how to explain to the rest of the human population what had happened during the last few days, and made sure they knew the apes were tricked into this by Koba. Thankfully, Dreyfus' advisors, after much convincing by Malcolm, Ellie, and the human leader himself, were willing to listen to Caesar, consider forgiveness, and discuss an arrangement of peace between humans and apes.

Blue Eyes was a little surprised at how easily convinced the humans were, though he supposed they would take the word of their leader very seriously, just as the apes took to Caesar's.

And, after all, it was an ape who worked with humans in order to set them free, he mused. That probably had something to do with it, too.

So lost in his own thoughts, he nearly jumped when a warm palm laid itself on his thigh.

He let his eyes wander to the side, only to see Ash, who sat beside him, staring straight ahead and following along with the discussion between the ape council and the human leaders. His mate never tore his focus away, but he gave the prince's leg a squeeze before he reclaimed his hand.

Concentrate, the gesture said. We'll be done soon enough.

Blue Eyes' lips twitched pleasantly, and he returned his attention to where it was supposed to be.

I hope so, he thought. We've been talking for a long time.

Shortly after the prince and the rescued apes reunited with Caesar outside the king's old home, they all left to face Koba. Malcolm and Dreyfus originally wanted to accompany them as well, but were easily persuaded to turn back by Caesar after leading them to the underground tunnels. They wouldn't be able to climb up Koba's tower, after all, and it would be too dangerous to leave them in a nearby building; even if some apes stayed with them during the battle.

And what a battle it was.

The young prince couldn't remember a time when he was so uneasy, his entire body tense and thrumming with anxious energy; which resulted in him crying out with panicked hoots after watching his father being savagely beaten. And even though Ash, who stayed with him the entire time, did his best to calm him down, the speckled chimp's soothing gestures had little effect. Not that the prince could do much about it, since this was his father's battle to fight, and his alone.

That didn't mean Blue Eyes had to like it, though.

After watching Caesar struggle to climb the human tower, he knew his father was in a weakened state, which would prove to be a disadvantage in battle. When they finally reached the top, he wondered if the older ape would even have the energy to fight at all.

Thankfully, he'd underestimated just how powerful his father actually was. That, and Koba was a little drunk, which was how Caesar described his former brother afterwards. Apparently, the old bonobo had gotten into human alcohol -another new word he'd learned from his father- before Caesar arrived, and wasn't in his prime condition, either.