Monkey Wars by Richard Kurti

mother.” She pointed to the monkey with its hands over its mouth. “She can do this trick where she blows through her fingers to make it sound like my name is floating on the breeze. She’d do that to wake me gently when I’d dozed off in the afternoon.”
    The world Papina described was a far cry from the cemetery that Mico inhabited, and the more she saw of langur life, the more she understood why the troop was so successful. But success wasn’t the same as happiness, and she wanted to show Mico a different way of life.
    She waited until they were busy hunting for frogs one night, then nonchalantly asked, “Just for a change, why don’t you come and see where I live?”
    Mico blinked nervously. She pretended not to notice his anxiety and added, “After all, why is it always me who has to make the journey?”
    Wild thoughts rushed into Mico’s mind: Papina had been sent as a spy and had identified him as a weak link. She was feeding back valuable intelligence about guard patrols and defenses. Even as they spoke, rhesus attack squads were massing, ready to launch a devastating strike on the cemetery, and it would all be his fault—
    “Are you all right?”
    Mico jumped with a start as Papina touched his hand.
    “You suddenly looked a bit queasy.”
    Mico looked into her open face. No spy could be this good—a traitor’s gaze wouldn’t be so steady, her hand so cool and dry.
    “I’m sorry. It’s just…” But how could he explain without insulting her?
    “What have they told you? That we’re all monsters?” she quipped. But Mico looked at her earnestly.
    “They really told you
that
?!” she exclaimed.
    Mico nodded. For a moment Papina didn’t know what to say; then she just burst out laughing at the absurdity of it. Mico tried to hush her up, but Papina couldn’t stop. He leaped over to her and put his hand across her mouth, trying to suppress the noise.
    “Tell me the truth!” he demanded.
    “Come and see for yourself!” Papina retorted, pulling away, not wanting to make this any easier for him. “I trusted you. I put my life in your hands. Are you willing to do the same for me?”
    The challenge had been laid down—Mico knew that if he didn’t agree to go, it would be the end of their friendship.
    “So you’re not…I mean, you’ve never…They told us about cannibalism.”
    Papina’s eyes went wide. “Do I look like a cannibal?”
    Even though he’d never met any cannibals, Mico had to admit he’d be surprised if they were as pretty as Papina. He shook his head.
    “Good,” she said decisively. “We’re all set. Tomorrow night I’ll take you home.” Then she added under her breath, “Should keep the family fed for a few days.”
    “What?!” exclaimed Mico.
    “Sorry, couldn’t resist,” said Papina as she dissolved into another fit of the giggles.
    —
    The next day passed nervously. Mico practiced his military drills, hoping to prepare for whatever dangers lay out in the city, but one of the sternest tests of his courage came before he’d even left the cemetery. He had very little experience of bathing, let alone diving underwater, and he couldn’t hide his anxiety about plunging into the pool.
    “Just hold your breath, keep your eyes open and head for the hole in the wall,” instructed Papina when she met him by the gully.
    “Just?” thought Mico ruefully. Why do they always put “just” before the really difficult things in life? But he was not a quitter, and steeling his nerves, he took the deepest breath he could muster and plunged into the water.
    Immediately he felt himself getting pushed back by the current; he tried to open his eyes, but the water stung and all he could see was a blurry confusion. Suddenly water was rushing up his nose and he started to panic. Just when he thought he wasn’t going to make it, a hand grabbed his fur and hauled him up. Next thing he knew he was bursting to the surface in the pool outside the cemetery.
    “Don’t worry, first