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Post by Michael Knopff on Aug 29, 2007 20:13:29 GMT -5
"David! Take my hand. I don't want to have to wonder around this whole place if you get lost!" Michael exclaimed, holding his hand out to the seven-year-old boy before him. David's younger sister, Elissa, was only two so Michael was holding her in his other arm.
The little boy pouted, crossing his arms dramatically. "That's for girls and little kids!" he exclaimed, glaring up at his babysitter. The teenager raised an eyebrow at the child.
"Fine. Then so is getting so see the animals. I guess we'll just go home then," he replied easily. That got David's attention! He huffed angrily, but held his hand up to be taken. Michael grinned in triumph before grabbing the boy's wrist gently lead him away from the entrance of the zoo.
He babysat the kids in the evenings for one of his father's co-workers. Today, however, was Saturday. The children's parents had planned the day for themselves and had paid Michael to take the two to the zoo. He happily agreed to help them out.
The day was hot, but plenty of cool breezes passed through the area to cool them. They spent quite a bit of the late morning inside the air-conditioned exhibits. After lunch, Michael carted the two children outside to see the other animals.
"I hear they just recently obtained some new leopards. Want to see them?" he asked. Elissa stared at him with a blank look. The babysitter smiled, bouncing the toddler in his arms. "They have a new kitty! You want to see it?" The girl's eyes lit up.
"Kitties! Kitties! I 'anna see! I 'anna see!"
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Post by Ruaidri on Aug 29, 2007 20:32:22 GMT -5
A leopard laid down on his back lazily, looking up at the sky. There were lots of plants surrounding him and a metal bowl of food. Who did these humans think he was? Some kind of pet maybe. The clouded leopard felt insulted. Even more so that he had been captured, though. It was probably the most embarrassing thing that had ever happend to him in his life. To be captured by humans.... He was Zercan for crying out loud!
The young Zercan rolled over onto his side. He found out that he was at a Zoo. A place where humans kept dangerous animals in cages to look at. It was a bit revolting in his taste. Should the animals not be out in the wild?
Raudri Pavol, the captured Zercan, glared out at all the humans. Even the childrens, and especially the females. He had never in all his life seen a female. Humans, naturally, could only breed with females if they were both males. The Zercan decided he much purferred the lifebearer-lifegiver system all the other planets had. Females were just too strange.
A sudden cool breeze brought along a scent that had Red instantly alert. It was such a familiar scent, yet foreign. He stood up, heading towards the scent curiously. What was it? Sniff... sniff....
The Zercan froze as his eyes rested on a young man outside the cage. Absolutely gorgous he was. Smelled wonderful. Not to mention he felt drawn to him. Being Zercan, he knew instantly when he found his mate. His heart pulled in the man's direction, his body ached to be near him.
Forgetting breifly that there were bars between them, Rauidri ran straight towards the young man. He whimpered when he was prematurely met with metal bars. The leopard lick his paws sadly as he watched his mate. The boy was with children! They all looked so similiar... he couldn't possible have fathered those kits, could he?
Red pressed himself agaisnt the bars, his eyes were trained on the brunette man with two children. If he could rip through metal he would have. And if humans were not so ignorant he would have changed. If he could have changed he would not be in this mess. Inches from his mate, yet so far apart.
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Post by Michael Knopff on Aug 29, 2007 20:43:45 GMT -5
Michael pointed, directing Elisssa's sight towards a leopard lounging with another in the shade of a tree farther away. Both children were practically jumping with the excitment of getting to see such creatures. The sixteen-year-old had almost never seen them so happy.
So, when one the leopards charged the fence, Michael barely kept himself from screeching. He instinctively pulled Elissa closer to him while pushing David behind him. Luckily, there was a railing to really keep them from getting close enough to the cages. Why would the feline do such a thing? It didn't seem to be angry or trying to attack. When his eyes met the leopard's, a jolt when through Michael's body. Intelligent eyes conveyed much more than any mere animal's should.
Elissa started to cry, forcing the teenage boy to look away from the creature to calm the girl. With one backwards glance, Michael took the children away from the exhibit.
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Post by Ruaidri on Aug 29, 2007 20:51:55 GMT -5
Rauidri leaned against the bars of his cage heavily. Maybe he was hoping they would break from the force of it.
When his mate, for he was certain that was his mate, looked away he whimpered. It was because of the child. It was crying because of what he had done. Red forgot how scary it would be if a leopard came leaping at the sides of the cage. Apparently he was a dangerous animal so....
Still, the Zercan wanted the boy to look at him again. Look at me, he told him hopefully, it coming out as a series of non-threatening growls.
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Post by Michael Knopff on Aug 30, 2007 17:32:37 GMT -5
Even after returning the siblings to their home at the end of the day, and going home himself, Michael was bothered by the happenings that afternoon. The leopard had acted so strangely! He'd never seen, or heard, of anything like that before. It had seemed like it had wanted to communicate... It had seemed to know and understand much more than animals should. Thinking about it so much was starting to freak him out. Michael sighed heavily and closed the book he'd been trying to read. His thoughts kept wandering, though, and he'd barely even read a page despite sitting there for almost an hour.
The dark-haired boy stood, setting the closed book down on the chair before leaving his room. He and his father lived in a three-bedroom, one-floor house near the edge of town. The third room had been turned into an office for his father, and a sleeping area for their dog, Cindy. It was a rather small house, but Michael liked it that way; it was easier to keep clean. It wasn't as if they needed more space anyway. The teenager headed for his father's office to make sure the man hadn't fallen asleep or something, only to find him clicking away at their slightly out-dated computer.
"Hey, how's work going?" The older man looked up at his son and smiled.
"Great! Great! I just have a little more to do!" Michael grinned and nodded.
"That's good. When you're finished, we should have some ice cream to celebrate!" The man laughed and shook his head lightly.
"You kids and your sweets. Why don't you take Cindy out for a walk while you wait? She's been bothering for awhile now. Do us both a favor." Michael laughed but agreed, attaching Cindy's leash to her collar before leading her out of the house and down two blocks to the city's park. It wasn't that big, but there was plenty of open running area for the three-year-old Retriever to let off some energy.
Michael released the pet from her leash and sat himself on a swing to wait for her to finish playing. He'd brought her favorite tennis ball, incase she decided she wanted to play with him, but there were plenty of other things the dog could play with to keep herself entertained.
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Post by Ruaidri on Aug 30, 2007 17:59:41 GMT -5
The hours seemed to take centuries to come and go. They were going slowly before, being stuck in this prison, but even slower now that his mate had come and gone. If it were not for the children the boy would have stayed. He was almost certain of it. The boy had stared at him such a way that Rauidri knew he knew he was not some plain old leopard.
Red's heart ached for his mate. He could only wish he knew the boy's name. Now there was a different reason for escaping- to find his mate. As soon as all the humans left, and the lights dimmed, the Zercan deemed it safe to escape.
There was only the question of how. He looked around curiously. There was no ceiling, the bars went up high enough that the creatures could not jump out. They were not built for a Zercan though. He changed into his human form after carefully sniffing out the area. Ruidri scaled the bars of the cage skillfully.
Once on the other side, the young man slid down. It was fun. After landing he transformed back into his leopard form and ran for it. The boy's scent was still lingering in the area so that was what he followed. It was a weak smell since it had been so long, but this was his mate he was tracking.
Luckily he was able to avoid the security people and humans in general. The trail led to a house but did not stop there. The structure did not seem like his mate's home anyway. The Zercan continued on his way, being careful to stay out of site. He did not want to be captured again!
Another house came into view. This was definately his mate's home. Red stayed around the yard a moment, thinking about how to go about this. Suddenly he relieved there was a strong trail leading away from the house. Curiously, the Zercan followed it. It led to a park. He walked around the forest surrounding the area.
After looking for a moment he saw a figure sitting on a swing. His immidiate reaction was to run out to him... but it seemed a dog did not like his idea. It started growling when it caught his scent and was inching towards him. Red wasn't sure what to do now.
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Post by Michael Knopff on Aug 30, 2007 20:05:47 GMT -5
Michael had been staring off into space, thinking about the strange cat at the zoo again, when he heard Cindy growling. It wasn't a playful growl, like when he tried to take a toy from her to toss it again, but more serious and angry. It frightened him.
The teenager stood from his swingset and turned to find his puppy ready to attack... the leopard. Michael's body stiffened as he stared at the wild animal. Would it attack him? How did it escape from the zoo? And, most importantly, would the two animals fight? That thought frightened him because he knew that Cindy would not come out the victor.
"Cindy... Cindy, down!" he demanded in a shaky, rather quiet voice. He didn't want to startle the large feline into action. "Cindy! Stop it! Get over here!" Of course, she didn't listen, instead, she continued to growl and bare her teeth.
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Post by Ruaidri on Aug 30, 2007 20:59:54 GMT -5
Rauidri's first instinct was to challenge the animal. He pawed at the ground uneasily, his body tensing as if he were going to attack. That only seemed to anger the dog more. This animal was young and reckless. He really did not want to injure her. Why would he want to harm a creature trying to protect his mate? The only problem was the dog was between them and prolonging their meeting.
Red growled lowly under his breath, trying to warm this creature from facing him. It didn't work. Apparently she mistook it for a challenge. The leopard huffed in annoyment. The noise sounded like a sort of sneeze. Then he sighed from his nose.
The dog was still only baring teeth, and shifting from paw to paw. The Zercan did something he did not want to do. But his mate was frightened. That just wouldn't do. Red laid on the ground, a perfect picture of harmlessness. He was submitting to the dog, showing her he did not mean any harm.
To think... a proud Zercan, submitting to a pup.
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Post by Michael Knopff on Aug 30, 2007 21:06:32 GMT -5
Michael could do nothing but stare in awe. He wasn't entirely sure how to react. Had the leopard... actually done that? It just... laid down! The teenager had never seen anything like this before. Surely a wild animal that was bigger and stronger than some three-year-old dog wouldn't so easily give up a fight.
Upon seeing the cat forfeit the challenge, Cindy moved forward to investigate. She sniffed at the leopard curiously, emitting growls every once in awhile. Apparently, she wasn't entirely sure what to think. Was the cat dangerous? Was he a playmate? Should she fight him off either way, just to be safe?
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Post by Ruaidri on Aug 30, 2007 21:19:08 GMT -5
Rauidri could feel the curiousity and confusion in the air. His mate was amazed that such a large creature would be submitting to a pup, and said pup did not know what to make of him. The Zercan was rather amused with himself, but was also getting impatient. Pleasing the dog was taking too long.
He rolled onto his back slowly so as not to startle the dog. His mate had call her... Cindy? Once she accepted he was not a danger he swiped at her playfully. She yelped uncertainly before swiping back. Red stood up rubbed against the smaller creature. She accepted his friendship when she rubbed back.
That settled, Red made his way to his mate. Now, he could simply change right there. That would only startle the dog and his mate, though. That he had to stay in his leopard form.
The Zercan approached slowly. The boy seemed frozen in place. He rubbed against the human's leg affectionately. A strange noise was coming from him as he marked the boy the only way he could at the moment, but rubbing all around his legs. After a few moments he sat next to him with his tail wrapped around the boy's legs. He licked at his fingers, nipping slightly but not enough to draw blood.
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Post by Michael Knopff on Aug 30, 2007 21:28:16 GMT -5
Michael was shaking by now. Surely, this wasn't normal! First, the wild cat befriended his puppy, now he was trying to sweeten him up, too! It was a strange feeling to have such a large, powerful animal rubbing against him like that. He still wasn't sure what to do, though.
Hesitantly, he reached out and touched the leopard's back, trailing the tips of his fingers throught the cat's fur. When he saw that it didn't seem to mind, he gently applied his whole hand and started to pet the animal.
"Ahm... This... is kind of strange. Are you a tame cat, then? I didn't think it was legal to own leopards," he rambled just because it felt too weird for the park to be silent.
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Post by Ruaidri on Aug 30, 2007 21:36:41 GMT -5
Red uttered an amused sound. He loved it when his mate pet him. Sure, if anyone else tried to do that he would really bite them. The Zercan was just so happy to find his mate that he would take anything.
A snort left him at the last comment. No one owned him! He was a free Zercan. Well... ignoring that whole zoo thing, yes, he was a free Zercan. The leopard nudged his hand under the boy's hands and his purring became louder.
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Post by Michael Knopff on Aug 30, 2007 21:46:46 GMT -5
Michael giggled at the cat's reaction. It was almost as if it understood his words. It wasn't so scary, now that he knew that it wasn't a wild, instinctual animal. Since it knew that people weren't a threat, it wouldn't hurt him. The leopard really seemed to like him, too!
The teen continued to pet the cat, sitting back down on the swing, so that he was closer to the animal. Cindy, however, was feeling a bit lonely and started to demand attention. She wormed her way up beside the cat, wagging her tail and begging to be pet as well. Michael laughed again reached out to pet his dog with his other hand.
"What should I do with you?" he asked the leopard, "I can't just leave you out here. If you belong to someone, they're probably looking for you. If I leave here to wander around, you might get hurt, or taken to the zoo or something." He laughed lightly. "That's probably what you were doing there before, right? I bet your owner's worried sick about you! Well... I don't think I could take you home. My dad would freak out!"
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Post by Ruaidri on Aug 30, 2007 21:59:59 GMT -5
Stupid pup, he couldn't help thinking. She was trying to steal his mate's attention! Still, he could see why the dog would want his attention. Besides, the pup was kind of sweet in the way she craved attention. He sat next to the dog patiently because his mate was petting both of them.
Red gave the boy a sad look. He didn't want to be seperated from his mate already! Well, whatever the human decided he would follow him anyway. The Zercan licked his hand, almost like he was trying to expression his feelings. Like he was telling him he was not leaving his side. It was the closest he could come to actually shaking hands.
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Post by Michael Knopff on Aug 31, 2007 15:39:55 GMT -5
Michael laughed. "I bet if I told this to anyone, they'd think I was crazy. I'm just blowing things out of proportion, right? I mean... I am talking to a cat," he stated before sighing. "Maybe I'm more lonely than I thought. I should make some more friends; this is kind of sad." With another sigh, he stood. "Well, Mr. Cat, I'm sorry, but I have to leave now. My dad is waiting for me. Even though you can't understand me, and I'm sure you don't care, but I'll make some calls and see if anyone is missing you, okay? Good night!" With that, he attatched Cindy's leash to her collar and lead her home.
When he entered the house, he found his father filling two bowls with chocolate ice cream. Michael squealed happily before running to take one of the servings. "Yey! Let's go watch TV, too!" he exclaimed, pulling his dad into the living room and turning the television to a game show. The teenager settled down on the old couch beside his father, happily eating his treat. He was glad to have times like these with his father; the man was always busy with work so any time that he had free, Michael took.
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