making a dash for it, expecting to be pounced on at any moment. One birthday, to encourage him to find something in common with his cousins, his mom had bought him a bush survival manual. In it, he’d read that crocodiles move unbelievably quickly, even on land. If he had known he would actually need the information he’d have paid more attention.
When he turned around to look, the crocodiles had flopped down onto the mud. They lay there eyeing him lazily, as if he had imagined the whole thing. No one else had made any move to help him in his daring rescue either. Some of the village kids shook their heads, astonished. Ethan started to feel as if he were in some sort of parallel world, where nothing made sense. He staggered over to the group surrounding the old woman and put the child down where she elbowed her way into the circle of spectators waiting for the old woman to revive.
Some of the kids leaped up suddenly, squealing and scrambling to their feet to scatter into the nearby bushes. Ethan looked up to see the leopard prowling towards him, its powerful muscles rippling under the sheen of its newly groomed coat. He thought he saw Tariro shift into position behind the old woman. Was he shielding himself, Ethan wondered, or was he just propping her up?
Ethan found himself getting angrier and angrier. Nobody else seemed to want to help. It was too late to run; the leopard was within springing distance. Heart racing, he groped on the ground beside him for his abandoned T-shirt, which he slowly wound around his left wrist, his knife already in his right hand. He crouched down into the fighting stance he had learned in Taekwando. Not that his patchy training in the martial art would be much help against a wild animal, but as long as there was any risk that the old woman could be his cousin Joe, he was not going to give up without a fight.
~~~
“You are a brave boy.” The leopard’s communication filled Ethan’s head. “Now stand aside. I must see to the witch.”
Ethan’s legs went numb with fear. He whipped his head around to see if anyone else had heard the leopard speak. Not that it spoke, exactly. It emitted more of a faint spike of adrenalin that passed through his brain, with an icy edge to it, and then he knew what it meant. Everyone else looked blank.
Struggling to stand his ground, he said, “No! Back off!” and then for good measure, “Bad kitty! Sit!”
The leopard sat, as told, regarding him thoughtfully.
“I will not harm you,” it said. “I need to help the witch. I will need you to do something for me.”
“How do I know you are not lying?” Ethan said. Have I gone completely mad? I am talking to an animal.
Tariro’s head turned from side to side, his eyes darting from friend to friend, as if hoping one of them held the answer to Ethan’s strange behavior.
“Yussy!” Ethan said. “Am I the only one who can hear the leopard?”
“You must find the amulet,” the leopard said, ignoring everyone’s confusion. “I fear she has dropped it in the water.”
“Are you out of your mind? I’m not going near that water.” Ethan’s eyes darted from Jimoh’s group, who had climbed out of the water, and were resting on the other side of the pool, to the spot where the crocodiles had been. One was basking in the sun, but sure enough, the other was missing. Most probably in this very pool , he thought.
The leopard stood up and moved closer towards him in a menacing way. Its face, as it stared at Ethan, had a very un-leopard-like expression on it. Its jaw jutted out, and a single muscle twitched below its eye.
Ethan backed off. He was shaking but he knew he needed to sound as strong as he could. He knew if animals sense fear, they pounce. “Where’s my cousin? Where’s Joe?” He was trying to buy time till he could think what to do. It sounded absurd as he said it. Even if the cat really was talking to him, how would it know where Joe was?
“You cannot reach
When he turned around to look, the crocodiles had flopped down onto the mud. They lay there eyeing him lazily, as if he had imagined the whole thing. No one else had made any move to help him in his daring rescue either. Some of the village kids shook their heads, astonished. Ethan started to feel as if he were in some sort of parallel world, where nothing made sense. He staggered over to the group surrounding the old woman and put the child down where she elbowed her way into the circle of spectators waiting for the old woman to revive.
Some of the kids leaped up suddenly, squealing and scrambling to their feet to scatter into the nearby bushes. Ethan looked up to see the leopard prowling towards him, its powerful muscles rippling under the sheen of its newly groomed coat. He thought he saw Tariro shift into position behind the old woman. Was he shielding himself, Ethan wondered, or was he just propping her up?
Ethan found himself getting angrier and angrier. Nobody else seemed to want to help. It was too late to run; the leopard was within springing distance. Heart racing, he groped on the ground beside him for his abandoned T-shirt, which he slowly wound around his left wrist, his knife already in his right hand. He crouched down into the fighting stance he had learned in Taekwando. Not that his patchy training in the martial art would be much help against a wild animal, but as long as there was any risk that the old woman could be his cousin Joe, he was not going to give up without a fight.
~~~
“You are a brave boy.” The leopard’s communication filled Ethan’s head. “Now stand aside. I must see to the witch.”
Ethan’s legs went numb with fear. He whipped his head around to see if anyone else had heard the leopard speak. Not that it spoke, exactly. It emitted more of a faint spike of adrenalin that passed through his brain, with an icy edge to it, and then he knew what it meant. Everyone else looked blank.
Struggling to stand his ground, he said, “No! Back off!” and then for good measure, “Bad kitty! Sit!”
The leopard sat, as told, regarding him thoughtfully.
“I will not harm you,” it said. “I need to help the witch. I will need you to do something for me.”
“How do I know you are not lying?” Ethan said. Have I gone completely mad? I am talking to an animal.
Tariro’s head turned from side to side, his eyes darting from friend to friend, as if hoping one of them held the answer to Ethan’s strange behavior.
“Yussy!” Ethan said. “Am I the only one who can hear the leopard?”
“You must find the amulet,” the leopard said, ignoring everyone’s confusion. “I fear she has dropped it in the water.”
“Are you out of your mind? I’m not going near that water.” Ethan’s eyes darted from Jimoh’s group, who had climbed out of the water, and were resting on the other side of the pool, to the spot where the crocodiles had been. One was basking in the sun, but sure enough, the other was missing. Most probably in this very pool , he thought.
The leopard stood up and moved closer towards him in a menacing way. Its face, as it stared at Ethan, had a very un-leopard-like expression on it. Its jaw jutted out, and a single muscle twitched below its eye.
Ethan backed off. He was shaking but he knew he needed to sound as strong as he could. He knew if animals sense fear, they pounce. “Where’s my cousin? Where’s Joe?” He was trying to buy time till he could think what to do. It sounded absurd as he said it. Even if the cat really was talking to him, how would it know where Joe was?
“You cannot reach
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