Note: I do not own or have rights to Twilight or its characters!!!
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Chapter 12
Lion, Lion, Burning Bright!
The Law of the Jungle, which never orders anything without a reason, forbids every beast to eat Man except when he is killing to show his children how to kill, and then he must hunt outside the hunting grounds of his pack or tribe. The real reason for this is that man-killing means, sooner or later, the arrival of white men on elephants, with guns, and hundreds of brown men with gongs and rockets and torches. Then everybody in the jungle suffers. The reason the beasts give among themselves is that Man is the weakest and most defenseless of all living things, and it is unsportsmanlike to touch him. They say too–and it is true –that man-eaters become mangy, and lose their teeth.
The Jungle Book
Rudyard Kipling
I tied the tourniquet tightly around Sarah's feline foreleg and began to gently palpate her flesh for the vain. Unlike dogs and wolves who whimpered when afraid or in pain, Sarah made soft plaintive mewing sounds like those of a newborn kitten looking for its mother. She had been mewing like that since I coerced her into my lab. I knew she detested having blood drawn and the last time I'd taken a sample from her in her shape-shifted form it was very painful. The only reason I was subjecting her to my invasive inquiry now, was the fact that I wished to compare this sample to the ones taken while she was human.
With practiced skill, I found my mark and held this place lightly with my finger as I reached for the alcohol swab. Before I could clean the area, however, the pony sized lion on my exam table began to shake so hard that I feared the stainless steel table would collapse. I sighed as I began to whisper softly to her; animals, like people hated to see the doctor, especially when needles were involved.
"Settle down, Kitten." I soothed. "I'm very good at this, you'll hardly feel it."
I was by no means an expert on the science of veterinary medicine, though to my credit, when I began my medical training back in Europe, aspiring doctors were given some education in dealing with large farm animals. It was expected in those days, as formal veterinary schools wouldn't come into existence until the late 1700's. After Sarah's first phasing, I took into my library several texts on animal anatomy, physiology, and medicine, most specifically those books pertaining to the family Felidae . . . and all of these texts I'd read most thoroughly.
"You're going to have to be still Sarah." I insisted gently as I picked up and uncapped the needle. The last time her skin and tissues were much harder as she was still expressing her vampire genes, the muscle and tissues under my hand now were as soft and supple as any humans.
"Yeah, Aunt Sarah," Abby encouraged with a grin. "Be a lion not a mou-ess, 'cause you know you've got the nerve," she playfully sang her adapted line of the Cowardly Lion's song from the Wizard of Oz.
I was caught off guard by Abby's impromptu performance and I had to stop what I was doing and laugh. Her off beat sense of humor often reminded me of Alice. In spite of there silliness, her words had the desired effect, and Sarah's shaking eased enough for me to draw the blood that I needed.
When I finished, Sarah leapt nimbly off the table and proceeded to lick the puncture site on her foreleg. At first I thought to scold her for this, but quickly thought better of it. It was a natural cat behavior after all, and therefore it was likely a reflex action for her.
"You were very tolerant, Sarah," I offered her my encouragement as I patted her broad shoulder. "Thank you. Now, why don't you run along to your room and phase back."
She suddenly looked up at me and I was shocked by the expression in her eyes, one would have thought I'd condemned her to death. Ordinarily I would have inquired as to what the matter was, but without her mental gifts she had no way of telling me. Then a freighting thought occurred to me, the very first time she phased she remained stuck in her shifted form for several days because she couldn't figure out how to phase back. I wondered if this might be what she meant to communicate by her chilling gaze.
"You'll get the hang of this, just give it time," I tried to sound comforting even as my mind considered where in our home we would accommodate 980 pounds worth of fur and claws. Esme loved our most unique daughter very much, but after the time Sarah shredded our sofa in anger over my going to face the Volturi alone, my wife became quite particular about where lions could roam freely in her house.
I was just settling on setting up temporary quarters for her in the laundry room when she took hold of my coat sleeve and tugged at it gently. In spite of her obvious care, the fabric still ripped under the assault of her sharp incisors and she let go. She took several steps towards the lab door, stopped, and looked back at me.
"I think she wants you to follow her Grandpa Carlisle." Abby interpreted for me.
"Thank you, Abby, I do believe you're right," I answered my great granddaughter even as my gaze remained fixed on Sarah. "Lead on, Kitten." I gestured with a wave indicating that she should go and I would follow. I was very curious as to what she was up too.
Abby, Bart, and I followed Sarah up the basement stairs and through the house until we came to the Great Room. The sudden and unexpected appearance of an enormous lion in the room startled Edward and Bella who were sitting on the sofa engaged in a hushed conversation. My son immediately jumped from the sofa and dropped into a defensive crouch even as he placed himself between his mate and the perceived danger. I saw him relax and stand to his full height almost instantly as he realized the big cat was his sister.
She paused and stared at him intently and I knew that she was communicating with the only person in my household who could still hear her thoughts. Edward's signature crooked smile slowly spread across his lips and I waited patiently to hear the translation.
"Alright, I'll tell him," my son chuckled. "But I can't promise anything."
"Tell me what," the suspense was starting to get to me.
Edward took a deep breath and sighed, "Well," he began, the smile still clinging to his lips. "It seems Sarah is suffering from a bad case of cabin fever after almost two months of being cooped up here. And she'd like . . ." He stopped in mid sentence and turned back to Sarah "I know that's not how you said it, I'm trying to be diplomatic . . . now, do you mind if I continue, or would you prefer to resort to pantomime?"
Sarah bowed her head and her tail drooped until the end of it touched the floor. She looked very contrite and I could only guess she was apologizing. Edward continued to hold her in his gaze for three more seconds before he turned his attention back to me.
"No, I wasn't being hard on her," he answered my unspoken rebuke before taking another breath and continuing. "She'd like the opportunity to stretch her legs a bit . . . she wants to go for a run."
"I'm not so sure . . ." I began my protest but I was quickly cut off by Abby.
"That's a great idea!" She squealed, I couldn't help but think of Alice again. "I could step outside and phase and we could go running together. It would be really cool to see who's faster . . . a dog or a cat?"
The two of them locked gazes at Abby's suggestion and I could see the friendly rivalry dance between them. Yet another reason for my foreboding, I groaned mentally before forming my careful answer. "Thank you, Abby, but I'm still not entirely sure . . ."
"Bella and I could tag along too." It was Edward who undermined me this time. I shot him a pleading glance but he ignored me. "I don't know about Bella, but I'm feeling a bit thirsty, we could hunt while we're out."
I was now dangling, quite precariously, over the proverbial pickle barrel. I needed to get ready for my shift at the hospital else wise I would simply have said yes and tagged along myself. I had apprehensive feelings about letting Sarah go out even with three very capable chaperons . . . experience had shown me that my Kitten had a propensity for finding trouble. Still, if I said no, I would sound like an ogre for keeping her locked up, and I could defiantly see Sarah's point on the matter.
"You're worried about William." I hated it when Edward spoke my unspoken thought like that. I glared at him, but I held my peace. "He's not been spotted or scented anywhere since the attack and even if he were around, he wouldn't recognize his sister looking like that."
"And like every shape-shifter," Abby took up. "Her teeth and claws would make short work of any vamp that foolishly chose to mess with her."
I was cornered and I knew it. And the truly sad part was that Sarah's reawakened power had been wholly my idea. 'That's what you get for not fully thinking thing through Carlisle,' I chided myself. I let out a defeated sigh. "Very well, you may go for your run . . . it might even do you some good, but behave yourself and listen to your brother. I'm putting him in charge of this little excursion."
******
It was absolutely glorious! Words didn't exist in any language know to man to express the shear exhilaration I felt racing through the shade dappled forest on silent paws. I was alive, in every single pore of my body, and the electric quality of that feeling made me tingle with excitement. The air around me was literally teaming with aromas, ones I hadn't been able to detect as a human . . . I could actually taste them with my Jacobson's Organ if I opened my mouth a bit. And then there were the sounds; blindness made my hearing very acute for a human, but the acuity of my predatory ears could only be surpassed by vampire hearing. It was enough to make me want to remain in lion from for the rest of my natural life.
But then my thoughts turned to my mate and I realized that some things were better experienced in human form . . . like the rather long passionate kiss he had given me before breakfast only that very morning.
As I nimbly leapt a fallen tree I looked to my left, Edward and Bella were peeling away from our group on a course to intercept the heard of deer whose delectable scent filled the air. I smiled as I turned my gaze back to the trail in front of me, twenty yards directly ahead of me the pale grey outline of Abby in her wolf form churned up the loose forest earth as she ran.
Tiger, tiger burning bright, In the forest of the night, What immortal hand or eye, Could frame thy fearful symmetry? The words from the first stanza of The Tiger by William Blake rattled through my mind. I remembered studying the piece in high school, it was a favorite of mine, but only now did I fully comprehend its meaning. Power, presence, confidence, and the ability to rely completely on one's own self without any lingering traces of pathetic weakness . . . I was that tiger now; Lion, lion burning bright!
I didn't realize I'd slowed my pace as I reveled in the glories of my experience, but I had and Abby had disappeared into the sea of green and brown in front of me. With a burst of feline speed, I could easily catch up of course, but I was in no real hurry to do so. I wasn't worried about getting lost either, the scents of everyone I cared about were readily accessible to me and I could track them with ease.
I continued my comfortable jog, Papa would have accused me of lollygagging, and he would have been right . . . I didn't want this magical experience to end any time soon. The scent of deer wafted past me again, coming from the opposite direction of Bella and Edward's hunt. My stomach growled loudly and my mouth began to water, the lion in me was hungry and it wanted to hunt. Without a second though I gave into my instincts and changed direction in mid stride to follow the scent of the deer.
The alluring fragrance was becoming stronger and I knew the heard was close so I slowed my pace. The deer were upwind as I began my stalk, they wouldn't know I was coming if I was careful. There were three of them, two does and a buck. I'd just decided on the buck for my meal when a new set of smells accosted my senses. The first one was human; a male whose aroma was heavily tinted with fear. The second scent was familiar and yet not . . . a vampire I realized by the back note of old blood in his scent, but unlike the scent of Papa and the rest of my family, the blood smell lacked the hint of earthy mustiness of an all animal diet. The vamp in question was of the traditional variety and he was hunting a human well within the borders of my parent's territory.
An irritated growl escaped my throat, startling my intended prey and causing them to flee. Instead of chasing them down however, I decided to pay our unwelcome guest a visit. After all, Papa always said it was rude to hunt in the territory of another without getting permission first. Maybe no one ever took the time to school our intruder on proper predatory etiquette. I turned westward and raced to find the intruder, hoping I could arrive in time to save the hapless human.
I was on my belly now scooting along silently through the tall grass and scruffy bushes as I approached the edge of a deep drop off. Below the little cliff, was the broad gravel wash of a stream bed, the narrow ribbon of water running through it was low and tame at this time of year. When I reached the edge of the cliff, I remained still and quiet as I gazed through the curtain of grass in front of me.
Horror and disgust filled me to the point of sickness at the scene I was secretly witnessing. Down on the gravel wash, not more than thirty feet away, the male vampire was bent over the body of his prey. I was too late to save the poor fisherman who had ventured to this stream for some late season trout fishing. White hot rage welled up with surprising force inside me as I watched the male drop the lifeless body like an empty soda. He now stood, his bright crimson eyes scanning the surrounding area for an appropriate place to dispose of the remains of his meal.
Indignation seized me as a brief flash of my father's final moments facing down Cane flooded my memory. All semblance of rational thought evaporated from me and predatory instinct took over; I leapt from my hiding place as might roar, that startled flocks of birds from the roosting places for miles, preceded me.
The male vampire whirled around to face me, more than a hint of fear plying in his blood brightened eyes. "Holy shit," he cursed under his breath. "It must be the freakn' steroids in the food chain . . . you're the biggest damn cougar I've ever seen."
I chortled even as I pulled back my lips in a vicious snarl; this was followed by another earth shaking roar that echoed off the trees all around us. As I began to slowly circle him, the now nervous vamp extended his arms defensively in front of him.
"Good kitty," he purred softly. "Nice kitty, are you hungry, did the smell of an easy meal draw you out?" My circle brought me to within a couple of feet of the body. The sight of the angry wound on the poor man's broken neck turned my stomach; I roared my displeasure.
"Go ahead kitty-cat, help yourself." He gestured slightly towards the corps. "I'm done with it, you can have the rest . . . it'll save me the trouble of having to bury it."
I was incensed at how little this fiend regarded the lives he took; he was offering the body to me as if it were the remnants of a discarded bologna sandwich. Papa always disposed of his remains properly . . . and he hunted animals, not people. He would never think to leave them for scavengers to consume. I roared again and took several charging steps towards the foul creature causing him to back step quickly to avoid me.
"Hey, take it easy," he murmured when the gravel and dust settled. "I said you could have it. You should fell honored; it's not every day that William is inclined to share."
William! The name brought a low yet fierce growl to my throat as thoughts of my mother's injuries tumbled through my mind. This was the disgusting piece of filth that hurt Mama. My body coiled as I ready myself to pounce. Reading the impending doom in my stance, William muttered more curses and something about hating cats before turning to runaway.
It was on; nothing got the predatory instincts of a feline pumped like the promises of the chase and I pounded after my quarry with satisfied abandon. I let go of my senses allowing the lion within me to rise to the forefront and dictate my actions. My focus became singular as my mind locked on the scent of my prey. The ground between us disappeared rapidly as I closed the distance and prepared to strike. I took a graceful hop step as I reached out with one lethal paw and raked at the side of his upper thigh. I felt the fabric of his pant leg shred under my assault even as a scream tore from his throat. My razor sharp claws dug into his stony flesh and it sounded like thousands of fingernails on a chalkboard as I gouged four parallel strips into his leg.
My assault slowed my forward momentum slightly, but the injury I caused slowed my prey's pace as well. He was limping now and I licked my lips with glee. I bounded after him with renewed vigor as my eyes locked on his left calf, just below the knee . . . a well placed bite there would leave him immobile and at my mercy. Just as I caught up to my prey and was about to clamp my tribal jaws down on his leg, a chorus of howls echoed through the trees around me. Too late forest brothers, I mused with a mental sneer, the kill is mine today.
"Cease and desist this instant!!" The angry voice of Papa roared from somewhere behind me. "Stop it, I say!!"
I tumbled to a very ungraceful halt and watched as four wolves exploded from the forest to continue the chase. In frustration I bellowed out one finally tree shaking roar before turning my back on my lost quarry. From the direction I had just come I saw Abby's pale grey lupine form along with Bella, Edward and Papa running towards me at full speed. The look of displeasure on my father's face let me know, without a doubt, that I was in seriously hot water.
