Year of the Panther
Chapter 9: Show and tell
By Mongoose
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Warnings: Shounen ai, 1+2 (I'll notify ya'll of any others as they appear)
.A.U.! Fairy
Tale-ish, PG13, I guess. Swear words of every imaginable kind, violence.
Disclaimer: I don't own the G-boyz. I'm not making money off this. Nuf
said. Any
original characters are mine; don't use 'em without my permission!
C & C please! You can reach me at demonangel600@comcast.net
Notes: I was inspired by a movie I saw a long time ago.very sad...I don't
know who it's
by. It's called "Fluke"
IMPORTANT note! POVs will change a lot and will be signaled by [...] also,
this is
NOT a death fic. I know it looks like it but let me get the rest typed and
you will see!
Now finally.the fic!
Note: Well, um.okay. Fine. I'm sorry. I know it's been nearly a year. I've
been stuck, but now that I finally decided to stop trying to use the old
version from my journal and just write it from scratch it went okay. So,
after life happened and writer's block, here is part 9.
In case anyone is wondering about that BloodScores comic I was working on -
I didn't finish it on time for the contest, but I still want to follow
through with it at some point, because it as a cool idea. But alas, the
notebook that had about 40 pages of the scrip and some story boarding in it
is missing. I don't know what happened to it. It was my only copy of it!
Woe is me.
Also I've been donating every bit of my weekend time to organizing for the
march on Washington D.C. for affirmative action on April 1! I urge
everybody is for equality and against racism to come and support us. Our
website is at www.bamn.com. And before anyone asks, yes I'm for affirmative
action.
Anyway, one last note:
I'd like to thank all of the ppl who reviewed this fanfics, and thank them
for their encouragement for me to continue. Thank you so much!
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[Duo] I cracked one violet eye open as the sunlight rudely pounded against my eyelids. The light hurt, and my internal clock told me it was WAY too early to be getting up just yet. A rumble of agreement came from the panther consciousness deep within my own. But just as I was settling into the peaceful realm of sleep again my ears twitched, hearing a sound. Instantly alert the panther had my eyes wide open and ears perked in interest as I was dragged into wakefulness. 'ungh' I thought incoherently at the panther who had forced me (in collaboration with the sunlight) to wake the hell up. I felt a mental 'shhhh' from the panther, who was trying to pinpoint the source of the noise we'd heard. 'nugh' I muttered in intelligent defiance. It growled at me. 'Okay okay, fine! I'm up, damnit. Yeesh!...ya big fur ball!' It sent feelings of smug satisfaction at me. I mentally glared at it. Then, with a sigh I turned my attention to the outside world, only mildly interested in it at the moment. I swiveled my ears this way and that, letting the panther and its instinct guide me. I heard thunking noises and other muffled thumps. Suddenly I felt a small prod on my mind, like someone had just mentally tapped me on the shoulder. I felt it again. 'Oh! You're asking me a question?' I thought at what I was starting to think of as the panther's corner of my consciousness. An emotion of confusion and uncertainty was my only reply. 'uhh.I guess you don't understand coherent thought too well do you?....' No response at all this time, just the silence of incomprehension. 'hmn.' I muttered in the same noncommittal, multi-usage grunt Heero was so fond of. 'but you seemed to understand me before, right?' I thought half to myself and half to the beast. Then an idea struck me 'Hey! Maybe it was my emotions you understood, not my words, right?' Another, waiting sort of silence settled over the panther's mind now. Anticipation. 'You think I'm starting to get it, but I'm just being kinda slow, right? Thanks for you patience.' There was a response to that last sentence-no, emotion-my emotion of gratitude. It understood that and it send back a feeling of acknowledgement. Finally we were getting somewhere. Then the panther sent again that questioning prob. It sensed my familiarity with this environment, an environment that must seem alien to it and it was asking my advice. 'What was that sound?' its emotions said to me 'Are they dangerous?', 'Can I eat the maker of those sounds', 'or is it another panther, come to steel my territory?' All this was inferred through simple emotion. Wow. I decided that, however amazing emotion's many meanings may be, this thing was just gonna hafta learn some words. So I thought at it in words and emotions, hoping it would learn their meanings that way. I sent it feelings of reassurance and thought 'It's alright, it's just Heero. He is not a threat' (though of course, Heero could be quite dangerous when he wanted, but he wouldn't try to hurt me even as a panther unless I attacked him. Besides, without his gun, what match was Heero for a panther?) 'Heero is not a threat' I repeated. To the panther that meant that Heero was not a rival panther and not a bigger predator. I felt a curious feeling that sounded suspiciously like, 'can I eat it?' 'No! You cannot eat Heero!' I send waves of negativity at that question. A frustrated snort came from it as if it were saying 'you can't fight it, you can't run from it and you can't eat it, so what CAN you do with it!?' I thought of how to explain this to the beast. Did panthers live with their mates outside of the breeding season? Did they even keep the same mate year after year? They certainly didn't have other males as mates, and somehow I knew the panther could tell that Heero was a male. Animals just know these things. Oh well, here go nothing. 'Heero is my..mate.' I sent wave of love and all the other emotions I thought of as my feelings for Heero. There was a pause, then limited acknowledgement. As if it was withholding judgment. It didn't really understand but was willing to learn. Okay. That was fine with me, as long as it didn't try to eat Heero. Another prod at my mind sounded like impatience and curiosity. It wanted to check out this Heero-panther that I said was my mate. Boy was it in for a shock. 'Hey, before we get up, I think you need a name. I can't keep thinking of you as 'the panther' and 'it', you know?' More impatience. Fine. Be that way. 'My name is Duo', I told it, and I threw all the emotion and memories and thoughts that I thought of as myself at the panther. Its mind reeled from the sudden wash of thoughts, many of them completely foreign to it as the mental equivalent of Duoness poured down on its mind. I realized that maybe that wasn't such a good idea. I hope its okay.. That was kind of a lot for an animal to take all at once. Oops. Then I felt a metaphorical shake of the panther's head and emotions of dazed amazement wash over me. It hadn't comprehended all of it, or even most of it, to be sure, but it had understood the emotion in all those memories and thoughts, and perhaps even a little more, and it wanted to see more. Now. It started riffling threw my thoughts as it began to explore my mind with interest, as one might explore a new territory. Great. Just peachy. Oh well. Although it felt odd, it didn't hurt. I decided to let it go ahead and explore. If it was ever going to get smart enough to understand language, this would be the quickest way for it to do it. Then I thought of something. 'Hey, wait!' It gave me a mental glance of inquiry and thought 'Duo?' at me. Wow, it knew my name. It was asking 'Yes Duo, what do you want?' Cool! And it had an accent, I was amazed to realize. Like someone from another country saying your name for the first time and trying very hard to pronounce it right. 'Yes, I am Duo.' I thought at it carefully, but couldn't help but let the joy and approval at this new development slip past that thought. It purred with pride at its accomplishment, 'You need a name' It seemed to half understand what I meant and threw everything that was being a panther down on me, just as I had done to it. And while its mind wasn't as complex as mine, it was still a mind blowing experience. I suddenly felt what it was like to run through the forest, to hunt fleeing prey, to defend one's territory from others. And the sense of power and grace that comes along with being a panther. For a moment I was living the stealth and then the chase and then the kill all at once. I knew what it was like to have lived with hearing surpassing my own, smell things never imagined, see things in that movement sensitive way that panthers do. Everything it was to be a panther, all in just a few moments. For a moment I was a panther, not just in body but in mind, and it was beyond words. I got the feeling I didn't understand it all, but there would be time to work that out later. I shook my furry head to clear it and then said. 'So, like I said, you need a name' At the word 'name' I felt the panther about to fling another wave of pantherness at me, so I quickly said 'no, no that's okay. Thanks but I'm fine.' It seemed to understand and subsided. 'Okay, how 'bout this' I told it. 'Pan, short for panther, and like Pan the forest god, right?' It understood that I thought of it as this word 'panther' and it understood 'forest god' to mean 'A mighty panther who rules the entire forest' It liked the second definition best and slowly said the name to itself, of himself, as I should start to think of it as, for he was defiantly a male. 'Pa.Pan.Pan!' It roared triumph and approval at the name. I sent wave of happiness at it. It then went back to rummaging through my thoughts. 'So you're leaving this to me, eh buddy?' No response. It was busy. This environment was my department, not his. 'Okay, fine. Off to meet Heero then,' I thought merrily. ********** TBC Yes, I know, I need to beta read. I'll do it when I have time. C&C please! -Mongoose
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[Duo] I cracked one violet eye open as the sunlight rudely pounded against my eyelids. The light hurt, and my internal clock told me it was WAY too early to be getting up just yet. A rumble of agreement came from the panther consciousness deep within my own. But just as I was settling into the peaceful realm of sleep again my ears twitched, hearing a sound. Instantly alert the panther had my eyes wide open and ears perked in interest as I was dragged into wakefulness. 'ungh' I thought incoherently at the panther who had forced me (in collaboration with the sunlight) to wake the hell up. I felt a mental 'shhhh' from the panther, who was trying to pinpoint the source of the noise we'd heard. 'nugh' I muttered in intelligent defiance. It growled at me. 'Okay okay, fine! I'm up, damnit. Yeesh!...ya big fur ball!' It sent feelings of smug satisfaction at me. I mentally glared at it. Then, with a sigh I turned my attention to the outside world, only mildly interested in it at the moment. I swiveled my ears this way and that, letting the panther and its instinct guide me. I heard thunking noises and other muffled thumps. Suddenly I felt a small prod on my mind, like someone had just mentally tapped me on the shoulder. I felt it again. 'Oh! You're asking me a question?' I thought at what I was starting to think of as the panther's corner of my consciousness. An emotion of confusion and uncertainty was my only reply. 'uhh.I guess you don't understand coherent thought too well do you?....' No response at all this time, just the silence of incomprehension. 'hmn.' I muttered in the same noncommittal, multi-usage grunt Heero was so fond of. 'but you seemed to understand me before, right?' I thought half to myself and half to the beast. Then an idea struck me 'Hey! Maybe it was my emotions you understood, not my words, right?' Another, waiting sort of silence settled over the panther's mind now. Anticipation. 'You think I'm starting to get it, but I'm just being kinda slow, right? Thanks for you patience.' There was a response to that last sentence-no, emotion-my emotion of gratitude. It understood that and it send back a feeling of acknowledgement. Finally we were getting somewhere. Then the panther sent again that questioning prob. It sensed my familiarity with this environment, an environment that must seem alien to it and it was asking my advice. 'What was that sound?' its emotions said to me 'Are they dangerous?', 'Can I eat the maker of those sounds', 'or is it another panther, come to steel my territory?' All this was inferred through simple emotion. Wow. I decided that, however amazing emotion's many meanings may be, this thing was just gonna hafta learn some words. So I thought at it in words and emotions, hoping it would learn their meanings that way. I sent it feelings of reassurance and thought 'It's alright, it's just Heero. He is not a threat' (though of course, Heero could be quite dangerous when he wanted, but he wouldn't try to hurt me even as a panther unless I attacked him. Besides, without his gun, what match was Heero for a panther?) 'Heero is not a threat' I repeated. To the panther that meant that Heero was not a rival panther and not a bigger predator. I felt a curious feeling that sounded suspiciously like, 'can I eat it?' 'No! You cannot eat Heero!' I send waves of negativity at that question. A frustrated snort came from it as if it were saying 'you can't fight it, you can't run from it and you can't eat it, so what CAN you do with it!?' I thought of how to explain this to the beast. Did panthers live with their mates outside of the breeding season? Did they even keep the same mate year after year? They certainly didn't have other males as mates, and somehow I knew the panther could tell that Heero was a male. Animals just know these things. Oh well, here go nothing. 'Heero is my..mate.' I sent wave of love and all the other emotions I thought of as my feelings for Heero. There was a pause, then limited acknowledgement. As if it was withholding judgment. It didn't really understand but was willing to learn. Okay. That was fine with me, as long as it didn't try to eat Heero. Another prod at my mind sounded like impatience and curiosity. It wanted to check out this Heero-panther that I said was my mate. Boy was it in for a shock. 'Hey, before we get up, I think you need a name. I can't keep thinking of you as 'the panther' and 'it', you know?' More impatience. Fine. Be that way. 'My name is Duo', I told it, and I threw all the emotion and memories and thoughts that I thought of as myself at the panther. Its mind reeled from the sudden wash of thoughts, many of them completely foreign to it as the mental equivalent of Duoness poured down on its mind. I realized that maybe that wasn't such a good idea. I hope its okay.. That was kind of a lot for an animal to take all at once. Oops. Then I felt a metaphorical shake of the panther's head and emotions of dazed amazement wash over me. It hadn't comprehended all of it, or even most of it, to be sure, but it had understood the emotion in all those memories and thoughts, and perhaps even a little more, and it wanted to see more. Now. It started riffling threw my thoughts as it began to explore my mind with interest, as one might explore a new territory. Great. Just peachy. Oh well. Although it felt odd, it didn't hurt. I decided to let it go ahead and explore. If it was ever going to get smart enough to understand language, this would be the quickest way for it to do it. Then I thought of something. 'Hey, wait!' It gave me a mental glance of inquiry and thought 'Duo?' at me. Wow, it knew my name. It was asking 'Yes Duo, what do you want?' Cool! And it had an accent, I was amazed to realize. Like someone from another country saying your name for the first time and trying very hard to pronounce it right. 'Yes, I am Duo.' I thought at it carefully, but couldn't help but let the joy and approval at this new development slip past that thought. It purred with pride at its accomplishment, 'You need a name' It seemed to half understand what I meant and threw everything that was being a panther down on me, just as I had done to it. And while its mind wasn't as complex as mine, it was still a mind blowing experience. I suddenly felt what it was like to run through the forest, to hunt fleeing prey, to defend one's territory from others. And the sense of power and grace that comes along with being a panther. For a moment I was living the stealth and then the chase and then the kill all at once. I knew what it was like to have lived with hearing surpassing my own, smell things never imagined, see things in that movement sensitive way that panthers do. Everything it was to be a panther, all in just a few moments. For a moment I was a panther, not just in body but in mind, and it was beyond words. I got the feeling I didn't understand it all, but there would be time to work that out later. I shook my furry head to clear it and then said. 'So, like I said, you need a name' At the word 'name' I felt the panther about to fling another wave of pantherness at me, so I quickly said 'no, no that's okay. Thanks but I'm fine.' It seemed to understand and subsided. 'Okay, how 'bout this' I told it. 'Pan, short for panther, and like Pan the forest god, right?' It understood that I thought of it as this word 'panther' and it understood 'forest god' to mean 'A mighty panther who rules the entire forest' It liked the second definition best and slowly said the name to itself, of himself, as I should start to think of it as, for he was defiantly a male. 'Pa.Pan.Pan!' It roared triumph and approval at the name. I sent wave of happiness at it. It then went back to rummaging through my thoughts. 'So you're leaving this to me, eh buddy?' No response. It was busy. This environment was my department, not his. 'Okay, fine. Off to meet Heero then,' I thought merrily. ********** TBC Yes, I know, I need to beta read. I'll do it when I have time. C&C please! -Mongoose