Chapter 2

Mowgli awoke to a bright, humid Indian morning. He stretched out in his hammock and freshened himself up. He looked at himself in the mirror and noticed something odd. He noticed that his reflection no longer showed Mowgli the man-cub, but that of a cub near manhood. His body was still it's lean shape, but now it was getting filled out with slender muscle. His jawline had become much stronger, and as he felt himself stroking it, he felt a slight friction from newly growing hair.

However, this new change wasn't what really disturbed him, but rather the fact that no one was in the house. The sounds of Rajin running around or the smells of fresh food being made were not present, which prompted him to go investigate in the villages center. He found that everyone had circled around someone, a young man wearing a wealth of rich clothing.

" Who is that man?" Mowgli said to himself.

" That's the Rajah from the Oodeypore palace," a voice called out. Mowgli turned to see Shanti had come to his side with Ranjan. Both were growing into adolescence like Mowgli and yet still retaining their distinctive traits, like Shanti's big brown eyes and Ranjan's chubby gleefully face.

" Yeah, he's here to go on a hunt, Mowgli!" Ranjan chimed.

Mowgli gulped grimmly. In his time in the jungle, both the wolves and Bagheera warned Mowgli about how dangerous a man with a gun in the jungle could be. This man had brought with him seemingly an army with him, complete with gunners on the back of trained elephants.

" Did he say what he was planning on hunting?" Mowgli asked.

Shanti pulled him in close, as if not to draw attention " He said he was looking for a panther, kinda like the one you're friends with."

Mowgli's face when from concern to horror. " I gotta warn Bagheera, then! Shanti, Ranjan, can you keep him busy till then?"

" Ok, Mowgli!" Rajin had wanted to ask the Rajah so many questions anyway, but Shanti told him not to. Now, though he had a good excuse.

Mowgli let a small laugh as he looked back before he bolted into the jungle.

Bagheera looked down on Baloo from a dead fig tree as the bear tried teaching the wolf cubs.

" Mr. Baloo, what good are some grubs to us? Shouldn't we go and get some deer or antelope?"

" Come on, little Gray. Didn't you remember?"

All the other wolf cubs than finished Baloo's thought with: " When you look under the rocks and plants, take a glance at the fancy ants and maybe try a few."

Bagheera shook his head, partially in humor. " Oh, why did I suggest this to Akela?"

It was at this moment Mowgli came bursting through the brush.

" Bagheera, Bagheera! Look out!"

" Hold it, man cub, hold it! Now speak slowly, I can't understand you."

" Well, uh, kids, I think class is out early. So, uh, remember to look for grubs, especially you, Gray!" Baloo called out as he shooed away the rest of the wolf cubs. " So, what's up little britches?"

" This morning I woke up and found there was this royal guy in the village. He's going to be leading a hunt through the jungle for a black panther, like you Bagheera!"

Bagheera often had a calm confident air to him, but now he was truly unnerved " What was this man's title, Mowgli?"

" The Rajah from the Oodeypore palace"

Baloo looked at Bagheera with with a look of concern. If he wasn't a black panther, Bagheera would have surely turned white with fear. " What's up, Baggy? It's not like you got history with the guy, right?"

Bagheera sighed, as if finally letting a weight off his chest. " Yes, yes I do. I'm sorry, Mowgli, I should have told you long ago. You deserve to know the truth, both of you."

Baloo plopped down on his butt, knowing this would be a long story, with him and Mowgli listening intently.

" I haven't always called these hills my home. Once, when I was a cub, my mother and I were kept as part of a menagerie in a palace of a Rajah. My mother and I spent most of our time in a cage, never straying farther than the garden. My mother hated it, and she would always remind me of the freedoms we deserved under jungle law. Instead, many of the creatures were used by the Rajah for staged hunts and cheap trophies. I, however, was lucky in a way. His young son favored me and cherished me, most likely from not having any peers to play with amidst his tutors and near constant lessons."

The panther let out a small chuckle " I can still remember tagging him in the garden. I'd let him catch up with up. Truly I could call him a friend." But soon the brief glimmer of nostalgia faded from Bagheera's eye, replacing itself with incoming sadness.

" But it was that same day I lost everything. I returned to my cage, where my mother wasn't there. I waited. And waited. Finally, it wasn't until I hear in the hallway in the dead of night on how the day's hunt went. I can still hear them boasting on how hard the fight was-how hard it was to put the panther down."

Bagheera paused for a moment, as if to not let his overwhelming grief overcome him. Mowgli and Baloo themselves, they were getting teary eyed over the story.

Finally, the panther continued the story. " That was the night where I had enough, where I decided to make sure my mother's dream didn't die with her. I managed to break my lock and escape the palace. None of the men spotted me as escaped. None, except of that young boy. His eyes, they were so full of confusion, as if pleading for me to stay. But I still willed my way to this jungle. And as I grew older, I swore never to involve myself with man ever again. Until one day, the silence of the jungle was broken by an unfamiliar cry." Bagheera looked back to Mowgli " And that, man cub, is where you come in."

Baloo wiped his nose, sniffing hard and grabbed Bagheera in a tight bear hug hysterically. " Oh, Baggy, man! I'm sorry for you!" Despite Baloo's sentiment, Bagheera was too crushed to fully appreciate it. He clawed his way out of the hug.

" Well, know is not the time for pity. That Rajah is coming soon, no doubt to take me back. Now, I must-"

But before anyone could finish, crashing could be heard coming closer to the group.

Mowgli tugged on Bagheera's tail " Come on, we gotta go! We can hide at Council Rock!"

But Bagheera just stood there, his face showing a determination. " No."

" Whadda mean, no, Baggy?! You'll get killed!"

" So be it! I will no longer hide from my past. Now, now is my time for retribution."

Baloo, knowing there was no convincing him, left Bagheera and grabbed Mowgli, who was unwilling to leave the cat behind. Together, the two hid in a nearby bush and watched on in fear as to what will happen next.

Author's Note: Again, this chapter is inspired by the original book, where Bagheera was originally kept in an palace and escaped to the jungle where he became the respected hunter that he is. This one's a little longer, so the next chapter will wrap up this chapter's story up. By the way, shout out to Writer65 and Patient935 for giving me my first few ideas. I promise I'll get to both ideas in eventually but I want to spread them out throughout, as both a pretty Bagheera centric. But like I said, I will get to them and thanks. Later!