The Jungle Book: Chapter 9
By: jungleboy69
Chapter 9: Getting to Know You
A new day had dawned in the Jungle. For Mowgli, it was the day he would meet the Man-Pack for the first time. His wolf family and friends were crowding around him. "I still don't approve of this." Raksha pointed out. "It could be dangerous."
"Matri, don't worry." Mowgli replied. "I will be alright." "I am as fast as Bagheera and I can swing through the trees as boldly as the Monkey-People!" He added. "No human can catch me!" Baloo grunted. "Don't get cocky, Little Frog." He reminded. "Remember, we don't know if the Man-Pack are a threat so it's best to be careful."
"Mowgli, do we have to stay behind?" Akru whined a bit. "Yeah, we want to see the humans too!" Sura added. "No, you won't!" Vihaan told them sternly. "You will remain here with us!" "You are not as agile or as stealthy as Bagheera and you can't swing through the trees like Mowgli!" He pointed out, making the younger wolves groan a bit.
"Just be careful, brother." Grey Brother replied. "If you are in danger, just call and we will come." Mowgli hugged his elder wolf brother. "I will be alright." He replied before he hugged Raksha. "Be safe, my little frog..." She whispered tenderly
"I will..." Mowgli replied before he climbed on Bagheera's back. "Let's go, Bagheera!" The Panther smirked as he bounded away, with Mowgli riding on his back.
(A while later...)
Mowgli and Bagheera arrived just a few feet at the human camp and they could hear chatter coming from it. Mowgli dismounted and crouched low. "Remember, Little Brother...stay downwind."
"I will..." Mowgli replied as he made his way closer to the human camp. As he parted the leaves, he saw the girls from the river, sitting together in a small clearing not far from the camp site. There, he sat quietly and listened to their conversation.
(Meanwhile...with the girls)
"Come on, Cassie!" Lindy replied to a glum Cassie. "Cheer up!" "How about we play some chess?" She suggested. "No, thanks..." Cassie replied. "I'm not in the mood." "You're not still mad about yesterday?" Shanti asked in concern.
"What do you think?" Cassie grumbled. "No one believes me, not even Uncle Alex!" "They all think I'm crazy!" She added. "Davy and Saavni won't stop teasing me!" "Never mind that." Shanti advised her. "Let's forget about this...Jungle Ghost..."
"That's the problem!" Cassie exclaimed. "I can't! I can't get him out of my mind!" "What do you mean?" Lindy asked. "I can't stop thinking about him..." Cassie replied, embarrassed. "His long hair, his lean muscles...his shining eyes..." She trailed off, blushing.
Both Lindy and Shanti raised their eyebrows. "Ooh, sounds like you got a crush on him~" The latter pointed out with a smirk. "No, I don't!" Cassie protested, growing redder. "Really, then why are you blushing?" Shanti asked.
"Nothing, I'm fine!" Cassie yelled, standing up and breathing heavily. "I'm going for a walk!" With that, she hurried off, leaving a stunned Shanti and Lindy behind. "Shouldn't we go after her?" Lindy asked worriedly. "Don't worry." Shanti assured her. "She just needs to take a breather...she'll be back."
Cassie wandered off a bit; just far enough to make sure that no one was watching but close enough to be near the camp. She couldn't understand why she was acting like this. Why did that Jungle Boy make her feel this way?
It was then she had the strange feeling that she was being watched, just like back in the river. "Hello...?" She called out, into the undergrowth. "Is anyone there?" Slowly, there was a rustle of leaves and to her shock, Mowgli stepped out.
Cassie gasped. "It's you...from the river..." Mowgli grew silent as he looked at her strangely. He looked at her up and down. "You're...Mowgli...right?" Cassie asked. Mowgli heard her spoke his name and nodded.
"I...knew it..." Cassie breathed. "I knew I wasn't dreaming..." Mowgli just stared at her with his bright blue eyes. The American girl felt her cheeks grow hot when she saw his lean muscles and his wild black hair. "I'm Cassie..." She replied, shyly. "It's...nice to meet you..."
Mowgli cocked his head to one side in confusion. "Oh...he doesn't understand me." Cassie thought. She cleared her throat and placed a hand on her chest. "I'm...Cassie..." She repeated in a clear voice.
"C-C-Cas-s-sie..." Mowgli repeated the word slowly. Man-speech was harder to say than the tongues of the Jungle-Folk. Cassie's eyes widened. "Yes...I'm Cassie." She replied. "Cassie..." Mowgli repeated the word with a smile.
Both of them stared into each other's eyes for a moment before they heard voices. "Cassie!" Shanti called out. "Are you there?! Come on, we have to-*Gasp!*" The latter gasped and froze when she saw Mowgli.
"Shanti!" Lindy's voice called as she joined them. "Have you found..." She stopped and her eyes widened at Mowgli. Cassie turned to see her friends staring with wide eyes, mouths agape and blushing faces. She giggled. "So...believe me, now?" She asked.
(A few minutes later...)
It took a while for Cassie to calm the other girls down while Mowgli watched them curiously. Before they knew it, they all sat down in a circle, with the Man-Cub facing the three girls. "Cassie...pinch me..." Lindy muttered. "I'm dreaming..."
The former giggled. "No, you are not." She replied. "I told you, I saw him..." Lindy looked at the wild, handsome and half-naked boy in front of her and grew red in embarrassment. "You...didn't tell me...he wore... a loincloth..." She mumbled, blushing a bit.
"Yeah..." Cassie blushed in embarrassment. "Still, you don't have to worry...Mowgli won't hurt you." "Mowgli?" Shanti asked in confusion. "Yeah, it's his name..." Cassie replied before turning to the Man-Cub. "Mowgli, these are my two friends, Shanti and Lindy."
"H-Hi there..." Lindy replied shyly, brushing away her hair a bit. "Nice to meet...you..." Shanti added, placing her palms together and bowing which was a customary greeting. Mowgli cocked his head to one side and blinked at them, making the girls grow nervous.
Lindy cleared her throat and held out her hand. "I'm...Lindy O'Neil..." She introduced herself. Mowgli looked at her then at her hand. Leaning forward, he sniffed it, much to Lindy's shock and embarrassment.
Shanti blushed as well. "So...this is the Jungle Ghost?" She asked Cassie who nodded. "I guess so..." She replied. "Who would have thought the legendary 'Jungle Ghost' turns out to a boy...?" "How long has he living here...?" Lindy asked as Mowgli continued to look at them curiously.
"I'm not sure..." Cassie replied. "Maybe, uncle Alex can help." "Are you sure...?" Lindy asked, a bit nervous. "What will our parents say?" "Well, we can't leave him here." Shanti replied. "We could call the rangers or maybe the police..."
"No, we can't..." Cassie called. "Who knows what they will do to him?" "They could send him to an orphanage or ship him off to a circus as a freak show." She pointed out. Mowgli looked on curiously. He could hear the girls talking but he couldn't understand some of the words like 'police' or 'circus'.
"So, what do we do now, Cassie?" Lindy asked. "Cassie..." Mowgli repeated, getting the other girls attention. "What...What did he say...?" Lindy asked in shock. "Cassie...!" Mowgli spoke again, much to Shanti and Lindy's amazement.
"He just...said your name..." Lindy gasped. Cassie smiled and blushed. "I know..." She replied. Mowgli looked at the other girls before he pointed at Lindy. "Lindy..." He spoke, much to the latter's shock.
Then, he looked at Shanti and pointed at her. "Shanti..." He spoke the latter's name, making her stunned as her friends were. From the underbrush, Bagheera watched the scene with great interest. "Mowgli...seems to be getting along well with the human-cubs." He thought. "I just hope their parents are just as accepting..."
(At the camp...)
Alex was in his tent, doing some botanic research on some native flowers when he heard his brother and sister-in-law come in. "Alex, have you seen Cassie?" Jacob asked. "She's with Lindy and Shanti" The former replied. "They told me they were taking pictures of flowers."
"Are you sure?" Lydia asked, worriedly. "She's been gone for quite a while." "Should we go and find them?" She suggested. "Don't worry, Lydia." Alex replied. "Cassie's not a little girl anymore, she can take care of herself." "Besides, she's with Lindy and Shanti," he added. "She'll be fine."
"If you say so..." Lydia replied. "Still, they should have been back by now." "Give them time..." Alex advised her. "They'll be back..." "MOM! DAD! UNCLE ALEX!" Davy squealed as he rushed into the tent. "You won't believe what Cassie found!"
"Woah! Slow down, kiddo!" Jacob replied, trying to settle his son down. "What's got you so excited?" "Cassie's brought back a boy!" Davy replied. His mother frowned. "Now...Davy...it's not nice to make fun of your sister's love life." She chided him.
"I'm not!" Davy replied, jumping up and down. "Cassie really brought a boy back to the camp, a real live jungle boy!" Jacob sighed. "Davy, what have we told you about making up stories?" He pointed out. "I'm not making it up!" Davy protested. "Come out and you will see for yourself!"
The parents sighed as Alex stopped from his work. "Maybe we should take a look at what Cassie has brought back." He suggested. "At least it will get Davy to calm down." "I guess..." Jacob replied before turning to Davy. "Alright, buddy...show us what Cassie brought us back..."
Davy squealed and took his parents' hands, pulling them out of the tent with Alex chuckling as he followed them. "Slow down, sweetie!" Lydia replied as her son dragged her along. "Come on! Come on!" The latter squealed.
"Kiddo, calm down!" Jacob laughed. "What could Cassie possibly bring back that would get you so...so...so..." He trailed off as he, his wife and his brother stopped and stared at what was in front of them.
Cassie was standing before them, with Lindy and Shanti. However, what got their attention was the boy holding on to their daughter's hand. He seemed to be in the same age as the girls, with peach skin. His hair was long and wild and his body was lean with some bite marks on his arms.
His eyes were bright and blue, almost like the sky itself and the only clothes he wore was a loincloth made from animal skins. The grown-ups could only stare in utter shock; Alex took off his spectacles to make sure he wasn't seeing things, Jacob's jaw was dropped to the ground and Lydia covered her mouth with her hands to hide her blushing face.
"See!" Davy pointed out. "I told you! I told you Cassie brought back a jungle boy!" The latter could only grimace at her parents' and uncle's reactions. "Surprise..." She spoke, with a nervous grin.
