Summary: The Pierces, a wildlife documentary filmmaker family, go on a journey into the Amazon rainforest. Brittany gets lost, encounters a jaguar, and is rescued by an inhumanly strong and fast person who was raised by wild cats her entire life. A Tarzan/George of the Jungle Brittana AU
A/N: I've been wanting to write an AU about Feral!Santana and Brittany for ages - something like Tarzan meets George of the Jungle.
You can think of the aliens in this story as similar to the Kryptonians or Saiyans though not as powerful. Santana is very Inuyasha-like in this but a feline version of that basically.
This story is partially inspired by a fic I read on livejournal a few years back called "Will My Heart Stay Wild?" by yeech-glee that I thought had a really interesting concept.
*If you're squeamish about any type of alien biology stuff or alien x human stories in general then this one won't be for you.*
Pataugas - A French shoe brand
Carioca - A person who was born in or lives close to Rio De Janeiro
Onça - A Portuguese word meaning jaguar
Onça Preta - Portuguese for "black jaguar"
Oi - Olá - Different ways of saying "Hi" in Portuguese
Obrigada - Thank you in Portuguese - Only said by females
quem é você - "Who are you?"
Fale comigo. Por Favor. - "Talk to Me. Please."
Nahual or nagual- shapeshifter or trickster - a supernatural being from Mesoamerican beliefs that has the ability to take animal form
The Pierce family were on a journey deep into the Amazon rainforest that day in early August. Brittany's parents were wildlife documentary filmmakers. Her mom, a renowned felinologist, was the host while her father did the camera work for their show, Catitude.
Sometimes her dad forgot he was supposed to do the camera work and tried to host the show instead or maybe he was just trolling their mom, but that was okay. It was just a typical day in the life of the Pierces.
They were known for being a wild, eccentric family to say the least. Her parents were currently filming their latest nature documentary that was all about jaguars in Brazil. It was the Pierces' first time there and Brittany had been excited about it for a while, imagining the vast, lush green forests and rivers that awaited them.
She had always been fascinated by jaguars, so that was another reason why Brittany had wanted so badly to go there, knowing there was a high population of the big cats in the region. Now they were finally there for their first official Amazonian adventure.
Together with her sisters, who were all just as quirky, blonde, and freckled as she was, Brittany had travelled from place to place her whole life. As a result, she had become an expert on all things animal-related, especially cats, despite never being good at anything academic. She had never been to college and couldn't qualify to be a felinologist but she had loved cats and had grown up around them ever since she was born.
Brittany and her older sister Lindsey were old enough to remember when they used to live in one place - the small town of Lima, Ohio - and attend ordinary school and have a totally "normal" life but her younger sisters Stacy and Tiffany didn't really know what that was like. The two younger blondes had been homeschooled their whole life.
The whole family enjoyed their adventurous, nomadic lifestyle, though it was chaotic most of the time. Brittany never felt any urge to stay tied to one place in particular. Her love life was much the same as she had many flings but no one had ever held her interest long enough to make her want to live with them.
Brittany enjoyed her freedom. Besides, she loved her family too much to be apart from them for long. Though she was sometimes embarrassed by her parents, in some ways, the life she had with them was kind of ideal for Brittany.
Now that she was in her mid-twenties, she was co-hosting her mom's show with Lindsey from time to time. Brittany had never been a true tomboy, preferring the idea of wearing pink and shopping than getting her hands dirty. In fact, before her parents had pulled her out of school to travel the world with them, Brittany had been the stereotypical preppy popular cheerleader.
She was too dainty to be the type to climb trees or play in the dirt or go fishing with her dad - she never even wanted to think of hurting the fish - but she did enjoy how tranquil nature was. She liked how animals were more honest than humans.
She had a gut feeling that something would be different about this trip, compared to their travels to Africa and Asia. She remembered a conversation with one of her mother's closest Carioca friends.
"Just be careful out there."
"Why?" Brittany tilted her head to the side, frowning in confusion at the man, who was practically a fatherly figure to her and her sisters. He sounded genuinely terrified.
"Jaguars…" He trembled and paused for a moment, fear taking over his features. "Not to mention, there's something else out there too."
"Something else? What do you mean?"
"They say it looks a lot like a human but it's not quite. They say it's almost like a little gargoyle or a gremlin thing who wanders around alone in that forest. They're part human, part animal but no one has ever seen the face. A were-jaguar, like the ones in the myths, perhaps. The nahual is small but he might attack you if you get too close and there's no telling what might happen to you."
Brittany didn't know what to think. The girls had heard stories like this in so many places they travelled to over the years and even went searching for them but they unfortunately had not encountered any cryptids.
The tall blonde already felt the beginnings of a pink sunburn spreading across her cheeks and arms, new freckles forming all over her skin and her hair streaked even lighter in parts but the sun felt so warm and pleasant that she was reluctant to hide away in the shade, despite how easily she burnt. She pulled her long hair back, Lindsey helping her do it up into a loose side braid.
Her two younger sisters were in a similar state, passing around snacks like gummy bears and skittles to each other and chatting excitedly as their father, Pierce, continued driving up to the rainforest entrance. It all felt like the start of some fun summer family road trip, as many of their adventures did.
They parked their caravan in a clearing and from there, the family began to explore the lush, green area. With their daughters' help, Whitney and Pierce began to set up a temporary camp.
It was the dry season so it was easier for them to move around on foot. Not to mention, they wouldn't have to worry about being eaten alive by mosquitoes as much. There were more visitors around at this time of the year but Whitney had been careful to find a more deserted area.
Her mother was already bickering light-heartedly with her father as they began to set up the equipment. Brittany was glad to be able to stretch her full body and take in some fresh air as she finally stepped out of the caravan. The air felt heavy with noise. They could hear the constant thrumming, buzzing, shrieking, and chirping from all around them.
"Where are you going?" Lindsey asked, arching an eyebrow while Stacy and Tiffany also looked up from some game they were playing in their tent. The three younger sisters all lived in the shadow of Lindsey, thinking she was so elegant and pretty. Lindsey was not only the smartest of the sisters but also always seemed to have the perfect makeup and fashion ideas.
She was like a real life Barbie doll and a little girl's idea of the perfect older sister. Then again, the same could be said for Brittany, if you were to ask her younger sisters.
"Just going to explore for a little while, you guys wanna come?" Brittany shrugged, slipping on her sunhat and reaching for her white-framed sunglasses. This family was experienced with rainforests. She was dressed similarly to the rest of the family in what she jokingly referred to as "jungle chic" - a lightweight, long-sleeved pink shirt along with loose-fitting long pants to keep her skin protected, wearing a pair of pataugas as well.
Sure, she was in a rainforest but that didn't mean she couldn't be stylish while keeping the mosquitoes away. She would have preferred wearing shorts but getting bitten by a snake - she shuddered even just thinking about it - wasn't on her agenda.
"Alright, guess it'll just be me."
Deep down, Brittany was really curious about that creature in the forest. She had always had an inquisitive mind ever since she was a young child and the thought of there being this person who no one had really interacted with before intrigued her.
None of her sisters showed any interest in going with her at the moment after they had spent so much time walking already and it was a pretty intense thirty something degrees with high humidity. Brittany didn't mind going alone.
She took her camera and equipment with her in a rucksack, along with binoculars and a freshly filled water bottle, pausing to take a sip from it. Stacy ran to give her some candies, which Brittany happily accepted, popping the colourful bites into her mouth.
"Don't go too far and call us if you need us." Her mother called out to Brittany but didn't try to stop her, becoming distracted by the other members of the family as everyone began talking excitedly.
Brittany was starting to think she was actually lost. Sure, she had been lost many times in her life but it was never to the point of feeling afraid. Maybe setting off by herself to explore had been a huge mistake. She could have sworn the trees in front of her now looked exactly like the ones she had just passed five minutes ago.
She had spotted a pink river dolphin in the slow-moving river and excitedly snapped pictures of it. She even saw an iguana on a rock nearby. The next thing she knew, she was in the depths of the dark forest and feeling very alone.
She took a deep breath, the immense heat and humidity starting to get to her under the canopy of the trees. The silence was becoming almost eerie. The mud beneath her feet was starting to become deeper. She leaned back up against a tree, feeling sweat drip down her forehead.
There was plenty to be fearful of in the jungle, from spiders, scorpions, poison dart frogs, venomous snakes, and even green anacondas to flesh-eating piranhas and black caimans in the water. Aside from that constant buzzing of insects, it was becoming so quiet in this part that she heard the sound of rushing water nearby. She had to be close to the river again.
That's when she spotted the telltale claw marks on a tree nearby and massive tracks deep in the mud from large paws. There was a river nearby, so of course they would be here.
Then she saw it. Just from the corner of her eye, the beautiful yet savage creature with dark golden yellow fur dotted with black spots was watching her quietly. Brittany's heart jumped into her throat and goosebumps rose on her skin as all the blood drained from her face. She was lucky she had even had a chance to see it first before it attacked her if that was what it planned to do.
Then again that didn't give her much of an advantage against the God of the Amazon. How would she possibly defend herself? There was no way to outrun a jaguar.
The majestic onça crept slowly toward her and she was unsure of its intentions. Judging by its massive size, this was a male. If she wasn't so uncertain of what it might do, Brittany would be able to fully admire its sheer beauty. She was so lucky to be able to see one and it was her first time being able to.
Although jaguars didn't typically eat humans, Brittany wondered whether the creature would react aggressively if it felt threatened by her. The jaguar began to growl, as if warning Brittany not to move.
She wondered how this would end. She was frozen in place, terrified and was starting to have thoughts that this is how she would die but then a figure moved in front of her in a flash, startling her out of the panicked state she was in.
The dark-haired stranger in the shadows growled fiercely and grunted when it came near her. Brittany was beginning to wonder if this was someone from an isolated indigenous tribe who didn't really like the idea of a gringo moving into their territory. It still didn't explain how the person got there so fast.
Was this the gremlin creature the man had warned her about? It had to be.
The stealthy, beautiful yet deadly animal leapt toward them, baring its scalpel-like fangs when it felt suddenly threatened. Brittany gasped when the stranger whipped around to face the jaguar fearlessly, arching their back. She couldn't believe she was seeing five feline retractable claws come out of their otherwise humanoid-looking fingers. Brittany's blood ran cold as the large jaguar hissed defensively and it seemed as if at any second, the other creature would fight it.
She stepped back in shock, pain registering as she tripped over a rock on the forest floor then hit her head hard on a tree as she stumbled into the deep mud. The gremlin's claws were the last thing she saw before her vision faded to black.
The first thing Brittany felt when she opened her eyes again was throbbing pain in her leg and head. Her braid was completely unravelled now and her long locks of hair cascaded messily down her shoulders. She didn't seem to be anywhere close to death, at least but now she was moving. Something, or rather someone was carrying her around. They were miles away from the place by the river with the jaguar.
She squirmed, panicking but whoever was carrying her unleashed a deadly growl and hissed whenever she tried to move and get away. Yet they felt much more human than animal. They were too strong for her to get away from and she definitely couldn't outrun them, so she submitted to being carried.
"You protected me." Brittany realized, taking a deep breath. The stranger slowed down slightly when they heard her speak but didn't answer. She didn't understand why she had been saved but she was beyond grateful for this creature having mercy on her. There was no way of knowing how the jaguar would have reacted or what would have happened if she had been left unconscious.
It was that being from before. She couldn't see what they looked like but they were more human than anything - yet not quite human. Brittany noticed that she was leaning against their muscular back with their arms under her knees as the stranger ran through the forest much faster than any ordinary human would be capable of and carried her around with ease, as if she weighed nothing. Brittany leaned closer, wrapping her legs around their torso and her arms around their neck. She clung to them for dear life, shrieking when they jumped down what felt like thirty feet from a tree.
She felt what could only be bare human skin pressed up to her own body and noticed that they had long, black hair that seemed human. Brittany pressed her head against their shoulder, squeezing her eyes shut and waiting for it to all be over.
The Tarzan-like stranger wasn't swinging from vines at all but they could certainly run and climb trees at ferocious speeds.
"Thank you for saving me but where are you taking me now?" She asked nervously as the wind whipped through her hair. She was so curious yet fearful. Was this the part where the creature would take her back to their lair and rip her apart? They saved her from the jaguar and that had to mean something, right? She hoped.
She wondered if maybe they didn't understand English, so she attempted to say something in Spanish and then shifted to Portuguese when she still didn't hear a response.
"Oi - Olá. Obrigada."
The stranger didn't seem to understand.
"Quem é você?" She tried again. "Fale comigo. Por Favor."
She even tried to communicate in Tupian, Arawakan and Cariban, though she only knew a few basic words of each compared to how fluent and confident she was in the first two languages. Maybe she could use her phone to help translate into those languages if she had to. Even then, they didn't seem to understand her.
It only took a minute before the stranger finally reached what seemed to be the opening to a cave in a hilly area and set Brittany down in the dimly lit space. Brittany winced, whining in the back of her throat when pain shot up her leg again. She had most likely sprained her ankle due to her fall.
She felt dark, sharp eyes drift over to her and what almost sounded like a concerned grunt as if the creature felt sorry for her.
That was when Brittany saw her more clearly as the stranger finally stepped into the light and faced her. She should have been terrified but instead, the blonde was fascinated by everything she saw. Rather than being the monster she envisioned, they were so human, apart from pointed ears and a few other features.
The being - who she now definitely knew was a girl about Brittany's age or maybe slightly younger by a year or two - was wearing absolutely nothing and had a near perfect body. If she was some kind of female Tarzan, she hadn't even bothered with a loincloth or anything to cover her bare chest.
"That's hot." She breathed, appreciating everything she saw.
Brittany felt her pale face flush, realizing she had said it out loud. The woman only blinked, confused by the language and tilted her head to the side, clearly not understanding a word. She seemed just as confused and interested in everything about Brittany as the blonde was in her. She wouldn't take her eyes off of Brittany.
Brittany had never seen anything like this woman before and the stranger had clearly never seen a human female up close before either.
"I mean, you're really attractive." Brittany flirted, without thinking because she couldn't help saying that and her eyelashes fluttered. She had always been the biggest flirt in her family. She wasn't sure how this person would react and anytime she spoke, they looked at her as if they had never heard human speech before. Yet they were the most attractive person Brittany had ever seen.
Apparently flirting was a pretty universal language because even this woman appeared to be flustered when Brittany made her attraction to her obvious in her body language.
The blonde inhaled sharply, delighted and intimidated at the same time when the mostly woman, part creature grabbed her by the waist and pushed her up against the nearest wall of the cave as if she couldn't handle the way Brittany was watching her anymore. Though the woman was about her size - maybe just slightly shorter with thinner hips and thighs, her looks were deceiving.
Brittany didn't understand the inhuman speed and strength the woman appeared to have. Her strength exceeded that of grown men by quite a lot. Brittany noticed how the woman's slight muscles flexed and felt telltale signs of arousal, heat settling in her core as she registered just how powerful the being was.
Now wasn't the time to be turned on. After all, she was just lucky that the woman hadn't decided to kill her and Brittany had no idea what she was going to do to her next now that she had her alone in this cave.
Clearly the being was just as afraid of her as she was of them. Little did she know, there was nothing Brittany could do to her. If this woman wanted to, she could destroy anything and anyone in the rainforest. She was the apex predator.
She leaned in close to Brittany's body, her nostrils flaring as she slowly sniffed at her neck. Surprisingly, the woman herself didn't smell bad, apart from the scent of sweat that lingered on her and somehow made her even more attractive to Brittany.
She pulled back, wrinkling her nose and bewildered as she clearly caught a whiff of Brittany's perfume, soap, and shampoo, along with the candies she had been eating before. She was clearly trying to figure out what Brittany was and she continued her inspection.
That meant that if decided she didn't like the blonde's presence, Brittany was a goner. Luckily, she eventually pulled back and didn't seem as if she was going to snap Brittany's neck. She did, however, begin to growl again as she circled the blonde menacingly.
Brittany held up her hands and shrank back, not knowing what to expect from the aggressive behaviour but then all the woman did was rub the front of her body up against hers. When she was done with that, she rubbed her cheek up against Brittany's, causing the fairer woman to shiver. Her whiskers tickled, causing Brittany to giggle out loud but her skin was so irresistibly heated and soft. Brittany just about melted, loving the sensation. The woman's skin was almost inhumanly hot against hers.
It wasn't so much about affection as it was territorial. Oh, that made sense. Typical cat behaviour. This was what cats would do to mark their territory. The message was clear - Brittany was now hers and no one in the jungle could have her now that she had laid claim to the girl.
The blonde was highly tactile and all things considered, she didn't mind this kind of treatment. In fact, she felt overwhelmed with a wave of both affection and arousal as the stranger moved against her repeatedly, forcefully rubbing the length of her body up on every inch of her. She pushed her head against Brittany's neck, nuzzling into it.
Then she began to pull at Brittany's clothes forcefully, clearly confused by them as her head tilted to the side again, trying to make sense of what she saw.
"Whoa, you haven't even bought me dinner first," Brittany joked with a smirk, then realizing the woman wasn't going to stop, she continued more seriously. "Oh, those are my clothes. You've never seen clothes before, have you? I guess not."
She tugged at Brittany's light pink button down shirt, accidentally ripping it. Brittany eventually pulled the material over her head when the stranger wouldn't stop tearing at it.
The woman made a shocked sound. To her, it must have seemed as if she was seeing Brittany take a part of her body off or something bizarre.
She was bewildered by Brittany's polka dot bra and kept tugging at the straps of that as well. The blonde didn't know why she felt so compelled to do it but she took her bra off as well. She wanted to show this stranger what a human woman looked like. Brittany was amazed that the stranger had never seen a bra or a pair of panties or any form of human clothing in her life.
She should have been ashamed or embarrassed at being nude in front of a stranger but at least the woman was in a similar state. Not to mention, there was something about her that was different for Brittany… There was something that made Brittany feel like she needed to show her body to her. At least there was no one around to see them and it felt a lot cooler than roasting in the heat of the cave.
When she was fully naked, the woman wouldn't take her eyes off of her, clearly comparing Brittany's features to her own, noticing the difference in hair and skin colours, along with everything else. Her dark gaze fell to Brittany's pale breasts, then to her slender torso and hips and further to the area between her legs. Brittany felt a hot flush rise from her chest up to her face. She didn't know if she would have been able to handle it if the woman decided she didn't like what she saw of Brittany's body.
Instead, the woman was watching her intently with wide brown eyes as if she was the most beautiful sight she had ever seen.
It was ridiculous how badly Brittany needed her touch already. She kept staring at her nipples and the freckles on Brittany's pale skin, tracing her fingertips over the larger ones on her lower stomach, then running them along her navel, and becoming fixated at the flower tattoo on her pelvis that was so close to her core. Brittany shivered, when the woman touched her there on her tattoo. It felt way too intimate and made the taller blonde's body think they were doing something else.
For a moment Brittany felt the tension rise between them as she came closer to her, wondering if the woman would really touch her the way she wanted her to but she only began rubbing her cheek against Brittany's face and neck again, then grinding her body against her frame before moving away with visibly reddened cheeks. Even if Brittany hadn't seen the look of consumed lust in those dark eyes, the heat and wetness she felt on her upper thigh all from the woman made it obvious that the attraction she felt was mutual.
Brittany enjoyed the territorial caveman treatment and definitely didn't mind being this woman's possession at all. She finally moved away and Brittany released a breath she didn't realize she was holding.
The blonde squeezed her thighs together, feeling so aroused already even though the woman had just followed her primal instincts and hadn't even kissed or touched her in a purposefully seductive way. Brittany couldn't understand why the woman had this effect on her, despite them barely know each other but she wasn't fighting it.
The first thing Brittany noticed as she watched her swagger around the cave was how attractive this woman was. Despite having an average, wiry frame and not being overly muscular, she was so incredibly slim, toned, and defined. Much more than the average human would be.
Her skin was naturally brown but also glowing and sun-darkened. There was nothing heavy or bulky about her slight, sinewy and athletic frame but she was so perfectly toned and firm as if she had spent her entire life working out.
Then there was the other really different thing about her. Brittany had never seen such a creature before in all their travels. She was like a more evolved form of a human yet her qualities were very animalistic.
Brittany began to observe her mannerisms. She couldn't wait to tell her sisters and parents what she had seen.
Many of her features were cat-like, including her pointed, black furry ears, the three very real whiskers on each of her otherwise humanoid cheeks, and her sleek, black tail. She was clearly able to hear the smallest sound from a great distance as those adorable pointed ears twitched from time to time, probably picking up on frequencies that Brittany wasn't even aware of.
Her skin was clearly more durable than Brittany's too, as she had been able to whip around through the forest without so much as a scratch, while the blonde on the other hand had quite a few bruises and scratches already.
When she growled, her mouth opened wider and Brittany noticed her canines were sharper and longer than an average human's. Brittany gasped at the very sharp-looking, black retractable claws on her hands and feet. When they were fully retracted, they could almost pass for flattened, non-threatening human nails.
She was cat-like in other ways as well. She arched her back and hissed or gave a guttural growl when threatened. The hair on her tail and ears puffed up, goosebumps rising on the smoother skin that covered most of her body when she was afraid. Her dark eyes glowed in an inhuman way when she stepped into the deep darkness of the back of the cave to get to the makeshift bed of branches and leaves she had made for herself.
Maybe she should be finding all of this bizarre but Brittany was intrigued.
From what Brittany could tell, this woman had clearly lived all her life in a place where power lines, roads, houses, phones, electricity, and computers didn't exist. She had probably never seen or heard of anything like that. Brittany wondered how a person could survive out here in the wilderness, without even having contact with other humans at all for twenty something years.
Brittany took notice of the definition in her firm abs, arms, and thighs as the woman swaggered around. Brittany considered herself to be very toned and fit, her torso long and slender but the other woman's body was even more defined than Brittany's own. She had these sculpted almost six-pack abs that the blonde couldn't get enough of looking at.
With her dark skin and curly, rough mane of long, black hair, she made quite a contrast to Brittany who had almost translucent, white freckled skin and naturally pale blonde hair. Brittany had rarely been able to tan without her skin becoming blistered and red.
The woman's eyes were slightly round and dark - so dark that her irises seemed almost like black abysses while Brittany's were upturned and the palest, laser-like shade of blue.
If Brittany had to guess, she was maybe a few inches shorter than herself and about average in height.
Brittany had always been most attracted to slim people with dark skin, eyes and hair so this stranger was exactly her type. In fact, she was what the perfect girlfriend or boyfriend of her deepest fantasies would look like, yet somehow even better than she envisioned.
The feral woman's face grabbed her attention. Her features were mostly sharp and striking, her jawline so chiselled and her neck so strong, her cheekbones high and defined, yet some of her other features were cute, smaller, and almost soft, so she was an intriguing combination of cute and fierce.
Aside from her really cute cat-like characteristics, she appeared to be human in every other way, right down to her small nose, slight little chin, and full lips. Even the way each of her emotions showed clearly in her eyes and facial expressions was so human. With her perpetual scowl, combined with her ears and whiskers, she looked like a disgruntled cat in a way that made the corners of Brittany's lips curve upward before she could help it.
Brittany gave her a once over again, taking notice and feeling a familiar burning need low in her belly when she noticed that definition in the catwoman's abs as she moved again.
Despite spending her whole life without shampoo or moisturizer, or even a basic bar of soap, that long, dark hair looked so soft and her bronzed skin glowed impeccably as if burnished.
Brittany could watch her move all day. She smiled at her, being as friendly and sweet as possible as she tried to start a conversation with her.
"I'm Brittany. Thanks again for saving me. What's your name?" She chirped, trying to communicate with her again. Then she tried pointing to herself and drew out the word slowly, thinking maybe that might help get the message across. "It's Britt-nee. That's me - that's my name - how about you?"
The creature's ears twitched as she made a sound in between a grunt and a meow. It was so adorable, Brittany could not stop the laugh from bubbling up in her throat even though she didn't mean it in a mocking way. The woman's black tail flipped, as if she was disgruntled about being laughed at.
Brittany groaned as she reached around on the floor for her stuff, realizing her bag with her food and other supplies in it had been dropped somewhere in her forest. At least she still had her phone with her, somehow pushed into her bra. She was so grateful that it miraculously hadn't fallen out. What would she do if she didn't have it?
It felt as if an hour or two had passed and the woman didn't want to do anything other than stay in the cave with her.
"It's really nice to meet you but I really need to see my family again. They'll be worried that I haven't come back yet."
Brittany made a move to stand up on wobbly legs but the woman jumped in front of her with another guttural growl, blocking her way. She bared her teeth and those fangs that were already sharper than an average human's canines grew longer for a moment. Brittany clumsily sat back down. So leaving wasn't allowed.
"Oh right, you win. I'm yours now."
Brittany had been beginning to think this woman couldn't communicate at all in any kind of language except for the deep cat-like growls, mews, hisses, chuffs, and occasional meows. They were all very cute and feline, yet didn't do much to improve the communication between them apart from giving Brittany a basic idea of how the woman was feeling at a given moment.
Maybe this woman had been raised her whole life by the big cats in the rainforest? She certainly would fit in with them.
Brittany's ears perked up as the woman said a human-like word. At least, she certainly thought that was what she had just heard. Brittany tried to decipher the garbled sound. The woman said it as if she wasn't quite sure of how to make the syllables roll off of her tongue but Brittany clearly heard them.
"San…tana. S'tana."
"Santana? Is that…" Brittany struggled to think of what kind of language she could be speaking in. It sounded a lot like Spanish. "Oh wait, that's your name, isn't it? Santana?"
The woman's eyes opened wide and her jaw dropped when she heard Brittany say the name in her voice. It was as if she had never heard someone say her name before except herself and it alarmed her.
"So you are Santana, huh?"
"Santana." The woman repeated again, seemingly flustered and embarrassed when the word escaped her lips. Brittany couldn't blame her for feeling awkward. After all, this seemed to be her first real form of social interaction with a living, breathing human.
Santana's voice was low and raspy in an attractive way. It was distinctive and Brittany knew she would keep replaying that sound of Santana speaking in her head.
Brittany was so pleased to finally have a name for her. It seemed as if that was the only word this woman knew how to say properly.
"Nice to meet you."
Brittany held out her pale hand to shake hers but Santana only bent over to sniff it and then pushed her head up against it.
The head bonks were something she was familiar with from her own cats back in Ohio. A feline way of showing affection.
This woman could easily kill her if she wanted to but she kept her claws in whenever she moved in Brittany's direction and no longer bared her fangs at her aggressively now that she knew Brittany wasn't any kind of threat to her.
It made Brittany feel good to know she was starting to earn her trust though it depressed her to think they might never be able to communicate in the same language.
Brittany watched, awestruck when she saw Santana jump down from the cave and run towards what appeared to be an onça preta and her three almost adult cubs wandering through the jungle in the foliage below.
They didn't notice Brittany but she watched as Santana had a giant grin on her face, her eyes lighting up when she was in the presence of the wild cats. The mother jaguar came up to Santana, chuffing and butting her. Brittany was amazed when the jaguars allowed Santana to cuddle and play with them, as if she was one of their own family.
Santana rolled around with them fearlessly as if they were nothing but house cats and they treated her as if she was another one of the kittens.
Brittany stood up, carefully trying to make her way out. Santana wouldn't let her leave when she returned and made a sharp, guttural grunting noise, her dark eyes flashing whenever Brittany made as if to move toward the entrance to the cave. Brittany would hold up her arms in surrender and shrink back. She wasn't allowed to leave now that Santana had decided Brittany was her possession and that she belonged in her cave. Maybe this was some way Santana was trying to establish dominance.
As the hours went by, Brittany felt tears come to her eyes, thinking about her family. Would she ever see them again? The skies were becoming dark, the full moon becoming the only source of light they had. She couldn't stop herself from whimpering, yearning for the company of her family, a bath and a bed.
Santana heard her cries, stood up from where she was laying, and tilted her head to the side like she always did when confused, her cat ears twitching. She made a questioning sound in the back of the throat, as if asking Brittany what was the matter. She kept staring at her when Brittany began to sob openly. Clearly she had never seen a human cry before.
She kneeled down beside her and pushed her head against Brittany's shoulder then rubbed her cheek against it the way she had before, clearly attempting to comfort her. Then she licked the skin. Luckily, her tongue was human-like rather than sandpapery. She stared at Brittany's leg in alarm whenever the girl would whimper and touch it.
Then the strangest thing happened. Santana kneeled down in front of her, licking her leg. At first Brittany assumed it was just a gesture of affection or an attempt to comfort and she was surprised though grateful but then the pain she felt began to subside the more Santana did it.
"Your saliva… is healing me?" Brittany smiled and Santana seemed to be pleased that she had made her happy. Brittany's ankle felt almost completely better now. She returned the smile for the first time to the blonde and those dimples in her cheeks deepened, warming the blonde's heart.
Santana crept over to the entrance of the cave again. She growled, glancing in Brittany's direction over her shoulder and the message was clear, "Don't leave."
When she returned from hunting, she was carrying what looked like fish. Brittany couldn't believe what she was seeing yet again when the woman aimed her palm toward the raw meat and flames seemed to shoot out of it. She seared the flesh before devouring it. Apparently, creating fire from thin air was another one of her otherworldly abilities.
Santana seemed to care about Brittany's hunger too. The blonde was surprised, though grateful when Santana handed her the cooked fish, open to sharing it with her. Brittany took a bite of it, out of politeness.
As strange as it was to eat like this, it did make her feel better when she finally ate. Santana smiled at her, as if pleased that Brittany liked her food, then dropped more fish into the blonde's hands.
Brittany heard the sound of her parents' voices as they called to her, shouting her name. She had called them while Santana was out of the cave, trying to explain her location and they finally found her. They had been searching for her for hours.
Santana's ears perked up and she growled nervously, confused when she heard all of the voices.
Surely Santana would understand the concept of family. After all, she would have seen jaguars raise their cubs and maybe ocelots with their kittens or the many other animals of the jungle with their young. The jaguars of the forest clearly were the closest thing Santana had to family.
"It's my family. Santana, I like you too but I need to see them. I really miss them." She tried to explain.
Santana tilted her head to the side again, whiskers twitching.
Brittany hoped Santana wouldn't do anything to hurt them. She began to put her clothes back on, despite the growling she heard from Santana.
Santana seemed to have mercy on her when Brittany watched her with pleading eyes and picked her up, walking out of the cave slowly under the cover of darkness with the girl in her arms. She placed Brittany on the ground with surprising tenderness and had this sad look in her eyes as she moved away slowly, looking back at her over her shoulder.
Maybe Brittany was looking into it too deeply but she wondered if maybe Santana didn't want Brittany to leave her now that they had made that connection between them and that was why she was so reluctant to let her leave.
Brittany couldn't believe her eyes just then as Santana growled and transformed into a black jaguar right in front of her.
By the time Whitney and Pierce showed up to the spot, Santana the catwoman had disappeared in a flash, clearly terrified of the other humans.
One thing was for sure, Brittany would never be able to forget Santana. She instantly yearned to see her again after she had finally returned to her family's camp.
Brittany explained all about how Santana had rescued her and all of the other strange behaviours of the woman as her family listened in awe. Little by little, Santana kept coming around the camp area Brittany and her parents had set up very late at night under the cover of darkness, the way a wary feral cat might.
She didn't try to hurt any of them or show any signs of aggression toward them, as if knowing that they were Brittany's family.
Whitney and Pierce had always been very open-minded, so they were not particularly fazed by the idea of a feral human living in the jungle alone with many feline features. They were almost as fascinated with the idea of it as Brittany was and they really liked Santana, especially after hearing that she had rescued Brittany in the forest.
The Pierces took pity on Santana, the parents instantly offering her food, which she accepted reluctantly. She ate meat most of the time and wasn't too interested in anything else.
Brittany decided that it was time to introduce Santana to the idea of wearing clothes after she appeared in front of herself and all her sisters fully naked one day by their campfire, causing the other girls to burst into laughter at the sight while Brittany blushed and cringed at the awkwardness.
Santana wouldn't have known better, after all she had lived only around animals who were naked her whole life and wouldn't have seen anything unusual about showing her body. However, Santana didn't like being laughed at and was embarrassed now that she figured out what it was like to be seen naked in the human world.
Once Santana had figured out it was a weakness to be naked around other people, she allowed Brittany to find one of her white shirts and long trousers for her to wear when she was around Brittany's family.
She was never embarrassed to be naked around Brittany when they were alone together, though, the blonde noticed. That seemed to mean something different to Santana. Brittany had no complaints.
Brittany had so much to show and teach her. The blonde was enjoying seeing Santana's reactions to everything. She taught her how to shower and use soap and shampoo. She and her sisters were entertained by getting Santana to try on different types of clothes though the woman eventually growled once she had enough of being a spectacle and ran away again to her cave, as she often did whenever she was fed up with them. Of course, she would always return within a day or two, showing up at random times.
Santana was bewildered by ice cream, stepping back in alarm when Brittany and Tiffany presented her with a bowl of it.
She grimaced after biting into a chocolate bar Brittany tried to share with her. Santana was even more terrified by the TV set, cellphone, and laptop Brittany tried to introduce her to. Yet she was a fast learner and curious about everything from the human world.
She had all but swatted the razor right out of Brittany's hand, as if thinking it was a weapon when she tried to explain how she used it and had been less than amused by the hair brush Brittany showed her, until she discovered how enjoyable it was to allow Brittany to brush her long hair out for her as she purred.
There was also that tension between Brittany and Santana that seemed to be growing by the day that was becoming more and more difficult to ignore. The blonde couldn't deny that she felt her attraction toward Santana grow more intense anytime they interacted and she was sure it was mutual, as she had caught the woman staring at her face and body as if mesmerized more times than she could count. There was no mistaking that look on Santana's face.
Though Santana might have been fierce and animalistic, Brittany was finding it increasingly difficult to ignore the firm muscles, smooth skin and defined jawline, along with all those other cute aspects of her, like her dimpled smile and those lines by her nose and eyes when she crinkled her nose.
Brittany hadn't even been aware of just how touch-starved Santana was until one day she placed a hand on the woman's bicep, stroking it lightly without thinking about what she was doing. Santana leaned into her touch. She hesitantly moved her hand upward to cup Santana's cheek and she rubbed her face against her hand the way a cat would.
She hissed when Brittany attempted to put her arms around her in an embrace but then gradually relaxed against her form, purring as if she couldn't help it. Brittany had fostered many kittens, even the most fiery, wild and temperamental types. Maybe she'd be able to tame Santana too.
"She's definitely not anything human," Her mother said the obvious when Santana was away somewhere in the forest one day. "As I'm sure you can already tell. We think she's an alien."
"Wow," Brittany could easily imagine that race of powerful, cat-like aliens. "Is she really?"
"Come with us, we need to show you something."
Whitney took her to the spot almost hidden away beneath some trees where there was a large, metal contraption. It was close to the river and cave where Santana lived. Brittany couldn't believe her eyes. If this was what she thought it was, aliens really did exist and apparently one had landed in this forest, many long years ago.
"Your father and I found her spacecraft. Perhaps she was sent here as a baby in this pod. The alien genetics explain her speed, strength, her fire powers and super hearing, not to mention her cat-like features. The way she communicates so well with big cats. Who knows what else she's capable of. The theory is that their race was predatory."
"Whoa. Predatory?"
"We think her family may have sent her here to conquer earth but she seems to have lost most of her aggression, luckily for us, and forgotten her original mission entirely. Maybe a head injury of some kind? Anyway, we believe her cells absorb and metabolize energy from the sun."
She had definitely seen Santana lying out in the sun a lot like a cat would. It made sense, since in Brittany's eyes, everything about Santana was the embodiment of pure warmth and sunshine.
"Maybe you're right. This is incredible… but Mom, we can't tell anyone. You know they'll just want to trap her in a cell somewhere and do all these tests on her if they ever find out."
Whitney and Pierce both nodded, immediately understanding while Brittany's sisters chimed in nearby in agreement.
"I know. She'll be our family's secret."
"Well, let's get packing. We've got a lot of travelling to do." Whitney announced and Pierce hummed in agreement beside her. Brittany suddenly felt disappointed and her face fell.
Somehow in her head she felt as if this place was becoming her new home away from home. She winced, feeling a heavy ache form in her chest already.
"We're leaving? I feel like we just got here."
"We need to get to the Pantanal to film jaguars there as well, remember, Sweetie?"
Her older sister was watching her as Brittany remained quiet and lost in her thoughts. The truth was that now that she had been here for several weeks, she didn't want to leave. As much as she loved her family, her most treasured moments in her life had been when she was alone with Santana.
She didn't want to leave Santana. The thought of never seeing her again made her want to fall to the ground and cry her eyes out. She didn't understand why her emotions were so strong.
"Why are you looking at me like that?" Brittany raised her eyebrows at Lindsey, tilting her head to the side in confusion as a small smile came to her lips.
"You really like Jungle Cat Girl, don't you? I've never seen you so into anyone. Maybe you should stay here with her." She suggested. Stacy and Tiffany were snickering nearby since Brittany having a crush on someone was apparently the funniest thing in the world.
"Maybe I do like her but what does that have to do with it?" Brittany quipped, trying to sound totally casual. Lindsey knew her too well.
"What I'm saying is maybe you just want to play Tarzan and Jane with her," Lindsey winked at her. "Or maybe George and Ursula. Whatever floats your boat."
Brittany couldn't help but laugh. She also couldn't deny it. Whitney hummed nearby, amused and came up to Brittany, giving her a hug.
"Honey, we don't want you to be sad and miss out on getting to learn more about Santana. If you're sure you want to stay here we won't stop you. We'll be back to see you both in a few weeks."
They knew Santana well enough by now to know that she wouldn't harm Brittany or let anything else cause harm to her.
Brittany and Santana were alone in the woman's cave. Brittany couldn't take it anymore when Santana began to show her affection by licking her neck then rubbing her cheek against hers as she usually did. She grabbed Santana's face, and leaned in to press their lips together.
Santana seemed shocked by this action. She allowed Brittany to kiss her but was too surprised and unsure about how to respond. Her body reacted and she pressed her lips back against Brittany's clumsily.
Brittany felt proud that she was the first person Santana had ever kissed. Santana's eyes flashed and she touched her fingertips to her lips, tracing them when they separated.
"Why did you do that?"
"You can speak! You know English?" Brittany struggled to make sense of the situation but she was so happy and threw her arms around Santana's neck. The only explanation she could come up with was that somehow when their lips touched, it sparked some ability Santana had to learn other languages from people. "You can understand me now!"
"I guess I can… but I don't know how. What was that just now that you did to me? When you moved your lips on mine?"
"It's a kiss."
"A kiss?"
Brittany nodded.
"It's a way for us to express attraction to each other or show each other our feelings. I can show you again, anytime you want." Brittany winked. Santana's gaze lowered to her lips as soon as she said this and Brittany couldn't help the way she smirked coyly in response, knowing that Santana was thinking about their kiss.
"How did it feel for you?" Brittany stroked her cheek softly, cupping it. She couldn't resist the urge to push for more. "I felt sparks… like this heat inside of me all over when I felt your lips."
Santana didn't respond to her words, an almost shy look on her face and ducked her head, a deep red colouring her cheeks as she squirmed on the spot. It was endearing to Brittany. Santana was acting like a bashful teenager would when interacting with their crush.
"What are you?"
Now that Santana could speak and understand English, Brittany felt she had so many things she needed to talk to her about. She didn't know where to begin. Santana was apparently struggling to process it all.
"I told you, remember? I'm a girl. A woman. The female of my species. The human species."
"Oh. What am I?"
"So the thing is, you're not exactly the same as a human," Brittany tried to be sensitive to Santana's feelings and not make her feel different in a bad way. "As you can tell, we're not as strong as you and we don't have your powers."
"Why are we different?" Santana asked. "I thought… a long time ago before I met you that I was one of the jaguars but they don't look or act the same as me either."
Brittany frowned, stroking Santana's cheek again. She felt pity for Santana. It must be strange being the only one of your kind and not fitting in, even with the creatures you thought were family.
"Do you remember where you came from or who your parents were?"
"Parents?" Santana seemed startled, as if this thought hadn't occurred to her. "I don't know, I remember seeing a big black cat by the cave. That's my earliest memory. I was a toddler. I always lived in this forest."
"Hmm," Brittany stroked her hair as Santana leaned in to press her face against her shoulder and neck, as if seeking comfort. "Maybe your parents weren't human or animals."
"I don't know what I am," Santana's voice broke with emotion. "I- I don't want you to leave. Are you going to leave me?"
"That's okay. I won't go and I don't want to leave you ever either. I'll always be here for you." Brittany put her arms around her body again, trying to convey how much she cared about her. When Santana pulled back, she had a funny look on her face. Brittany's heart raced when she noticed Santana's gaze on her lips again. Then she was kissing her and clearly Santana was a fast learner. Brittany closed her eyes, moaning into the kiss.
After that, Santana began to lick her neck in a show of affection, nuzzling into it and eventually falling asleep on top of her. Brittany sighed, enjoying the feel of her always heated skin against her and dozing off.
They continued to fall asleep naked in each other's arms every night and Brittany's desire grew stronger than ever.
They were moving through the forest the following day together, Brittany following Santana as she went hunting for food when they heard some intense sounds coming from nearby.
Brittany was wondering why Santana had grown quiet but then the woman urged her to follow her and pointed to the sight of a rare black male jaguar and a female jaguar with burnt golden fur and rosettes. They were mating.
"Oh." Brittany whispered. That explained how noisy it was in this part of the jungle.
Of course, they didn't want to interrupt them and began to move away.
Santana tore her gaze away from the animals then stared down at her own naked body and over at Brittany's as if noticing how close they were to each other and how she and Brittany could be giving in to their deepest urges for each other the same way those two animals were.
End of Part I - To Be Continued