by Celine Yorke
He also taught him how to climb trees like a cat, which was difficult for Tom because he was much heavier than Chan.
"There are native tribes here in the jungle that have never seen a white man with blond hair before. They may think you are an evil spirit, so it is important that you can fight them off if they find you."
Then, one day, Chan said, "It is time for you to come down to the river with me. I will teach you to fish, but you must stay close to me."
Tom, happy to get away from the hut, followed Chan, who was very alert and watched everywhere he went.
It was quite a long walk down to the river and a difficult situation as they worked their way through the jungle. Tom was learning to hack his way through the underbrush, using the knife Chan had given him. When they reached the river, Chan walked out in the water with a spear he had hidden under some leaves.
"Grab a spear and follow me," he said to Tom.
It was a relief to see the water. Tom jumped in and laughed. "Ahhhh, this is wonderful. I haven't had a bath for ages." He started washing himself and splashed around in the water. He couldn't remember the last time he'd had a good bath and he knew he smelled bad. Chan looked at him and laughed,
"I thought you could do with a wash you smelled terrible.
Tom's mood lifted. It was a beautiful place, with a little waterfall nearby where the fish came floating down and it was easy to catch them. Soon they caught quite a few fish and head back to the hut again. Once back at the hut, they got the fire started and quickly cleaned and cooked the fish.
As they sat there eating, Tom started questioning Chan about the jaguar who lay outside the hut every night.
"You know Chan, every night a big jaguar lies outside the hut here. It scares me, but it is like it is watching over the hut. It seems to come when you are gone."
Chan sat quietly for a while, then he said, "There are things you are not ready yet to learn about. I will tell you when the times come, but until then, don't worry too much about it." Chan returned to his fish and Tom had to accept that.
Tom shook his head and said to himself,
"Bloody hell. Not worry about it? It could easily tear me apart if it wanted to." Tom continued to work on one of the little chairs he and Chan were cutting out of wood using their knives. Chan wanted him to get used to handling his knife in case he needed it.
Chan seemed amused and Tom saw a little smile on his face.
CHAPTER THREE
Chan gave Tom a big knife and now often took Tom fishing on the river. On the way down there, he taught him to climb the trees quickly in case there was a threat. Tom lost a lot of weight, but he was building up his muscles and was getting more and more athletic and realizing how unfit he used to be. It was a good feeling to get in touch with the physical side of himself. That was at least one good thing about being in this wild scary jungle. He felt quite proud of himself. "If only Serena could see how athletic my body looks now. She would be so proud of me, too," he said to Chan.
Chan laughed, "Yes, you look a lot better now, but we have only just started to get you fit."
One day they were down fishing in the river where the water glides in small ripples into a large slow moving lake. It was so beautiful and peaceful out in the water that it was hard to imagine that this could be such a dangerous place. But the peace didn't last long when Tom spotted two large jaguars entering the water a little further up the river. He was about to alert Chan, but he had already seen them.
Tom couldn't believe his eyes when Chan started to change shape. Tom's mouth dropped open. In no time, Chan was gone, replaced by a big jaguar, standing in the water. Tom was in shock.
Chan, the jaguar, was ashore in a few strides and raced down the river bank toward the other two jaguars. He sent out a roar and chased them into the jungle. Tom stood in the river, still frozen with shock.
"What the hell just happened? Did I just see what I think I saw?" Tom said out loud. "I've been here in the jungle for a long time. Have I started to hallucinate?"
Tom was in a state of shock, but he knew that now was the time to put all that he had learned from Chan into practice. He put his fishing spear back under the leaves, gathered the fish he had caught, and made sure his knife was in his belt. Tom was scared, but there was no time to think about his fears. He snuck around the trees and followed the trail back from where they had come. He stopped and listened and when he heard some noise he put the fish down under some leaves and climbed a big tree. He sat for a while, watching the area around for any threats. He was grateful that he has learned so much from Chan, but now that he had found out his secret, he was not sure what to think.
Tom sat up in the tree and thought about Chan's behavior. Chan was so athletic and as fast as a cat, and that was actually what he was... part cat. Tom was puzzled. He had heard of shape shifters, but he'd never come across any until now.
"So it was Chan outside every night, guarding the hut."
Tom was baffled. He didn't know what to think of the whole situation.
Speculating and trying to make sense of what was going on around him, he started to talk to himself,
"Chan did tell me it was a dangerous jungle, but I hope he doesn't expect me to change into a jaguar. That is way too crazy a thought for me Chan is a shape shifter, that is why he can climb the trees like a cat. He is a cat, well, part cat and part human. I know he is a good person. I am grateful for the way he has been helping me and teaching me."
Tom got safely back to the hut by using some of the safe paths Chan had taught him. He put more wood on the fire and cooked the fish. After he had eaten, he went down the hidden room to spend the night. It seemed like the safest place.
He hadn't seen Chan for two days when a jaguar came limping into the hut. Tom grabbed for his knife, but the jaguar lay down inside the hut and put its head on its front paws. The huge cat was obviously hurt.
Tom stood back looking at him while the jaguar looked at him with pleading eyes. There was a lot of blood on his back and it looked like one of his paws had been injured.
Tom was both scared and concerned. He whispered to himself
"Is this Chan?
"In any case, this jaguar needs my help so I will have to overcome my fear."
Tom got the water container and poured water into a bowl. He added some solution to the water that Chan kept in a little cupboard. He approached the jaguar, while talking to it in a calm voice.
"I'm not going to hurt you. I'm just going to clean your wound with this solution so you don't get infected."
Tom was trembling and his skin tingled all over. He managed to gently bathe the injured jaguar. Then he put some fish in front of the cat in case he was hungry. Tom felt sad for the jaguar. It was such a beautiful animal, covered in a magnificent coat. He would do his best to help it.
The next morning, Tom came out of the secret room under the trapdoor he saw the jaguar still there on the floor sleeping. He fetched the water container. He had to get some more water from the river so he could keep cleaning the jaguar's wounds. He was in a hurry to get there, so he almost forgot to be careful. The sound of rustling in the bushes made him stop in his tracks. He hid the water container and climbed a big tree so he could get a better view of the surroundings. When he felt it was safe he climbed back down and hurried to the river. The water container was heavy to carry back to the hut, but if that jaguar was Chan then he had to help it to heal.
The jaguar was healing well, but had been sleeping a lot while he was injured. Then one morning when Tom came out from under the trap door just as the jaguar started to wake up. He got up and shook his body. Slowly the shape shifts happened and the jaguar disappeared and in its place, Chan was stretching his arms and legs. Tom was mesmerized. Not knowing what to say to Chan, he simply asked, "Are you back?"
Chan sat down on one of the wooden carved chairs he and Tom had been making.
"I presume you know my secret now."
"Yes, I guess I do, but you nearly sc
ared the living daylight out of me. I have never seen anything like it before. This is mind blowing stuff, you looked pretty scary as a jaguar."
"Thanks for taking care of me."
"That was the least I could do for you, after saving my ass from those brutes. That and all you have been teaching me has helped me to look after you."
"I think it is time to tell you about my situation."
"I'm all ears."
"I'm a shape shifter and I have chosen to live out here in the jungle with other shape shifters of my kind. We are of the jaguar breed. There are many of us, but from different prides. Some of these prides are not so friendly and we have to protect ourselves against them."
"We have a hidden den in a cave out of sight and away from everything. We are usually left in peace, but now and again, someone from an unfriendly pride sniffs us out and we get into fights. That was what happened to me the other day. They want to mate with our women when they are in heat. They can smell them so we have to protect the females."
"Because the jaguars of our pride are half human shifters, we built a den which caters for all our needs should we shift back to human. We are all friends and help each other. I like living out here in nature where I can be with my own kind and not have to account to anyone for who I am and what I do."
While Chan talked, Tom sat listening. It sounded so natural when Chan told his story, but if someone had told him that story a few months ago he would never have believed it. If he told Serena about it, she would think he was making it up. Serena. The thought of her gave him a pain in his chest. When would he ever see her again? Tom pushed the thoughts away again and concentrated on Chan's story.
"That is why I had to keep teaching you how to fight and get you physically fit."
"I appreciate all you have done for me, and I promise you that I will keep up my exercises. I have to admit I rather enjoy doing them now.
"Good, now that you know about me and my kind, would you like to come and meet some of the other shape shifters one day?"
"I'm not quite ready for that yet. I need to take in all what you have told me and digest it. It is a lot to consider so could we please leave it for a while longer."
"Whenever you are ready, just let me know and I will let the pride know that I am bringing you for a visit."
Tom was happy Chan was back and staying round the campsite and hut all the time. It made him feel safer. He had been trying to figure out a way to escape, but knew he would never survive, let alone find food. He would just have to make the most of his situation and keep up his fitness exercises until one day there might come a way for him to escape. One day Chan gave Tom a pair of sticks.
"They are used for fighting." Chan taught him how to use them and Tom caught on quick and was soon a challenge for Chan. After such a session Chan laughed and said. "You are getting good, my friend. You have learned well."
"Good. I think I'm getting ready to meet your friends now," Tom said as he wiped the sweat off his forehead.
"Wait a couple of days. I will go and prepare them for your visit."
That night, Chan left and Tom was on his own. He didn't feel as afraid as he had done earlier. He was beginning to have more confidence in his abilities to defend himself even though there was no jaguar outside the hut. The next morning when Tom came up from the hole under the trap door, Chan was outside putting wood on the fire.
"Good morning, Tom. I told my friends that I would bring you to the den today.
Are you ready to go as soon as we have had something to eat and we've done our morning exercises? It is best if we get there in the afternoon when they are relaxed and less aggressive."
"That is fine with me," Tom said, even thought he had to admit to himself that he was a bit nervous."
"Are you sure you are ready? They can smell fear from a long way.
"I think I am, but I must admit I feel a bit uneasy about the whole situation." Tom didn't want to meet Chan's eyes and looked away. He had a rolling feeling in his stomach.
"Stay close to me at all times," Chan said.
A little later in the day, they started out towards the den. It was a long walk through dense jungle and it was hard work. When Chan went there on his own, he would shift form into the jaguar and make the trip in no time. Tom could now see a group of mountain ranges in the distance and it seemed like they were heading towards them. As they got nearer, he could see some overgrown cliffs. It was a beautiful terrain. Tom would never have found this place by himself. It was so well hidden, and right in there between ferns, big trees and creepers, was a secret entrance to a cave. They walked in and Chan send out a loud howl to warn his friends he was coming.
CHAPTER FOUR
Tom had been Serena's boyfriend for a long time and they had spent all their free time together. That was before they both got busy with their education. Tom with his studies to become an architect and Serena with her apprenticeship as a dressmaker. There wasn't much free time for them now that Serena spent long days at work as well as three nights a week at design school.
Tom was busy with his study to become an architect. He wanted to design and build houses. He had his heart set on becoming a very successful architect. So the time they could spend together was limited, but they made a point of seeing each other at least once a week. Tom, who was a pretty sensible young man said to Serena one day when he was over at her house.
"If we both work to educate ourselves then we can have a pretty good future ahead of us. We can one day build our own house and start a family."
Serena wet her lips and hesitated a bit before she answered Tom. "I like that idea, but it is going to be a few years before we can think about that, you have to finish your studies first," she said reluctantly. She was not quite sure how she felt about settling down before she had fulfilled her dream of going to Paris to become a successful fashion designer.
"Time will go fast, before we know it, I'll have finished my studies." Tom assured her.
He swept her into his arms, she melted into him. She enjoyed being near him. He was so handsome with his honey blond hair and blue eyes, that she felt drawn to him and could not resist touching him. It was moments like this they both enjoyed. Serena's parents had a little cottage near the beach where they spent much of their free time during the summer. Tom and Serena tried to get together at her house. This was one of those weekends Tom came over to visit her.
"My parents and my little sister Pia are away for the weekend, so we have the whole house to ourselves." She tried to control a rapid heartbeat and not to blush, but she could feel the heat in her cheek giving her feelings away.
He held her close. "We have the whole weekend to ourselves?"
"Yes the whole weekend." She said as she tilted her head back and laughed in a low seductive voice.
"Wonderful, but before I forget, we are invited to a small party tonight at Johnny's from my study group."
"That should be fun. Will there be many there?" she asked as she ran her fingers through his hair.
"There will probably be just a few of the usual crowd."
They dropped onto the couch and he pulled her into him. Their mouths met in a long passionate kiss. He gently pushed her down onto her back and leaned over her while looking straight into her eyes.
"Serena you are so beautiful I can't keep my hands off you."
She let out a small breath as she ran her hands down his back, pulling his shirt up while he unbuttoned her blouse. Their bare skin felt hot against each other. "You always feel so wonderful," he mumbled.
She had hot and cold shivers all over her body and trembled from his sensual touches. He kissed her neck, working his way down to her breasts and sucking her nipples. It was more than she could bear. She crawled out from under him and pulled him with her into her bedroom where she closed the door behind them.
They had the whole weekend to themselves, except for the party they were going to. They got home late and cuddled up in bed. They fell asleep, tired from working al
l week. The next morning, Serena was half awake when she sleepily felt a mixture of sensations going through her body as Tom ran his fingers down her breasts and circled around her hard nipples. He slowly glided his fingers down between her thighs that were suddenly wet and slippery.
"Ahhhhh," she sighed as tingling sensation flared through her body. She arched her body, into his and felt how hard he was, her stimulated body was screaming out for him to enter her, she wanted him inside of her. He was ready for her, but wanted to pleasure her a little longer letting his tongue slide softly over her clit until it was swollen. She moaned and squirmed with pleasure and impatiently begging him to enter her. She felt his warm lips against her lips with his tongue entering and exploring her mouth. His passionate kiss stirred up an uncontrollable feeling of lust in her. Finally, he thrust hard inside her, pumping in and out of her while she moaned and her body flowed in rhythm with his. He held back until he felt she was ready to explode, and then he poured himself inside of her. Tom lay breathless on top of Serena for a while, then slid down beside her, where they both lay relaxing, catching their breath.
After the lovemaking, they talked about their future together. It was Sunday morning and Serena went to the bakery to get some fresh buns and a couple of delicious Danish pastries while Tom made the coffee and set the breakfast table out in the garden. They enjoyed their time together and after breakfast, they got on their bicycles and rode down to the harbor where they went for a walk looking at all the boats and yachts.
It was a nice summer day so they decided to have lunch at the outdoor restaurant right there in the harbor. It had an inviting atmosphere with the little tables covered in colorful blue and white checked tablecloths. They settled for one of the restaurants special homemade burgers with all the trimmings. It was a delicious meal and quite filling so they just sat there for a while chatting and looking at all the interesting tourists walking past. It was such a glorious day that they were reluctant to get up and leave, but it was time to head for home. The streets were busy, it seemed like everyone was out enjoying the nice Sunday. As they drove past the ice-cream kiosk in the park Serena stopped.