Love is Always Write Anthology Volume 5

he decided staying as a leopard wouldn't help explain to Deshi. He willed the body of the cat away, replacing it with the body of a man, and then he opened his eyes and stared at Deshi. "Go with humans."
    Deshi's eyes widened, the almond shape of them disappearing with how much white showed around the expressive, dark depths. "No!" Deshi gasped, dropping all the figs to the forest floor and gripping him tightly by the forearms.
    Kaanan frowned at him. Why was Deshi panicking? "Deshi go with humans. Home with humans."
    Deshi's grip on him tightened, and Deshi shook him, actually shook him. The boy's voice was soft, though, hushed as if he were afraid speaking would alert the approaching search party. "No! Home not with humans. Send them away, Kaanan!"
    Send them away? After leading them all the way here, Deshi wanted him to lead them away again? He growled in his confusion, glancing behind Deshi at the trees that still stood between them and the humans. "Deshi not want humans?"
    "No, I don't want the humans. I don't want to go!" Deshi released him, but the boy stepped in half a dozen directions, obviously unsure what to do or where to run.
    It made no sense, but he knew they had to act quickly. He gripped Deshi's shoulder tightly enough to make him stop moving about like a bug stuck in a spider's web. "Tree. Climb. Now."
    "Kaanan..."
    "Go!" Kaanan hissed, pushing Deshi toward a suitable tree and scattering the gathered figs so they weren't such an obvious marker. He followed Deshi up the tree and motioned for Deshi to climb higher, supporting the boy when he hesitated to go higher. He hugged Deshi against the trunk of the tree when he heard the humans break through the tree line of the more wild forest surrounding the fig trees. They were high enough for the branches and foliage to mask them, but Deshi's skin was so pale that he did his best to cover the boy's limbs with his own, just in case the humans happened to look up.
    He could feel Deshi's heart pounding, could scent the fear on him. The boy began to open his mouth to speak, but he pressed his finger to Deshi's lips, simply whispering into Deshi's ear. "Safe. Wait."
    Below, the humans milled around. He couldn't understand their words. The language was fast, trilling to his ears. They looked up into the canopy, but only briefly, and then they were moving on. The humans turned from the direction of the home he'd made with the boy, wandered deeper into the forest. He waited until his muscles ached and sweat dripped down his back, and then he began to shimmy down. He tugged at Deshi, encouraged him to follow. Once they were on the ground once more, he pointed toward their home. "Go. Wait."
    "Kaanan!" Deshi hissed. "Talk."
    "Go. I will follow humans. Keep them away." It was so strange using that singular word, but he understood it now. "Go. Wait."
    Deshi glared at him once more, and then turned toward their camp, ran through the brush. With a thought, he shifted from man to cat and, on four paws, ran after the humans. He snarled, growled, circled them, frightened them. The humans shot their rifles, shouted in their odd language, but he was faster than they were. He chased them, drove them far from the home he'd made with the boy. If Deshi wanted to stay, if he and this forest were now Deshi's home, then he would ensure no one came close enough to threaten them.
    It was almost nightfall when he padded from the tree line to the soft, sandy land their home was built upon. The boy had already started a fire, and the scent of cooking fish flesh tickled his nose. He growled, and Deshi's head snapped up from watching the fish on the fire. The boy's cheeks were damp, and it broke his heart that he'd made Deshi cry. He padded over and nosed Deshi, licked at salty cheeks.
    "Kaanan." Deshi stroked his fingers through his fur. "You would have sent me away." Desperation tinged the boy's voice, and he licked at Deshi's face again. "Do you not love me anymore?"
    Love? Love. He loved the leopards. He loved the jungle. He loved Deshi! He chuffed, stepped back, and shifted from leopard to man. "Deshi," he said, voice gruff, thick with emotion. "I... love Deshi."
    "Then why send me from our home?" Deshi demanded, giving his chest a weak shove. "Why bring humans to our home?"
    He frowned. How could he explain it all to Deshi in words Deshi would understand? "Deshi human. Deshi home always with humans. Lost in Kaanan's home. I hear humans; I think humans help you. Be Deshi's home