Cassi and I busied ourselves with camp for the next day or so. The sky had been stubbornly cloudy, hiding the stars behind thick veils of mist. The evenings brought rain, and though weather-worn, Cassi still insisted on trying to sleep outside.
"This is silly," I told him, watching him try to stay dry beneath the house. "You'll catch a cold."
He looked up at me like the thought had never occurred to him. His eyes softened in a way that made my chest ache.
"Come back inside. You take the bed, and I'll sleep on the floor," I called.
He frowned slightly but climbed the ladder.
True to his stubborn nature, he fashioned a makeshift cot from thatch and fur, insisting I take the proper bed. My protests fell on deaf ears, so grudgingly, I slipped into his bed while he took the rougher one.
On a misty morning, I woke to silence.
"Cassi?" I called. I looked out the doorway, heart skipping. He was nowhere in sight. I felt a flicker of panic before my eyes landed on a note on the table.
Vie,Gone fishing.Don't go wandering into the jungle while I'm gone. If you're hungry, the birds brought you a bundle of fruit.If you get into trouble, send Juno. She'll always find me.–Cassi
His name was more a scratch than handwriting. I smiled faintly, imagining his awkward grip on the charcoal.
I climbed down the ladder and found the bundle the birds had left. The day was clearer, the sea breeze gentle as it ruffled my hair. I ate while sketching with charcoal on a fresh piece of bark. With Cassi gone, it felt like a good time to do some actual schoolwork.
I drew the star patterns—Sad Willow, Grandfather, and Grandmother—as best I could. They looked more like blobs than people, but it still felt satisfying. I scribbled down what I could remember of the story, the villagers' reaction to my departure, and the absurd label undefined jungle. That title seemed more insulting with each passing day.
I sat back, inspecting my work, and decided to find a dry place to store it. Creeping along the treeline, I found a little alcove between two mossy rocks. I wrapped the bark in two large jungle leaves and tucked it safely away.
But as I stepped back, Juno shrieked.
Something slammed into me. The impact knocked the air from my lungs as I hit the forest floor. My vision blurred—and then sharpened on two glowing, yellow eyes.
A jungle cat stood on my chest.
It was the size of a mountain lion but sleeker, more sinuous. Its coat was deep mahogany with dapples of shadowy black, like rosettes half-smeared by paint. Its fur shimmered with a kind of iridescence in the filtered light, like oil on water. I froze, every muscle locking. Then pain lanced through me as it clamped its jaws around my arm.
I screamed.
Another cat emerged from the foliage—larger, with a coat of ash-grey patterned in bold silver streaks. A thick scar ran across its face, from above one eye to the corner of its jaw. It was silent as a ghost, deadly as a storm. Before I could react, they began dragging me.
I twisted, tried to hook my good leg around anything. A root, a rock—something. I managed, briefly, to slow them.
"Juno—find Cassi!" I cried, voice cracking. Then I screamed again, louder. "CASSI!"
I was a rag doll in their jaws. Blood ran warm down my arm where the teeth began to puncture flesh. My legs kicked weakly, scrabbling for purchase. My mind spiraled into panic. I was prey.
They're going to stash me. For later. For when they're hungrier.
Suddenly, the birds dove.
A blur of red and turquoise feathers struck the ash-grey cat's face. It snarled and let go of my arm. I jerked my wrist free and, trembling and half-blind with pain, I drew my other fist back.
And punched the mahogany cat in the nose.
It made a sharp, startled sound—half-snarl, half-cry—and stumbled backward a few steps, blinking. I couldn't tell if I'd hurt it or just surprised it, but the contact gave me a flicker of hope. My hand throbbed from the impact, but I didn't care. I was alive.
Then I heard it.
"Vie!"
Cassi's voice rang through the trees like a lightning strike. The relief hit me so hard, my vision went white. The cats lunged again, biting into my shoulder. I screamed.
Then Cassi was beside me. He didn't hesitate.
The cats backed off a few steps, circling us. My blood dripped from their jaws. Cassi's presence unnerved them—his power rising off him in visible heat.
"What were you doing?" he said, his voice strangled with anguish.
Through my blurred vision, I saw him raise a hand and speak in a language I didn't know. His words were sharp, commanding. Not gentle—furious. The cats flinched. The air around us thickened with something ancient.
The flock of birds returned, swarming with a vengeance. The cats hissed and vanished into the jungle.
Cassi dropped to his knees and pulled me into his arms. His forehead pressed against mine.
"Stay with me, Vie... I can't lose you. I've waited so long for you."
His voice trembled with desperation. I wanted to touch his cheek, to ground myself in something that wasn't pain.
He gathered me in his arms and ran for the beach. Blood soaked his shirt. My own pulse echoed in my ears as I drifted in and out of consciousness.
But I wasn't afraid anymore.
He had come for me.