Chapter 6 #3
“What?” I asked the macaw, tightening my fingers loosely around the camera in my lap as I braced myself for whatever he'd decided to share.
You really don't know, the macaw said, sounding amazed as he tilted his head and looked at me as though I were the most confusing creature he'd encountered all day.
“Apparently not, considering everyone keeps saying that without explaining what I'm supposed to know,” I told the bird, frustration mixing with curiosity while I glanced briefly toward the leopard beside me.
His ears had flattened again.
Don't, the leopard warned the macaw, his deep voice sharpening while his body tensed beneath the dappled shade. The macaw bounced once on his branch, completely undeterred by the warning now that he was safely out of reach.
He would make a good mate, the macaw announced, pointing his beak directly toward the leopard with all the confidence of someone offering an obvious solution.
I stared up at him.
“Oh, not you too,” I told the macaw, letting my head fall back against the root behind me while disbelief and amusement battled for control of my expression.
He's strong, the macaw continued, spreading one wing slightly as though he intended to repeat the same list the monkeys had already given me.
“I've already heard the sales pitch,” I told the bird, lifting one hand before he could build momentum. “Strong. Good hunter. Excellent teeth. Apparently the most eligible leopard in the entire rainforest.”
The leopard made a low sound beside me that was suspiciously close to amusement.
I turned toward him.
“You don't get to laugh,” I told the leopard, pointing at him this time while his whiskers shifted and the look in his eyes became far too entertained.
I didn't say anything, the leopard replied, lowering his chin toward his paws again as though that somehow made him innocent.
“You didn't have to,” I told the leopard, narrowing my eyes while the macaw made a pleased clicking sound above us.
See? You already know his good qualities, the macaw pointed out, hopping sideways along the branch as though this proved his argument.
“He is still a leopard,” I reminded the macaw, gesturing toward the very large spotted animal currently pretending not to enjoy the conversation.
Yes, the macaw agreed, settling his feathers with complete seriousness. A good one.
I closed my eyes.
“Why does every animal keep saying that like it solves the problem?” I asked the macaw, opening them again to find both bird and leopard watching me.
The macaw tilted his head.
What problem? the macaw asked, sounding genuinely confused as one dark eye fixed on me.
I opened my mouth.
Then closed it. There was absolutely no productive way to explain the problem to animals who apparently considered species a minor technicality.
“Never mind,” I told the macaw, rubbing two fingers against my temple while a laugh threatened to escape despite myself.
The macaw looked toward Cat again.
She is very slow, the macaw informed the leopard, delivering the insult as though I weren't sitting directly beneath him.
“I am right here,” I told the bird, staring up at him while Cat's chest vibrated with another barely restrained rumble.
I know, the macaw replied, completely unbothered as he spread his wings.
“You are unbelievably rude,” I called after the macaw as he launched himself through the canopy, the flash of scarlet disappearing between the trees while a series of squawks followed him farther into the forest.
When I turned back, Cat had settled beneath the roots again, his body relaxed and his eyes half closed as though the entire conversation had nothing to do with him.
“You're enjoying this way too much,” I told the leopard, shifting the camera from my lap and setting it carefully beside me.
I'm enjoying your arguments with everyone else, the leopard corrected, opening one golden-brown eye while his tail rested lazily across the ground.
“Everyone else is trying to marry me off to a leopard,” I told him, leaning back against the root as I lifted both hands in exasperation.
They didn't say anything about marriage, the leopard pointed out, his voice so dry that I slowly turned my head toward him.
I stared.
He stared back.
“That is the part you're correcting?” I asked the leopard, incredulous laughter creeping into my voice while one of his ears flicked.
Accuracy is important, the leopard replied, lowering his head again with maddening composure.
A laugh escaped me before I could stop it.
“You are impossible,” I told the leopard, shaking my head as I reached for my camera again.
So you've mentioned, the leopard replied, closing his eyes while the corner of my mouth remained stubbornly lifted.
I should have been annoyed. Instead, warmth lingered in my chest as I settled beside him and listened to the rainforest continue around us.
Birds argued high in the canopy. Monkeys shouted farther along the creek because someone had discovered fruit. Something hidden beneath the leaves complained about the wet ground, while another animal insisted more rain would arrive before evening.
Only a few days earlier, those voices would have been indistinguishable from the other sounds surrounding me.
Now I knew which animals were hungry, which ones were irritated, which bird thought my hair was strange, and which ones had apparently decided my nonexistent love life was everyone's business.
The rainforest no longer felt like scenery surrounding a temporary assignment.
I was beginning to recognize individuals, their habits, and the places where I was likely to find them.
Some animals recognized me in return, remembered previous conversations, and apparently felt completely comfortable inserting themselves into decisions I hadn't even realized I was making.
For the first time since I'd arrived, I didn't feel as though I was only watching this place through a camera. I was participating in it, becoming part of the constant exchanges and small routines I'd once only observed from a distance.
That realization probably should have occupied more of my thoughts. Instead, I glanced toward the leopard resting beside me and watched one of his ears immediately turn in my direction even though his eyes remained closed.
A smile pulled at my mouth before I could stop it.
The animals were ridiculous. They were nosy, dramatic, and entirely too invested in pairing me with a leopard.
I knew why I thought the suggestion was impossible.
What I couldn't quite explain was why Cat never seemed nearly as interested in correcting them as I was.