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“Yeah. The ones I saw haven’t tried me just yet. We’ve eyeballed each other. We keep a safe distance. And it’s all respect. Just respect boundaries.” He rubbed Persia beneath her chin as her kittens played and frolicked behind her, swatting at one another and rolling about.

“How were you able to establish this sort of relationship with her? She’s not domesticated, so this interaction is surprising to me.”

“Well, she needed me. I had seen her a few times on my land, and she’d always run off.

Then, one day, I was comin’ back from the river.

I’d been fishin’ all morning. I saw her, and she ain’t run.

Instead, she kinda hobbled, real slow-like.

Her ankle had been all mangled. Some sort of attack.

I knew she was good as dead if I didn’t do something to help her.

The one thing she has on her side is her speed, and keepin’ to herself.

She can’t do that if she’s limping and bleedin’ everywhere.

My house wasn’t too far away from where this happened.

I sprinted off to my old cabin at the time, grabbed a tranquilizer gun, and she was pretty much in the same spot where I’d left ’er. ”

“She must’ve been in pain.”

“Yeah, she was growling and carryin’ on. So, I had to tranquilize ’er to get her to my house. While she was under, I cleaned up her wound real good. Stitched it up in no time flat.”

“Were you able to confirm that it was an actual bite, or maybe it was a cut?”

“It was definitely some sort of bite. It wasn’t deep, but whatever did it had a big enough mouth to take a chunk out of her.

When she came to, she hissed and snarled.

Scared as could be.” He smiled, as if this story were a fond memory.

“I let her stay ’round me for a bit longer that day.

Fed her and whatnot. She warmed up after a couple of hours.

“I proved I wouldn’t hurt her. When I let her go later that night, I noticed she started comin’ back a few days later.

Found her way all the way back to my house.

Her den at that time was far away. It started with her just staring at me from my front yard.

Then she’d come closer and closer, until she got on my front porch.

Lyin’ down. Resting. I let her be. Every now and again, I’d give her a bowl of water, or a fresh fish I’d caught from the river.

Usually a largemouth bass. Then, one day, she disappeared. ”

“Where’d she go?” Poet found herself mesmerized by the man’s storytelling. He had such a deep, rich voice, and he was speaking about one of her favorite topics in the whole world.

“To make a new den, ’parently, because she was pregnant.

” Poet gasped enthusiastically. “She started showin’ up again, and by then, I could tell she was pregnant.

Then, she disappeared again. Got quiet. She came back ’bout two days later.

She was making this cute meowing noise, over ’nd over.

Callin’ for me. I came outside, and she started walkin’, lookin’ behind to see me every few steps she took.

She wanted me to follow her. So, I did. It wasn’t long before she was at her den showing me her kittens. That’s how much she trusted me.”

“You know you’re pullin’ on my heartstrings, right? I can’t take it!” She laughed, and her eyes watered as her heart warmed. He smiled at her, and nodded.

“Persia, I believe, has had a hard life. Of course she can’t confirm it, and I don’t know it for certain, but it’s just a feeling that I have. Wherever she lived before here really made her tough as nails. It was an honor that she warmed up to me. When I followed her that day, I helped her hunt.”

“Why?”

“She needed the help. That wound was still healing, but doing much better. I didn’t do all the work, ’cause then they can get dependent on you, and that would mess up their instincts and everything.

Unless you’ve got a cat sanctuary or somethin’ like that, I tell folks to not start that shit.

That’s still a wild animal. Give them their space, let them do what they are supposed to do, and only intervene when necessary. ”

“I completely agree. It’s best to be less involved.”

He nodded. Persia rolled over onto her side, and her kittens began to nurse.

“I didn’t do too much. Just a little bit so she could heal and rest some more. Brought her and the babies fresh rabbit meat, things like that for a couple of days.”

The kittens finished nursing and started playing again. One of them ogled Poet.

“What precious kittens, she has. They all are so gorgeous.”

“Yeah. She’s got adult kids out here now, too. This place is so big, they’ve spread out some, but Persia always stays close by now. Me and this beautiful girl have been friends for a long while. Ain’t that right, Persia?” He rubbed the top of the cat’s head, then gave her a kiss on the cheek.

Poet held back tears of amazement. She couldn’t believe what she was seeing… This motherfucker is like a modern day Tarzan.

“She’s absolutely stunning. Wow. I’ve seen plenty of bobcats around, but never this color. Never been this close to one, either. They’re so skittish ordinarily.”

“They can be. Attacks on people from a bobcat are rare, but not impossible. If they’ve got babies though, they’ll hurt you if they think you’re up to no good. Tear your damn throat out.”

“Yes indeed.” She sighed as she recalled a tale of a zookeeper getting half of his face snatched off by one. Rumors swirled that the bastard had been abusing her.

“Those paws?” He pointed at one of her paws.

The cat now lay on the ground, enjoying a belly rub while her kittens brushed their bodies against his legs and knees.

“Rip you to fuckin’ pieces. They’re not naturally aggressive, like you said.

Just don’t want to stir them up is all. You wanna pet her? ”

He looked over at her.

“You think she’d let me?”

“Doesn’t hurt to find out. Let’s see… Ball yourself up.”

“Ball myself up?”

“Yeah. Make yourself small ’nd hug your knees.”

“Oh, okay.” She quickly did so, and tucked her head, too.

“No, not like a turtle. Lift your face. You want to look her in the eyes. You’re making yourself kitten-like. Kittens look directly at their mama.”

She nodded in understanding and lifted her head. He sure knew a lot about pretending to be an animal. She wished that fact didn’t turn her on so much.

After a few minutes of growls, low hissing, and cowering, and Kage telling her to cut it out and relax, Persia tiptoed towards her and sniffed her head.

She sniffed her again. Poet could feel the warm breath from the cat close to her face.

A mixture of excitement, fright and immeasurable joy mingled in her gut.

Then she heard Kage’s low-slung, gravelly voice. “Tilt your head to your shoulder, like you’re kinda shy, and look up at her from the side…”

As soon as she did that, Persia licked her face.

Poet wanted to cry, elated with a feeling she could not describe.

An experience that had no words, overwhelmed with all-consuming love, being one with nature.

She’d been around plenty of animals in captivity.

Held and touched them. But this was a wild animal, free to roam and do as she pleased.

“You mentioned mountain lions. What about the coyotes? Do they bother her?”

“Eh, I see a ’yote every now and again. I know that they’re here, just don’t run into them too often.

I do hear them sometimes, though. Especially down by the river.

” He pointed up ahead. Every blue moon you’ll hear about some damn owl or an eagle tryna get one of the kittens.

I know for a fact she’s lost a couple at least to situations like that.

Just a sad part of life.” He gave Persia one more chin scratch, then reached into his bag.

Pulling out a few bits of freeze dried raw chicken, he scattered them about.

The kittens and Persia leapt at the food.

A lot of smacking, swallowing and soft hisses ensued as they competed for the treat.

“Come on, let’s go.”

They headed away from there, but she paused to look back. Persia was staring right back at her. Such beauty in the cat’s face. Also softness and determination—an almost human quality. If a wild cat trusts you around her babies, then you are a good soul, Kage. There is no doubt about that…

They continued on their walk, laughing, talking, and ducking when a bat came flying towards them.

“Oh, shit! Here comes another one!” High in the sky something huge was flapping its wings.

“Nah, that’s not a bat this time. That’s Rook,” he stated as they watched this thing soar high in the air.

“Rook?”

Kage held out his big, long arm. She gasped when the amazingly wide wingspan of this magnificent bird grew closer and closer, and then the damn thing landed on Kage’s bicep.

“A falcon! No way!” At this rate she was going to piss herself with excitement.

“Rook is my unofficial pet,” he said, looking smug and proud of himself. As he should. “He comes and goes as he pleases. I do have a tree that he likes in my backyard. You can’t own one without—”

“A falconer’s license.”

“Right. Plus, these guys are hard to domesticate, and I wouldn’t want to do that anyway. He knows me is all. I give him fish sometimes, too. You out huntin’, boy?” The falcon seemed awfully comfortable perched there. “You’re lazy tonight. Tryna get a fish from me, ain’t ya?” Kage chuckled. “Poet.”

“Yeah?”

“What kind of falcon is this?”

“You already know the answer. Is this a quiz?”

“No.” He snorted. “I really don’t know. I have an idea, but you’re the expert with local wildlife ’nd all.”

“Take a guess.”

“…Peregrine Falcon?”

“Bingo! Did you know that they are the fastest bird in the world, with gravity’s help of course?”

“You’re shittin’ me?” He smirked at her. She knew she’d been had, if only for a second. He knew exactly what type of falcon it was.

“I bird shit you not.” They both had a good chuckle at that.