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A LEOPARD'S TAIL

1. Part Three

Karen walked into her office and sighed, heading past her secretary and friend, Lauren Halster, who looked up from her work on her computer.

"Good morning Karen." Lauren said, watching her boss walk by. Karen was just reaching for the doorknob to her office, when she stopped and hung her head down. She turned around to face Lauren again, who looked back up, a bit concerned.

"I was such an idiot last night..." Karen said.

"Why? What happened?" Lauren asked, watching her friend.

"Do you remember that guy I told you about yesterday?"

"The one who won that raffle and pointed out that sick cat?" Lauren asked, and nodded her head. "Yeah, I remember that."

"Well, I bumped into him at the supermarket last night." Lauren nodded for her to continue. "And I'm afraid I acted like a bit of an idiot." She admitted, looking unhappy.

"Exactly what happened?" Lauren asked in concern.

"Well, I invited him out to get a pizza so I could talk to him, and I convinced him to go. He seemed pretty nervous though. So what did I do? I grilled him about how he knew that cat was ill." Karen hung her head a bit. "I made him so nervous, he ran out of the restaurant. He was in such a hurry to get out he even dropped his watch." Karen said, taking the watch out of her pocket.

Lauren resisted the urge to laugh at Karen's story. She seemed to feel really bad about the entire thing, but there was something a bit humorous about her scaring someone off. Usually she had the opposite problem with guys.

"Well, if you feel that badly about it, you should probably call him up and apologize..." Lauren suggested, and Karen nodded.

"Yeah, I'm going to. I just feel like a bit of a heel doing that." She grinned a bit. "Besides, I've got to give him his watch back!"

Lauren grinned. "Well, I can probably get his number from Public Relations. They must have it on file." Karen nodded.

"Thanks. Get the number for me, and I'll call him up on my lunch break before I go to check on that leopard again."

"No problem boss!" Lauren said with a smile, making a little salute. Karen laughed in good humor at the joke and headed into her office to do paperwork.

Peter sighed and rubbed his face as he entered his apartment after another early day at the office. There just wasn't enough work right now to keep him there too late. Not that that was a bad thing, since his coworkers were beginning to get concerned about him. And why shouldn't they be concerned? I've been acting nervous and jumpy ever since I got back from my vacation. Most people come back from a vacation relaxed and happy. But no, not me. I come back like a Turk with his turban wrapped too tight...

Peter sighed as he walked over to his phone to check his answering machine. It was only five o'clock. A bit early for dinner yet. He walked over to the bathroom while his messages played.

Normally most of his messages were just useless telemarketing trash with a call or two from friends or family mixed in every now and then. But this time one of the messages caught his attention.

"Hello, Peter? This is Karen. I assume this is your number since I got it from that raffle you won..." Peter blinked. Karen? Oh yeah... The woman I left in the pizzeria. Wonderful. "I just wanted to say I'm real sorry about yesterday. It was really tactless of me to grill you like that when I should have been thanking you. I was kind of hoping you could come down to the zoo so I could apologize in person... " There was a slight pause, and then a chuckle. "And I kind of also have your watch..." Peter looked down at his bare wrist. He had been wondering where his watch went. It must have fallen out of his pocket when he had gotten up. He HAD been in quite a hurry. "Anyway, Ill be at the zoo until around six o'clock if you want to come down. Bye..."

Peter sighed and looked at the clock. It was a little after five. He could make it to the zoo without a problem. But should I? Remember what happened the last time she made me nervous... Peter scratched his hand again in reflex. And it's not like the zoo is my favorite place to be. Still, she does sound sorry... And she DOES have my watch... Peter chuckled to himself. What the heck!

Fifteen minutes later, as Peter was driving through the zoo's gates, he was thinking more along the lines of 'What am I, stupid?' than 'What the heck!'. He'd almost forgotten to bring his pass with him in the first place, and he was arriving at a time when most people were leaving. The zoo would be closing soon, but he managed to get in with his pass, and by saying he was there to see someone.

A quick look at one of the maps pointed him in the direction of the feline center, and it only took him a few minutes to get there at a brisk walk. He pointedly walked in the middle of the path and avoided looking down into any of the animal enclosures while walking through the cat section, but he could almost feel their eyes on his back... This is not a problem. I'm being paranoid. Just Relax. Stay calm. Concentrate.

Peter was so preoccupied with staying calm, that he almost walked into the door to one of the buildings as it opened right in front of him. Karen stepped out the door and bumped into him. They both stared at each other for a second before blinking.

"Well, that's three times we've bumped into each other..." Peter said with a small smile.

"We bump into each other anymore, and people might start saying we're a couple!" Both of them laughed slightly and Peter turned away a bit. "Anyway, I believe this is yours..." Karen said, pulling his watch out of her pocket and handing it to him. "I found it on your chair."

Peter nodded and slipped the watch back over his wrist. "Thanks. I was wondering where I lost it." He paused for a moment. "Listen, I'm really sorry about running out on you like that yesterday.. It was really..."

Karen cut him off. "No, no.. It was my fault." She sighed. "I really shouldn't have gone digging you for information like that. It's just that, well.. The animals here are like my patients. It's my job to keep them healthy. Then you came along and out of nowhere point out a sick one... It just made me really curious." She laughed a bit. "I'm still curious as a matter of fact. I want to know how you knew that cat was sick when I, after several years of veterinary school and working with animals, didn't see anything wrong. I want to know, but I won't go prying."

Peter sighed. "Trust me, you don't want to know." He shook his head and Karen gave him a slightly odd look. He just grinned and shrugged.

"Well, anyway, I said that I owed you a dinner for pointing out that sick cat, and since we never got around to eating yesterday, I guess I still owe you one." She smiled.

"I don't know...." Peter looked back at her.. She smiled hopefully back at him. Dang.. I never could say no.. "Oh, all right." He agreed. " But no pizza this time!" He added with a laugh.Karen laughed with him and nodded. "Agreed, no pizza this time. I know a place right by here I go to for dinner sometimes. There's just one thing I have to do before I can leave. You can come with me if you want." She said, staring to walk towards a small shed a few dozen feet away.

Peter nodded and followed her. "What is it?"

"Oh, the best time off the day. I have to go down and feed the cats." Peter stopped dead in his tracks for a moment before following her again.

"Feed.. The cats?" He asked a bit nervously.

"Yep. I'll go down and feed them, and then we'll go out and feed you." She said cheerfully with a chuckle, oblivious to his discomfort.

I wonder if she realizes just how little difference there is between those two actions...Peter thought to himself as he swallowed. I really don't want to get any closer to those animals than I have to... Peter shook his head. Get a grip. They're just animals. It's not a problem. You can handle it. Just take a deep breath, stay calm, and you'll be fine...Just take a deep breath, stay calm, and you'll be fine... Just take a deep breath...

Peter followed behind Karen as she unlocked the door to the shed, revealing a staircase going down.

"This tunnel goes around in a circle behind all the enclosures, so we can feed the cat's all at once. They all know it's feeding time, so they'll all be hanging around. " She explained cheerfully, enjoying herself.

"What's that smell?" Peter asked, sniffing his nose a few times.

"Smell?" Karen sniffed her own nose a few times "I really don't smell anything.. You must be smelling the meat cart downstairs. It should be all ready for me to make the rounds. I must just be used to the smell." Peter nodded wordlessly.

Peter followed Karen as she went down to the cart, put on a thick pair of gloves, and pushed the cart down the underground hallway, taking the path to the right. The cart itself was packed with slabs of meat for the animals. Karen chatted pleasantly as she stopped by each of the cages, her back to him. He concentrated on not looking at the animals inside the cages. His nose was being filled with various scents, and he could still feel the eyes of every cat he passed upon him.

"Hm. The cats all seem a bit preoccupied today." She said, mostly to herself, not noticing that all the animals were staring past her and at Peter.

Peter, for his part, managed to keep his breathing relatively slow and steady, and his mind relatively calm as the animals stared at him. Geez, can't they just give it a rest? They're driving me crazy!

Oblivious to Peter's plight, Karen kept up her one sided conversation, cheerfully feeding the animals. "Okay, last ones." She said. "Now, a lot of people thing it's dangerous to work at a zoo like this, with all of these animals around, but they're really not vicious or dangerous as many people believe. As long as you're careful, treat them with respect, and don't turn your back on them, you'll be fine..."

Behind her Peter didn't hear a word she said, instead staring into the final cage in the gauntlet. Staring back out at him were three large leopards. The animals just about completely ignored the meat Karen was setting in front of them, instead staring over her shoulder at Peter, locking gazes with him as sweat began to build up on his forehead.

"Well, all done Peter.. Peter?" Karen turned around to find Peter had already turned the corner to the stairs that lead back up. She shrugged and turned back to the cage in front of her, noting that the leopards had stopped acting strangely, and had descended on their meal as usual. "Wonder what got into Peter. " Karen shrugged to herself. "Guess watching the cats eat was too much for him..." She said to herself, replacing he cart and heading up the stairs after him.Karen found Peter halfway up the stairs, running his hands over his face.

"Are you okay?" She asked concernedly.

"I'm fine... " Peter replied, looking up. "Sorry about that..."

"Oh, it's okay. No big deal. A lot of people get nervous watching big cats eat, and having large animals all around them." Peter chuckled mirthlessly for a second, and Karen gave him another slightly odd look.

Peter cleared his throat. "It's nothing.. Um.. I believe we were about to go to dinner?"

Karen nodded. "Yeah, the restaurant is just a few blocks away."

Peter left his car in the zoo parking lot, and he and Karen walked out through the gate and headed down the street in silence. Peter was still haunted by the way the leopards had been staring at him, and paid little attention to the people he passed and the cars that drove by on the street.

They were staring at me like I was their next meal... Peter though to himself. No, that's not right. More like they were staring at me wondering what I was doing on the other side of the cage... Peter shivered at the thought. Just then he and Karen passed the entrance to a small alley, and he suddenly stopped dead, straining to hear something over the sounds of the street.

Karen stopped and turned around to face him. "What's wrong?"

"Shhhh... Didn't you hear that?"

"Hear what?"

"I thought I heard something..." Peter turned towards the alley, and slowly began walking down it, straining to hear. Karen paused at the entrance for a moment, then followed behind him, still not sure what he was hearing.

Suddenly Peter dashed forward a few feet, and Karen ran to keep up. "What is it... Oh no..."

Karen found Peter kneeling down next to a little girl who was lying under a tipped over dumpster. Some debris on the floor had kept the dumpster from crushing her, but it had pinned her to the ground.

"What's a little girl doing here?" Karen asked. The girl made a small noise, her eyes closed.

"Never mind that! This dumpster is pressing down on her chest! She can't breath..." As if to underscore his words, the child made another small noise, trying to take deep breath, but unable to do so with the weight of a dumpster full of trash on top of her. "You go call 911, I'll try to lift this off of her!"

"But you can't lift that by yourse..." Karen began.

"Just go! And hurry!" Peter grabbed the edge of the dumpster and pulled on it, not even turning to see if Karen had done as he'd asked. He strained as hard as he could, but the dumpster barely budged.

Come on! I've gotta move this thing! Peter gritted his teeth and tried to lift the dumpster again, but to no avail. All I have to do is move it a few inches up... Looking down at his hands, Peter suddenly noticed his arms were being covered with a light coat of fur. Taking a moment to run a hand over his face, he could feel some fur growing there as well. He closed his eyes for a second to calm down and think.

Wait. I know I'm stronger as a leopard than as a man, right? So if I just change half way, I should at least have a chance at budging this thing... Peter looked down at the little girl, eyes still closed and tossing her head back and forth feebly. He sighed and turned his head for a quick look down the alley. Empty. Well, here goes everything.

Peter quickly closed his eyes and concentrated his mind on the half-human/half-leopard form he had become that first day. He didn't physically feel anything change, but there was a sensation of something being... different. After a moment he heard a ripping sound, and sighed inwardly. Well, there goes another pair of pants...

Opening his eyes, Peter took a moment to look down at himself. Clawed hands, furred arms, long tail. Not exactly how he wanted people to see him, but he had no time to worry about that now. He could hear the little girl's breathing getting weaker.

Grabbing the corner of the dumpster, Peter once again heaved with all his might. Come on... I can do this... Move... Move... MOVE! Heart pounding with effort, Peter could feel the dumpster slowly move up an inch. Then two inches. But that was as far as he could lift, his muscles straining and head pounding from the stress. He'd succeeded in lifting the dumpster far enough for the child to get out from under it, but there was no way he could pull her out himself, or move the dumpster any farther. Stupid, stupid, stupid... The little girl opened her eyes slightly as the pressure on her chest diminished, and looked up at him.

And then a hand suddenly entered his field of vision, and pulled the child out from under the dumpster. With a groan of relief, Peter allowed it to fall back down, muscles aching.

"Peter, are you oka..." Karen stopped in mid sentence, staring wide-eyed. She'd been in such a hurry to pull the girl free, she hadn't even noticed anything wrong with Peter. Such as the fact that he now had a tail and fur.

The heat of the moment passed, and Peter suddenly realized he was still half leopard. With a gasp he covered his face with his hands, turned around, and stumbled down the alley as fast as he could, concentrating on changing back, panic filling him. Behind him he could hear a voice shouting 'Wait!' but there was no way he was going to slow down for even a second.

By the time he reached the end of the alley, he'd managed to concentrate enough to change himself back to normal. Forcing himself to a more normal pace, he adjusted his shirt as best he could so it would cover the hole in the back of his pants, and prayed no one would notice. He headed for the zoo, and his car, his mind awhirl.

I'm dead. I am SO dead. Peter yanked the door to his apartment open, and slammed it shut quickly behind him. What am I going to do? This is it. Game over. LIFE over. She'll tell someone, and they'll tell someone else... In a week I'll be on the front page of the Weekly World News alongside an article about Elvis and Bigfoot's secret love child!

Panic gripped him as he paced back and forth, hands waving sporadically. The events of the past few hours, indeed, the past few days, finally began to eat through his mental defenses. I've got to get out of here.. I've got to escape! Maybe I can... Can disappear! I'll move somewhere else! Somewhere people won't find me! I hear Antarctica is nice this time of year... Without much coherent though, Peter ran into his bedroom, opened his closet, and pulled out the luggage set he had in the back corner. Barely paying attention to what he was doing, he began shoving clothes into it, almost tripping over the mattress on the floor.

Peter quickly dragged the bags into the living room and dropped them haphazardly on the floor, running into the bathroom to grab some random items from there for his trip. Exactly where we was going to go, and how he was going to get there, were questions that didn't even cross his mind in his panicky, delirious state.

Just as he was cramming his toothbrush and a bar of soap into one of the suitcase compartments, the doorbell rang. Peter stopped and stood dead still, not even moving a muscle. Don't answer it. It's got to be a trap! His fear-clouded mind commanded him. But... If it's a trap, they'll just come in anyway... His eyes darted back and forth in indecision. The fact that no one could possibly be out to catch him, at least not yet, was another thought that never even crossed his mind. Well, if this is it, I might as well go out with a little dignity... He said to himself, running a hand over his face. He slowly stood up as the doorbell rang again, practically quivering with tension and fear.

Walking to the door, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down enough to at least act normal. Mentally fortified, he opened the door.

And took a step backwards as his face paled. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Karen stepped into the room, turned around, and closed the door behind her. Peter simply backed away, bumping into the sofa.

"Um... Hello..." Peter said nervously, trying to smile and look cheerful. He, of course, failed miserably.

"Hello Peter." Karen said calmly, as if this was a normal situation. "I just thought I'd drop over so we could have a little chat. Planning on going somewhere?" She asked, looking past him at the suitcases strewn on the floor.

"Um, no." Peter replied, his yes darting around as he moved slightly to get between her and the bags. "Why do you think that?

"Oh, no particular reason." Karen replied, cautiously stepping to the side. She kept her voice calm and level as she watched Peter curiously. "So, why don't we have a little chat."

"Chat? What do you want to chat about?" Peter asked slowly, not unlike a child who has done something wrong and knows he's in trouble, but tries to delay the inevitable. He leaned against the edge of the sofa for support.

"Oh, I don't know. Why don't we start with what happened in that alley a little while ago." Karen continued in an even tone.

"I.. don't suppose it would do any good to deny ever being in an alley?" He asked chuckling nervously.

"Oh, I don't think that would work too well. For one thing, the hole in those pants over there say you were..." Karen pointed to the pair of pants Peter had been wearing, laying across the top of the sofa where they had landed after he'd thrown them while changing. "And for another thing, you're face is starting to turn yellow..." She leaned forward a bit to look curiously at his face.

Peter's eyes opened wide, and he suddenly stood up straight, turning away from Karen and raising his hands to his face. He did indeed feel some fur there. He quickly closed his eyes and concentrated, breathing hard. He could feel the fur vanish from under his hands, but he kept his eyes closed and his back to Karen.

"Look, why don't we cut to the chase..." Karen said quietly into the silence. "Who, and/or WHAT are you, and how do you do that??" She asked, watching him with a mixture of concern and curiosity.

Peter slowly stood up straight, turned halfway around, and collapsed back onto the sofa, still rubbing his face with his hands and keeping his eyes closed. After taking a moment to regain some of his composure, he opened his eyes and stared back at her.

"I am exactly who I said I was. Peter Hoffman. I am... I guess used to be an average, normal human being." Peter spoke slowly, turning away from Karen and staring straight ahead. "As for how I do that..." He shrugged blankly, face mostly impassive, eyes darting around, but not turning to look back at Karen.

"So... You don't do that on purpose?" She asked slowly.

"Of course not!!" Peter called out, turning to face her. Then he looked down and stammered a bit. "At least not usually.. I can control it! Most of the time...."

"But... How long have you..." She paused, unable to think of a fitting word. "I mean, has this been happening since you were a kid...?"

Peter snorted and laid his head back against the couch, eyes forward once again. "Try a little over a week. This whole thing started the Saturday before last.. Or maybe Friday. I don't know... I was acting a little strange Friday..." He trailed off for a moment before continuing. "It was on Saturday that I first changed into what... What you saw before."

"You mean some sort of human/leopard hybrid?" She asked, still surprised.

"Yeah, yeah, I guess that's it."

"And... Can you change completely into a leopard?" She asked cautiously.

Peter closed his eyes and sighed. "I wake up as one every morning, no matter what I do, so I guess so."

Karen just stared at him. "That's... Fascinating..." She said, eyes wide open.

"Fascinating...?" Peter asked incredulously, turning to face her. "You think this is fascinating? It's a nightmare!!" He got up and walked to the door to his bedroom, pushing it open and pointing to the mattress on the floor. "I can't even sleep in my own bed anymore, for fear that I'll damage it with my claws in my sleep! I have to sleep on the floor like an animal!"

Next he walked over to the kitchen and threw the fridge open. "I used to feel like having a piece of steak for dinner every couple of nights. Now I feel like having meat every day of the week!"

Peter closed the fridge and paced back and forth in the living room, rubbing his head and face, his eyes wide and unfocused as he rambled. Karen just watched in shocked silence. "I can't even go out to the supermarket without worrying I'll grow a tail and whiskers in front of twenty people! I feel like everyone I pass is watching me, just waiting for something to happen... I get jumpy whenever someone blows a horn or calls my name! Whenever I watch the news or read the paper I get paranoid that the next article or story is going to be about a leopard running around at night... Every time I go to sleep, I worry I'll wake up to find myself wandering the streets, or in a cage, or that I'll forget who I am and stay like a cat..." He let out a trembling breath and rubbed his eyes.

"I have to be careful about what I say, what I hear, what I see, what I smell, for fear that someone will find out... I keep noticing things no one else seems to notice.. At night I dream about being trapped in a cage, during the day I worry about being in a crowd of people.. "

Peter opened his eyes and looked down at his hands. They were covered with fur. "Grrrrrrrrrr...!!" Peter growled to himself, clenching his hands into fists, and closing his eyes. When he opened them again, the fur was gone once more. He sat, more like collapsed, back onto the couch, shuddering and panting, with a hand over his eyes.

Peter suddenly felt a hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry... I never expected..." Karen shook her head. "Listen, I won't tell anyone about this. You have my word. I'd like to help you if I can. That is, if you're not still planning on leaving the country..." She said with a slight grin, looking down at the haphazardly packed bags on the floor. Peter slowly got his emotions under control, and opened his eyes to look down at the bags himself.

"I don't think so. I wasn't really packed for a long trip. Besides, I don't have anywhere to go..." He managed a small, wry grin, leaning back on the sofa, and trying to calm down. Karen slowly took a seat across from him so they could talk easier.

"Have you tried seeing a doctor about any of this?"

Peter chuckled mirthlessly. "I pretty much ruled that out early on. What was I going to do? Walk into a doctor's and say 'Gee Doc, I seem to keep changing into a leopard whenever I go to sleep. I don't suppose you have anything for that? Some Prozac maybe? Or perhaps a needle full of Thorazine and a trip to a nice place with white rooms with padded walls and nice white jackets that straps around the back?'" He snorted. "Not that I'd last long there. After the first time I fell asleep I'd probably end up on the first bus to some medical testing facility, where I'd probably spend the rest of my life with an IV in my arm and sensors strapped to my head. I don't particularly enjoy the prospect of being turned into a lab rat. Or is lab CAT a better term?" Peter closed his eyes and took a deep shuddering breath.Karen twitched slightly at his caustic tone of voice and description of events, but she nodded her head. "Yeah, I suppose I can see why you wouldn't want to go to a doctor. But maybe I can help you with that." She said, pausing to think for a moment. "I went to medical school before deciding on veterinary medicine. I admit, it's been a while since I've worked with a human patient, but I've performed lots of tests and even small operations on animals, and I've yet to hear any of them complain..." Karen smiled, and for once Peter opened his eyes and smiled back slightly. He took a deep breath and nodded his head.

"Alright I guess. I'm going to have to figure out what happening to me before I can find someway to stop it and get on with my life."

Karen grinned. "Alright then... I'm off at six again tomorrow... I can probably be here around seven with some equipment. I'd take you down to the zoo, but that would raise an awful lot of questions." Peter slowly nodded his head, and Karen got up from the chair she had sat in.

"Well, I really should get going now. It's been a long day, for both of us I imagine. Are you going to be okay?" Peter nodded his head, and Karen turned towards the door to leave. "Then I guess I'll see you here tomorrow."

"Karen?" Peter said, looking up at her from the sofa, his face looking more than a little tired and haggard. "Thanks."

Karen smiled. "It's nothing. Besides, I still owe you for helping me in the zoo. But at least now I have an idea how you knew that leopard was sick." She grinned and laughed.

Peter grinned back. "And I told you that you didn't want to know..." He closed his eyes and exhaled before opening them again. "Guess I'll see you tomorrow."

"Count on it. Good-bye."

"Good-bye." Karen closed the door behind her as she left, and Peter remained sitting on the sofa for quite a while before slowly sitting up, threading his was through the suitcases and clothes on the floor, and heading into his room to undress and sleep. He didn't say a word or make a sound the entire time.