• Clementine colored fur streaked through with complimenting shades of dandelion and gold peeked out from behind a green couch that resembled a large piece of algae more than it did a piece of furniture. The erratic swishing of its bright tail gave away the position of the unsuspecting feline that hid there. All the while, pastel green eyes shot through with a single black streak peered out from behind the mismatched love seat across the room and watched the tail with growing amusement. With large striped cushions and a plethora of hand-made blankets thrown about in an overlapping pattern of stripes and solids, the love seat hid all of the stalking cat’s black fur. His straight black ears flicked left and right as they strained to hear every noise created by his prey. A quick scan of the vicinity assured him the room was empty. Carefully and with as little sound as possible the black cat took his first cautious step forward. His ears lay flat against his skull blending in with the matching dark fur on his head. As he moved forward, the careful predator kept his haunches so low that his belly fur brushed the brown carpet he trod on.
    As ancient instincts took over his actions, the surroundings fell away and were replaced by the heat and humidity of a long forgotten jungle. The couch was no longer a plushy piece of furniture; it was the rotted trunk of a long forgotten tree. Tree litter and fungus covered it in a thick layer of padding leaving no bark showing. The scratchy carpet was a crackling bed of dead leaves that crunched like the chewing of crackers with every step. Vines draped low threatening to trip even the most tentative creature; colorful flowers popped out from the green background like a splatter of red on a white canvas. The sickly sweet smell that floated lazily through the forest lulled the rambunctious jungle creatures into a deep and peaceful afternoon slumber.
    The ginger tail no longer swished in anticipation, but rather trembled in fear. The claws of the predator seemed to lengthen and gleam more brightly under the filmy sunlight that filtered through the small breaks in the tree canopy. His body was larger, leaner, and more muscular. As he tensed for the pounce, his bunched muscles rippled with tension and stood out under the slick coat of oily black.
    Like the snapping of a mouse trap, the tension in the panther’s muscles released. His movement was swift and smooth like the flight of a skilled archer’s arrow. He barely stirred the undergrowth as he glided through the thick air. In that fluid moment, he was on his prey grappling for the neck and sinking his long vicious claws into the orange fur. A frightened yowl escaped the jaws of the prey as it struggled to escape. It wriggled about in convulsions as streams of scarlet mixed with the yellow streaks in his fur almost like the color of a sunrise after a bloody day of battle. As he weakened, so did his cries for help. In a final attempt to free himself, the desperate prey bit into the ear of its attacker and ripped it in two leaving a limp comical shred of skin behind.
    The panther’s eyes became slits as it shrieked an ethereal screech of pain. The sound tore the air to pieces sending birds fluttering and monkeys screeching in alarm. Animals fled from the anger of the panther as he mercilessly silenced his catch with a single stoke of his powerful and lethal claws. With a purr of triumph rumbling like thunder inside the panther’s blood-splattered chest he sat back on his large haunches and closed his glimmering eyes. Every hair on his body gleamed with sweat and pride interrupted only by the flecks of crimson that stained his otherwise endless midnight coat. When he opened them once more he was back in the house with a small mewling kitten rolling about asking for more fun.