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Description

The following weeks, I healed quickly. The wound in my leg closed and the broken bones began to mend. I could not yet walk but Mustafa often stretched out my legs, testing my flexibility. Afterward, he would sit for hours next to my cage, and later, the enclosure I was moved to. He gave me a new name, Asha, and said that it meant “life” in his native tongue. It was this language he spoke when it was just he and I. When the pale-skinned two-legs were around, he would speak in their language.

I found Mustafa’s company soothing and his presence eased the loneliness I once felt with N’dugu’s absence. His stories, though I could not understand him, were full of inflection and passion. Sometimes he would jump up and wave his hands in enthusiasm as he told a particularly interesting part of the story. If a cheetah could laugh, I would have, just because the motion was so comical. He looked like an ostrich strutting its feathers. Still, it was endearing and I gave him my full attention.

After a few weeks passed, the bandage around my leg came off and I was able to move around. The leg didn’t hurt but I had limited mobility. Try as I might, I could not pull it up to my belly, nor pull it all the way back. Running down prey would be a problem if I didn’t get some of the flexibility back.

Mustafa would attach a leash to the collar around my neck and walk me around the rescue center, hoping to loosen up my joints. I liked this time with him. More often than not, it was spent in companionable silence. He would reach down and scratch me behind my ears. This actually became a favorite pastime of his and he greeted me with it whenever he came to see me.

Every few days, Dr. Collins would check my progress. Sometimes she would nod her head in approval and others she would shake it, a worried expression on her face. This was something I found amazing about two-legs. They were very expressive, from their body language to their facial features to their eyes. I may not have been able to understand their speech, but their body expressions told me everything I needed to know.

Description

The following weeks, I healed quickly. The wound in my leg closed and the broken bones began to mend. I could not yet walk but Mustafa often stretched out my legs, testing my flexibility. Afterward, he would sit for hours next to my cage, and later, the enclosure I was moved to. He gave me a new name, Asha, and said that it meant “life” in his native tongue. It was this language he spoke when it was just he and I. When the pale-skinned two-legs were around, he would speak in their language.

I found Mustafa’s company soothing and his presence eased the loneliness I once felt with N’dugu’s absence. His stories, though I could not understand him, were full of inflection and passion. Sometimes he would jump up and wave his hands in enthusiasm as he told a particularly interesting part of the story. If a cheetah could laugh, I would have, just because the motion was so comical. He looked like an ostrich strutting its feathers. Still, it was endearing and I gave him my full attention.

After a few weeks passed, the bandage around my leg came off and I was able to move around. The leg didn’t hurt but I had limited mobility. Try as I might, I could not pull it up to my belly, nor pull it all the way back. Running down prey would be a problem if I didn’t get some of the flexibility back.

Mustafa would attach a leash to the collar around my neck and walk me around the rescue center, hoping to loosen up my joints. I liked this time with him. More often than not, it was spent in companionable silence. He would reach down and scratch me behind my ears. This actually became a favorite pastime of his and he greeted me with it whenever he came to see me.

Every few days, Dr. Collins would check my progress. Sometimes she would nod her head in approval and others she would shake it, a worried expression on her face. This was something I found amazing about two-legs. They were very expressive, from their body language to their facial features to their eyes. I may not have been able to understand their speech, but their body expressions told me everything I needed to know.