He started back, crouching in a defensive stance at the rumbling growl before finding the source as it lost its balance in the nearby tree. He stayed in a crouch, but blinked curiously up at the strange leopard.

"Um...hello...?"

It was a strange creature, smelling like nothing he was familiar with. He could smell blood coming from the cat, and it smelled the same as the handprint on the stone. But this leopard didn't feel like any wereleopard he knew, and he doubted a real leopard would stalking the woods of Missouri...or at least not one like this. Tentatively, he sent an exploratory trickle of power towards the strange cat, feeling out for any familiar brush of power in return.