‘I did not know these things,’ said Mowgli quietly.
‘Now listen. The day will soon come when Akela cannot kill his deer in the hunt. Then at next meeting of the Pack the younger wolves will be against Akela and against you. When that time comes, go to the men’s house in the village and take some of their Red Flower. That will be stronger friend to you than I or Baloo.’
The Red flower was fire. All animals are afraid of it and do not call it by its name. ‘I will get some,’ said Mowgli. ‘I will go and get it now, and keep it ready,’ and he ran through the jungle to the village.
On his way he heard the sounds of the Wolf-Pack hunting a big deer. ‘Show us that you are strong, Akela,’ came the voices of the young wolves. ‘Kill it!’
Mowgli stopped and listened, and he could hear that Akela did not kill the deer. ‘So the time has come already,’ he thought, and hurried to the village. He watched and waited, and soon he saw a child who was carrying a fire-pot. Mowgli jumped up, took the pot from him, and quickly ran away, back to the jungle. All that day he kept his fire alive with leaves and pieces of wood.ent he arrived,
In the evening Tabaqui came and told him that the wolves wanted him at the meeting. Mowgli laughed, and went. When he arrived, he saw that Akela’s place. Shere Khan was there, too, with all the fire-pot between his legs. Bagheera lay beside him.
Shere Khan began to speak and Mowgli jumped up.
‘Free People, is Shere Khan your leader? Does a tiger belong in the Wolf-Pack?’
‘There is no wolf on the rock,’ began Shere Khan, but the other wolves said, ‘Let Akela speak.’