A Tale of Two Kitties

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A Tale (or Tail) of Two Kitties
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The bedside clock showed 4:30 a.m.

This, as all indoor cats knew, was the proper time to demand food. Magnus slowly opened his eyes while deciding whether or not to get out of his bed. The huge Maine Coon cat slept like the king he believed himself to be in a large, soft bed. He graciously shared the bed with his human, the one he had chosen over a year ago to supply him food twice daily.

What should I do today? went through the cat’s mind as he put his front legs out in a slow, lazy stretch. Being extra careful to reach the most optimal spots, Magnus next put his hind paws on his human’s face. Using the sleeping body to full advantage, he pushed off the bed and landed heavily on the floor. This tactic was rewarded with a grunt from his human and a muffled “Gway, not awake yet.”

Magnus padded out of the bedroom and down the hallway to the kitchen. If his human wasn’t getting up to feed him, Magnus decided it was up to him to find food. After all, it had been almost 12 hours since his last meal, and who knew how long he could last before withering away from starvation.

Once in the kitchen he wandered over to his food and water bowls. With one large paw he pushed the dry cat food left over from the previous day onto the floor. Now the food bowl was empty, and Magnus began yowling his complaint to anyone who would listen.

Outside on the window box under the kitchen’s screen window huddled a scrawny tabby cat. She could hear the sound of a frustrated cat coming from inside the house, but she could do nothing. The rain that had fallen overnight had added to her misery. Once the noise inside finally stopped, she let out a soft cry of hunger. Her last meal was two days previous and consisted of only three small bites of a discarded pizza slice. This was all she found edible in the battered garbage can a mile away from where she now lay cold, starving and near death.

“Please help me,” she whispered, forcing herself to stand upright on shaky legs. Taking a deep breath, she placed her front paws on the narrow outside ledge on the window and peered through the screen into the dark kitchen. Once again she whispered, “Please help me. I’m so hungry and cold.”

Hearing another cat so close to him, Magnus jumped up on the counter next to the double sink and looked out into the dark through the screen window. Looking back at him were two copper-colored eyes. They looked so sad Magnus forgot for the moment he was a king. “Stay there,” he whispered back, realizing the cat shivering inches away needed something only his human could give. He jumped down from the sink and raced off toward the bedroom.

Once there, he got back up on the bed and began pawing his human’s face. Not getting a quick enough response. Magnus leaned down and nibbled the human’s left ear. When he felt the body under him moving in an attempt to dislodge him, he did the only thing he could to get his human out of bed. Turning to face away from his human so his butt was hovering over the just nibbled ear, Magnus let loose a stream of hot urine.

“What the hell?” yelled the human, sitting up and unsure why liquid was dripping out of his ear. He scrambled out of bed, only to see his large pet frantically pacing back and forth between the bed and bedroom door. “Okay, okay. I get the message. I’m coming.” With a quick glance at the bedroom clock reading 5:00 now, he knew Magnus only wanted food. Shaking his head at how wimpy he felt, the human realized Magnus was training him to obey his every command.

Once they were in the kitchen, and after the human turned on the overhead light, Magnus jumped up onto the counter. He began pawing at the screen window, trying to get his human’s attention. He could hear the outside cat’s cries were getting weaker, but at least she was still alive.

“What’s wrong, Magnus? What are you trying to tell me?” The human gently pushed the large cat to one side and tried to see what was on the other side of the screen window. Startled, he nearly jumped back when a tiny paw appeared. By standing on tip-toes, he could see a bedraggled, skinny tabby cat staring up at him.

He quickly pulled out the metal tabs holding the screen in place. After seeing Magnus was not going to jump outside, the human cautiously reached through the open window and gently brought the stray inside. Holding onto the terrified cat under one arm, he managed with his free hand to put the screen back in place.

It took a few days with lots of food and TLC on the part of the caring human, but the newly named Fudgy eventually joined her human and Magnus on the large, soft bed. From that day on, their human was awakened to the contented sound of purring.

His one-time FOFU or fear of feline urine never returned.

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"The Writer's Cramp"  daily entry for 08/22/2014
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