The
Sad Cat Who Became Very Happy
Minou
Minou
is my dear sweet cat, my twin. My parents adopted him six years ago.
I was just two weeks old when my parents brought a little black
kitten home and Minou quickly became a full member of the family. We
grew up together, he was so much more than just a pet; he really was
my twin! We used to have fun playing and laughing all day long.
Except these last days; I don't know what's going on with Minou
but he just isn't playing like he used to. All he does these
days is eat and sleep...
"Maybe
he's sick", said mom.
"Maybe
he ate something bad", added my dad.
"We
should take him to the vet", decided mom.
"Lina
and I will take him tomorrow morning", agreed dad.
When
we arrived at the pet clinic the next morning, I could tell Minou was
a little bit scared. The vet, a very nice lady, inspected him
carefully. She took his temperature, checked his ears, and made sure
he didn't have fleas. Later she took his pulse and opened his mouth
to examine his teeth. Finally, she weighed him.
"He's
not sick," she said, "maybe a little too fat though!"
"Try
to feed him less", she added.
We
brought Minou home.
Later
on that day I heard my parents talking in the kitchen
"I'm
so happy he's healthy. I'm going to feed him less. Do you think
this will make him playful again?" Asked mom.
"I
don't know. It'll get him hungrier, that's for sure," joked
dad.
"I
keep thinking, said mom, cats do fall in love, don't they? Do you
think he might be..."
"In
love? He has never met another cat!" replied dad.
"I
know why Minou is behaving like that," I almost shouted.
My
parents gave me an amused look. I tried to sound as convincing as
possible:
"He
is sad!"
"Sad!?"
exclaimed my parents
"I've
never heard about cats being sad," added dad.
"Why
do you think he's sad?" Asked mom.
"Because
he has no cat friends to talk with, mom. I have friends, but he has
none."
Two
days later, my parents decided to look for another cat to adopt.
One
evening my mother came home; she looked very excited and happy.
"Lina,
tomorrow morning, we'll bring a new cat home. This is our birthday
present for Minou: a friendly cat for him to play with!"
Pinky
I
just entered the dining-room when a speedy rolling little ball bumped
into my shoes. Suddenly a fluffy tiny kitten jumped over the ball and
started to play with it, right in front of me. I was afraid to step
forward not to hurt the little fellow. Three other kittens were
playing on the carpet next to the window.
"They
love playing on that carpet," said Mrs. Molly while picking up the
playful kitten.
Mrs.
Molly was a little old lady and she had a lot of pets in her house.
She was a good friend of aunt Clara who told my mom about the
kittens.
"Can
I keep the kitten I like most?" I asked Mrs. Molly
"Of
course, my dear," said Mrs. Molly,"as I told your mother, only
three of them are up for adoption. I'm keeping the little black one
and his mother."
"Did
you adopt the mother cat when she was a kitten?" I asked her.
"No,
my dear," answered Mrs. Molly, "I found her in the street, right
in front of my house, about two months ago. She was dirty and hungry.
I took her inside and gave her something to eat. I washed her, too.
Now, she's family and she's such a sweet cat! I couldn't
imagine life without her!"
My
mother asked me to choose a kitten. They were all so cute! Finally, I
chose the most colorful one; who happened to be the one playing with
the little ball. She was white, orange, and black.
"The
calico kitten!" Exclaimed Mrs. Molly. "She's the princess of
the family."
"Does
she have a name?" I asked.
"No,
my dear. You'll have to give her a name; she's your cat now,"
said Mrs. Molly.
We
thanked Mrs. Molly and before leaving she gave us a very pretty pink
collar. "A goodbye present", she said, while putting it around
the kitten's neck.
We
were on the sidewalk, walking toward my mother's car when we heard
a little voice behind us.
"Is
this one of Mrs. Molly's kittens?"
"How
do you know?" asked my mother turning around.
"We
are neighbors", answered the little girl trying to see the kitten
through the door of the little cage.
"Oh,
you took the calico kitten!" She exclaimed. "Did you give her a
name?"
"Not
yet, but since you know her so well, do you have any suggestion?"
"Maybe...
Gigi...Tess...Heather...Miss T...Mistique...I know! Pinky!"
"Why
Pinky," I asked her.
"Because
she's beautiful, like a princess and pink goes with princesses.
Plus, I see she already has a pink collar."
My
mother and I looked at each other and turning toward the little girl
I said, smiling: "So, Pinky it is."
On
the way back home I couldn't stop imagining Minou and Pinky playing
happily together. Oh yes, he will be so pleased to see there is a cat
in the house to play with!
Minou
Meets Pinky
Minou
was sleeping on the carpet in the dining room when we got home, but
the sound of our footsteps woke him up. As we got closer to him, he
raised his head, stretching his neck a little bit. He stared at us
and suddenly his little yellow eyes seemed to grow bigger and rounder
than ever. We stopped in front of him. Minou didn't flinch at all,
waiting for the thing he sensed was going to happen, to finally
happen!
My
mother was holding Pinky in her arms, all covered with a huge scarf.
Nobody would have guessed that somewhere, among its many folds, there
was a tiny kitten sleeping. She must have been sleeping as there
wasn't any movement at all. Mom put the scarf down and we all took
a step backward to better see Minou's reaction at the sight of
Pinky.
Minou
was standing now, on all four feet, watching so intensely the scarf
on the floor, that he seemed breathless. Suddenly, he took a huge
leap back. The scarf was moving! Minou's back arched and his tail
started twitching.
Pinky
managed to surface from under the many folds and with a weak meow she
stopped. She turned her head a little bit to her right then a bit to
her left and while turning again to her right she noticed Minou. In
fractions of a second, her tiny body arched and her hair puffed up.
On tiptoes, her tail straight in the air, she was courageously
advancing toward Minou, hissing with all the force she could muster.
Minou
needed less than a moment to turn around, and running like a madman
to the kitchen, opened the cupboard door with his paw, and hid among
the pots and pans.
We
were all motionless and speechless. What just happened?
The
movie-like joyful meeting between the two cats, which my imagination
had been nourishing these last two days, vanished forever.
"Ladies,
tomorrow is another day and I'm sure it will be a good one for
everybody", said my dad before going to sleep.
The
next day the two cats behaved like two sworn enemies. Minou was
keeping his distance and from time to time he was letting out a growl
while Pinky kept hissing at him.
I
was so discouraged! I was afraid we'd have to take Pinky back to
Mrs. Molly.
"It's
very possible," said my mom. "Don't worry, we'll adopt
another cat."
"But
I like Pinky!" I said bursting in tears.
The
third day the two cats continued to avoid each other. We could still
hear a snarl or a hiss now and then. That evening my parents decided
to watch a movie. Dad put Minou on his left, on the sofa and Mom
tried to keep the hyper Pinky to her right. I was drawing and
coloring. Being so absorbed by what I was doing, I could hardly hear
my parents whispering:
"Time
to go to bed.''
The
two cats were sleeping and we didn't want to wake them up. We left
them on the sofa and we went to bed.
Early
in the morning, while I was still sleeping, I heard a whisper in my
left ear:
"Wake
up, don't make a sound, follow me.. "
I
followed my mother on tip-toes, without a word. The door of the
sitting-room was open. Mum stopped in front of it and, slowly raising
her right hand, pointed her finger toward something in the middle of
the room. I turned my head and covered my mouth with my both hands
not to shout.
The
cats were on the sofa; Minou was licking Pinky who seemed so happy
this grumpy but good-natured cat was taking care of her!
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