Kiddy's Night Out -- Part III

by Roger Hooker

This article is continued from here

I'd been out for quite awhile and I sensed that the night would soon be over. I was getting sleepy for a nice little catnap. Maybe it was time to head home.but which way? At this point, Power of Cat kicked in and began guiding me back.

I'm not sure exactly where I was when I started my trek but wherever I was, it must have been in Zone 2 because who should I see but a raccoon. Not just any raccoon, however! I met the big kahuna- ol'Rocky himself!

"What are you doing here?" he snarled at me. "Begone with you!"

"Uhh ... Rocky, I was just ..."

"How'd you know my name?" he hissed (not a cat hiss but a raccoon hiss, mind you). "Damn cats.y'all probably discussed me at your precious weekly meeting. Nosy things!"

"Well, I was just passing through, Rocky! I wasn't trying to move in on your territory," I stammered after regaining my composure. "I'll be leaving as soon as I can."

At that moment, a huge flash of light flared across the sky, followed by deafening roar (I think my humans call it lightening and thunder).

"Crap," Rocky growled. "Rain! First a damn nosy cat, now rain! You' d better get home, pussy cat (I should note that he added, with special relish, a sarcastic tone to the word pussy)," he continued, "or you'll get wet. Now get out of here!" He turned and waddled off, leaving me to my thoughts.

'Wet? What the heck is that? Seems like I've heard that somewhere before. Oh well.anyway, I'd better get home." I took a few steps in the direction I thought would lead me to my quest when I felt something hit my back. And another. And again.

'What in the ... ?' I thought. I turned back on myself to get an identifying sniff. My nose found one of the hit spots and I took in the aroma. 'Smells like ... like ... WATER!' I shouted to myself! Now I remember! Wet means WATER!'

Sure enough, more little taps hit me and it was clear I was under assault by WATER! I HATE WATER!! I ran and ran, seeking someplace to seek refuge. 'Maybe this tree. Nope, it's leaking.' I ran and ran some more while the rain continued to fall harder and harder.

'Hey, here's a little house,' I said as I spied the small structure. 'Just about right for a cat. Let me take a peek and ...' I craned my neck around the corner.

There was a quick movement of something inside and once again, my Power of Cat instincts kicked in again. 'DOG!' Sure enough, a furry face with long fangs stuck its head out and began barking. At once, I assumed the classic cat defensive pose-sideways-with my fur all fluffed up. As the slobbering mongrel drew close enough to me, I struck a blow for life, liberty, and the happiness of cats everywhere. With my claws unsheathed, I swatted him right on the snout and then beat a hasty retreat. I left behind a slightly wounded animal that was yelping his discomfort.

Again, I raced and raced and soon, the area around me began to look familiar. 'About time,' I thought. And it was about time for the rain was now a full-fledged downpour with the attending lightening and rumbling thunder. My brief encounter with the domesticus caninus had temporarily diverted my attention from the falling WATER. Now safely away, my thoughts turned to the ever-increasing downpour.

Within moments, I arrived soaking wet at my home. 'My home!' I climbed the steps leading to the abode and began meowing as loud as I could!

'Paw! Open the door!' Since darkness still prevailed, I checked the windows for lights. The trailer remained dark. I continued meowing but no response.

'What is the matter with him? I'm out here getting soaked and he's sleeping! He should have been out here looking for me!'

Realizing my calling wasn't having the desired effect, I looked around for other options. Looking across my yard, I saw our next door neighbors dwelling. It was also a house trailer but there was a small hole in the plastic sheets surrounding the bottom. 'Maybe it's dry in there,' I thought. Quickly, I scampered over to the opening and squeezed myself in. I looked around and discovered a dark, dank place rife with spider smells. 'Well, if they don't bother me, I won't mess with them.' After my quick purview of the area, I began licking myself hoping to cleanse myself of the foul WATER. Meticulously, I slowly but surely got myself back to some semblance of being dry. I took a peek out the hole, hoping my hu-male would come out. Nothing.

'Well, I guess I'll have to wait.' So I huddled down to the ground and settled down into the classic cat pose, the meat loaf position, in front of the opening and waited. Outside, the rain, thunder, and lightening continued unabated.

'C'mon, human! Please open the door!' I waited and waited. After what seemed like forever, I finally saw the front door open and a head stick out.

"Kiddy, Kiddy, Kiddy?" a voice called out. Quick as a wink, I was up, out the opening, and racing across the lawn, the falling rain thoroughly drenching me again. I traipsed up the steps and into the warm comfort of my house.

"Kiddy!" Paw cried. "You came back!"

'Of course, I did! Did you think I'd left for good?'

My human reached down to pick me up. His touch and familiar smells gave me more comfort that I could tell him. For the first time since my adventure started, I felt at ease. I was home!

"Here, Kiddy," he said, putting me down, "Lay next to this heater. I' ll go get a towel and we'll try dry you off a little." I purred lovingly as he disappeared in search of the towel. He returned shortly and began rubbing my fur with the cloth. Normally, I didn't like it but this time, it felt pretty good!

After drying me and stroking me some more (I was enjoying the special attention!), my hu-male asked, "Are you hungry? Chow-chow?" Oh man, the magic words! I meowed my approval and took off for the food bowl. He followed me, popped a top on a can of cat food, and ladled it into my bowl. Throughout the night, hunger was the last thing on my mind but now that I was back, I remembered I hadn't had anything to eat for the entire night. I hungrily wolfed the food down as my hu-male watched approvingly. When I finished, he took me back to the bedroom and placed me on the totally warm and luxurious bed. I lay for a few minutes taking in all the comforts that just a half-hour before were merely wishful thinking to me.

Being a typical cat, I had a sense of humor and at this point I decided to use it. I got up and jumped off the bed. I gave my hu-male my 'Follow Me' meow and sauntered down the hallway. True to form, my hu-male followed me while asking, "What do you want?"

I continued down the hallway and across the living room, my human still in tow. I arrived at the front door, sat myself down, turned to Paw, and very casually asked, 'Can I go outside?'

I quickly found myself back on the bed, courtesy of my hu-male's quick strides. 'Guess not, huh?' "Goodnight, Kiddy!"

Endnote:

As you can probably guess, the only portions I know to be true are the beginning and ending. He did run off and when he returned it was pouring rain big-time! (And can you believe Kiddy had the audacity to ask to go back out after he returned???) Anyway, after this night out, he didn't really seem to want to explore the Great Outdoors ... sure ... he still liked to visit there on the safety of his leash but he never acted like he wanted to spend another night outside. Go figure ...

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