Kittens In The Mall By Jim Peterson

Transcription

1 Kittens In The Mall By Jim Peterson Lucy Little Bit Frenchy Fuzzy 2012 James Peterson Page 1

2 Kittens In The Mall By Jim Peterson Chapter One The Kittens Get Out Of Their Cage. It was closing time for the stores in the shopping mall. The store owners were closing the large folding, metal gates that served as doors to keep people out of the stores when they were closed. As the lights went out in the pet shop most of the birds and animals settled down to go to sleep. Not the kittens. They didn t care if it was day or night, if they wanted to play, they played. All four of them were almost three months old. That is a pretty active age for kittens. They are very curious at that age and big enough and strong enough to go almost anywhere. The cage where the kittens lived and played was in the front window of the pet store where everyone who passed the store could see them. And there were a lot of people who stopped to look at them because they were so cute. The biggest kitten was called Fuzzy by the other kittens. He had long gold colored hair that he was always shedding. His tail was so bushy it looked like he borrowed it from a blonde squirrel. He loved to play at chasing and pouncing but when a person picked him up he loved to be petted and have his tummy rubbed. His purr box worked very well and his purr was the loudest of all the kittens. Lucy was the next biggest. She was a cute little brown and black tabby kitten. The stripes on her tail made it look like a raccoon s tail but it wasn t as fluffy as Fuzzy s tail. She was very curious and had to investigate everything she saw. She was very good at getting into trouble and she played very hard at all the kitten games. The third kitten was a very cute little Siamese looking kitten. Because he looked like a Siamese kitten the others called him Frenchy. He had a black face and ears. His legs were black and his tail was black too. His chest and tummy were light brown and his back was a slightly darker brown. He was a very pretty kitten and he loved to be picked up and have his tummy rubbed. He and Little Bit were very close and played together most of the time. The last kitten in the cage was called Little Bit because she was smaller than the rest. She was black and white. Her back and head and legs were black. Her tail was black with a white tip that looked like she was being followed closely by a cotton ball. Her paws and her tummy were white and she had a smudge on the left side of her nose that looked like she had gotten too close while sniffing a lump of coal. She had black fur around her eyes and when her inner eyelids were wide open all you could see of her face was a black mask with a little bit of white around her nose and of course the black smudge. Little Bit s black fur was very strange the way it was colored. When you rubbed her fur the wrong way, from back to front she had white fur under the black fur. She was different that way. She was different in another way too. She would talk to the boys and girls who came to the cage or the window. She didn t talk people talk of course, she talked cat talk. Whenever someone came near she would cock her little head to one side, look at them with her big, black eyes and make her little talking sound. The Page 2

3 sound she made was like someone saying Mmaahh. She sounded almost like a newborn lamb but she wasn t a lamb. She was a kitten. When she made her sound she seemed to be saying, Please pay attention to me. Nobody could resist her. She was the smallest and most adorable kitten of the bunch. And she was good at giving kitten kisses too. When a person held her near their face she would gently touch her nose against the person s nose. That is how kittens kiss. That evening Fuzzy watched the pet store owner as he turned off the lights and closed the metal gate. Fuzzy decided it was time to play. He looked around the kitten s cage and saw Lucy standing on her back paws with her front paws against the window. She too was watching the pet store owner as he left the store and walked down the hallway of the shopping mall. Fuzzy was ready to play. He decided this was a good time to play the pouncing game with Lucy. He went into his pre-pounce position. He flattened his tummy to the cage floor and put his legs and feet under him. He wiggled his backside a little. He twitched the tip of his tail from side to side. Then he pounced. He made it to where Lucy was in just one hop and a pounce. She was almost taken by surprise. But she saw Fuzzy coming at the last second. She ducked down just as Fuzzy got there, pounced her and rolled her over. She quickly twisted back onto her feet and jumped to the other side of the cage. She crouched there waiting for Fuzzy. The hair on her tail was fluffed as big as she could fluff it. It stuck straight out behind her and the tip was twitching slowly from side to side. Her ears were forward and her whiskers were flattened backwards against her smiling face. She was ready for Fuzzy s next pounce. She was crouched with her back against the cage door as Fuzzy pounced her again. Pounce. Thud. Click. When Fuzzy pounced Lucy this time they both hit the cage door so hard the door latch came unhooked and the door opened wide. Lucy and Fuzzy almost fell out of the cage. They both stopped playing and looked at the open door. This was the first time they had seen the door open without a person there to close it again. Fuzzy wasn t sure what to do but Lucy knew. Lucy poked her head through the cage door and slowly looked around. She saw it was only a short step to the table the cage was on. From there it was just a few feet to the floor. It was not a big jump for a kitten her size. She stepped easily to the table and then jumped to the floor. Fuzzy watched her leave the cage and jump to the floor. He quickly followed her. Lucy and Fuzzy started to walk around the pet store to see what they could find. From their cage they had heard many sounds from other cages but they didn t know what the sounds were. Now was their chance to find out who or what was making all those sounds. Frenchy saw Lucy and Fuzzy leave the cage but he didn t see which way they went. He jumped to the floor and started to look for them. Little Bit was left alone in the cage. She was the smallest and most timid of the kittens and she didn t want to stay in the cage alone. She jumped to the floor and followed Frenchy. Page 3

4 After investigating some of the other cages Fuzzy and Lucy found the bird area. Wow Lucy said Fuzzy. What are those? I don t know. said Lucy. Let s climb up and take a closer look. As Fuzzy and Lucy climbed up to the bird cages a parrot saw them and started squawking very loudly. The parrot made so much noise the rest of the birds turned to look at the parrot to see why he was squawking. As they did they also saw the kittens near their cages and then they started squawking and chirping too. It got very noisy in the bird section of the pet store. Fuzzy and Lucy were loving all the commotion they were causing. They were grinning their biggest grins as they climbed to the top of the cages and jumped from cage to cage causing the cages to shake and sway. The birds in the cages squawked very loudly. Fuzzy stopped on top of a cage full of parakeets and stuck his paw through the little bars on the cage. The parakeets all hopped to the bottom of the cage and chirped at Fuzzy. He just grinned even more. He was having a lot of fun teasing the birds. Meanwhile Frenchy and Little Bit had wandered into another section of the pet store and found the fish tanks. Frenchy wasn t sure what the wiggly things swimming in the tanks were but they sure looked like a second supper to him. He jumped up to the bench the tanks were on and then he jumped from there to the top of one of the tanks. He looked down into the open tank and watched the fish as they swam around below him. He carefully balanced himself on three legs and held his right front paw over the tank. If one of those swimmy things got close enough he was gonna get it. From the floor Little Bit watched Frenchy as he sat on the edge of the tank. She wanted to see what he was doing so she jumped up to join him. Frenchy was just about to grab for a fish when Little Bit jumped up onto the fish tank. She was trying to be careful but there wasn t much room and she bumped Frenchy just a little. Splash! Little Bit had bumped Frenchy right into the fish tank. Now he was a swimmy thing, a furry, four-legged swimmy thing. Now the fish in the tank were in a panic. They were swimming in all directions as fast as they could. They thought Frenchy was in there to catch them. But Frenchy didn t care about the fish anymore. He just wanted to get of the water. He had never been in water before and he did not like it. Not one bit. Little Bit sat on the edge of the fish tank watching Frenchy swim. She looked at him and said, Hey Frenchy, whatcha doin? Frenchy didn t answer. He just swam to the edge of the tank and reached a front paw up to grab the edge. He reached out his other paw and pulled himself out of the water and sat on the edge of the tank. As he sat on the edge of the tank he instinctively started to shake himself dry. Shake, shake, shake. Splash. Page 4

5 Frenchy fell right back into the fish tank. He had shaken himself so hard to get the water off his fur he lost his balance and fell right back into the tank. Poor Frenchy. Little Bit was still sitting on the edge of the fish tank laughing at him. Hey Frenchy, said Little Bit, are you a catfish now? She laughed so hard she almost fell into the tank too. Frenchy swam to the edge of the tank again. He pulled himself out and this time he jumped down to the bench before he shook the water from his fur. He shook as hard as he could and the water sprayed all around the room. He even sprayed Little Bit with a few drops of water. After he shook himself he started to dry his fur with his tongue. As he dried his fur he looked up at Little Bit who was still giggling at him. As Frenchy looked at his giggling friend he saw the fish in the tank he had just been in. They were all gathered against the glass and were looking at him with their mouths open. Oh great said Frenchy to himself. Even the fish are laughing at me. Haven t they ever seen a catfish before? He jumped to the floor and ran back toward the other room where Fuzzy and Lucy were still teasing the birds. Little Bit jumped down and followed Frenchy. Watching Frenchy swim had been fun but now she was ready for another adventure. They could hear the birds chirping and wondered what Fuzzy and Lucy were doing so they went to look for them. After Fuzzy and Lucy had scared the parrots and most of the other birds Lucy saw a very large cage near the center of the pet shop. She pranced over to the cage. From the floor she could see that it was full of small very colorful birds. As they watched her get nearer and nearer they began to chirp and jump from perch to perch. Lucy got closer and closer. The birds became more and more excited. The chirping of all the excited small birds attracted Fuzzy s attention. He just had to see what was going on. He joined Lucy on the floor in front of the big cage. They both looked up at the cage and wondered how they could get into the cage to chase the colorful, noisy, little birds. The big bird cage was new to the pet shop and the pet shop owner was still building a large table for the cage to sit on. But for now the cage was sitting on a much smaller table until the large table was finished. Fuzzy went to the other side of the cage and saw the large table the pet store owner was building. It was only a kitten jump away from the bird cage. Using his sharp claws Fuzzy climbed to the top of the table. Now he was much closer to the bird cage and he could look right into it and see the pretty colors on all the hopping, chirping birds. By now all the chirping had also attracted Frenchy and Little Bit. They reached Lucy just as Fuzzy was climbing the table. Lucy said hi to them and told them she was going to join Fuzzy on the table. She climbed the table leg just as Fuzzy had done. Frenchy followed Lucy and Little Bit followed Frenchy. Now all four kittens were on the table looking at the birds. They wondered what to do next. The birds in the cage were even more excited now because there were now four kittens instead of two and they were much closer to the cage. They chirped louder and hopped faster. The birds did not like the kittens being so close to their cage. Lucy was the first kitten to decide what to do. She went to the edge of the table. She pulled her back legs under her tummy and lowered her body till her tummy was resting on her legs. The tip of her tail Page 5

6 was twitching from side to side quickly as she judged the distance from the table to the cage. She wiggled her backside a few times and then she jumped. She jumped from the table to the bird cage. The cage shook a little as Lucy landed on the bars on the side of the cage. She hung there by her claws as the noisy birds all hopped to the other side of the cage. Fuzzy decided he wanted to join Lucy on the bird cage. He walked to the edge of the table and did everything Lucy had done and then he jumped. He landed on the cage right next to Lucy. The cage shook more as Fuzzy landed on it and grabbed it with his claws. Then Frenchy decided he wanted to join Lucy and Fuzzy. He went to the edge of the table, tucked his legs under him, did his pre-jump wiggles and away he went. He landed on the cage on the other side of Lucy. Lucy was now between Fuzzy and Frenchy as all three kittens watched the now very, very excited birds. As Frenchy s weight was added to the weight of the other two kittens on the side of the cage it swayed a little. Having the big bird cage on the small table was beginning to look like a bad idea. The cage continued to sway as the kittens started to climb toward the top of the cage. Little Bit sat alone on the table as she watched the other kittens climb slowly upward on the side of the cage. The kittens would climb up a bar or two then they would stop and reach into the cage but the birds were all on the other side of the cage. All three kittens on the cage were making mewing and cackling sounds as they teased the birds. The kittens were getting excited now too. Finally Little Bit couldn t stand it any longer. She had to join her friends and get in on the fun of teasing the birds. She went to the edge of the table and gathered her legs under her. She did her pre-jump wiggle and then away she went. She wanted to land beside the other kittens without having to climb so she jumped as hard and as far as she could. She made a very good jump. She landed on the side of the cage right next to Fuzzy. She was very proud of the long jump she had just made but she didn t have much time to think about it. She had hit the cage harder and higher than the other kittens had. The cage swayed farther then it had before, then it swayed back. The kittens started to scramble to the top of the cage but it was too late. The added weight of Little Bit and the movement of the kittens as they tried to get to the top of the cage had unbalanced the cage and it started to fall off the table. The cage began to fall toward the side where the kittens were climbing quickly now. But the closer they got to the top of the cage the more it tipped. The cage full of birds was falling. When the kittens realized the cage was falling they jumped and twisted in mid air like cats and kittens can do and they all landed back on the table. But it was too late for the big bird cage. It was going to fall. It hit the edge of the table in front of where the kittens were watching. They jumped back as the cage hit the table but they kept watching the cage as it bounced off the table and hit the floor. As the cage was falling all the birds inside were flying around inside the cage. When the cage hit the table and then the floor the birds were still flying and none of them were hurt but they were even more excited now and chirping louder than ever. The action of the cage hitting first the table and then the floor caused the cage to twist a little. As it twisted the cage door came open. Page 6

7 One of the excited and colorful birds saw the open door and flew through it. The pretty little bird was free. Another little bird quickly followed. The rest of the birds were right behind the first two. There was now a steady stream of very noisy, very colorful birds leaving the cage. Soon the cage was empty. The four kittens sat side by side and watched as the birds flew out of the open cage door and headed for the metal gate that led to the mall. They had never seen anything like this before and they were in awe of all the colors on the wings and bodies of the little birds as they flew past the kittens. The kittens even forgot to try and catch one of them. They sat like four little kitten statues with their eyes opened wide as they watched the birds go by. The kittens were watching a rainbow with wings as the little birds flew past them, through the metal gate and out into the mall. After all the birds had gone the kittens were speechless. They just sat and looked at each other. They didn t know what to say. Fuzzy was the first one to speak. Great galloping goose ears meowed Fuzzy, That was the neatest thing I ever saw. The other kittens agreed. The sight of all those pretty colored birds leaving the cage and flying across the pet shop had been awesome. Then they started to think like kittens again. They were ready to find out where the birds had gone. They jumped from the table to the floor and ran to the metal gate. But by the time the kittens had crossed the pet store and ran past the metal gate the birds had all flown to different parts of the mall. Everywhere the kittens looked there were birds flying. The birds were so happy to be free they just wanted to fly. The kittens sat and watched again as the birds flew all over the mall. After several minutes of watching the birds Fuzzy and Lucy became bored and decided to find something else to do. Lucy pounced Fuzzy and started to run across the mall hallway. Fuzzy jumped up and chased Lucy all the way across the mall hallway and into a toy store. Frenchy saw them go and followed right behind them so Little Bit jumped up and followed him. Inside the toy store Fuzzy slid to a stop and looked around. This store was a lot different from the pet store. It had a lot of shelves and tables full of things Fuzzy had never seen before. As he looked around the store he saw a whole shelf full of little girls. Fuzzy liked little girls. They were very gentle when they picked him up and they usually petted him just the way he liked it. He liked the way their eyes sparkled as they petted him. He quickly jumped up to the shelf where the little girls were. He just knew he was going to be petted a lot by all of these little girls. He was excited. He started his loud purr box as he rubbed and snuggled against the little girls. He snuggled and purred and purred and snuggled. But none of the little girls petted him. Why don t these girls pet me? he wondered. He was confused. Little girls always petted him. They liked the way he purred so loud. Page 7

8 Lucy had come into the store with Fuzzy and now she jumped up to where Fuzzy was. What are you doing Fuzzy? she asked. I m trying to get these little girls to pet me. said Fuzzy. Lotsa luck Fuzzy, giggled Lucy. These are not little girls. These are dolls and you will be a longhaired frog before one of them pets you. Fuzzy looked closely into the eyes of the nearest doll. The doll s eyes didn t sparkle like the eyes of a little girl. He reached out a paw and touched her face. Her skin wasn t soft like the skin of a little girl. Lucy was right. These weren t real little girls. He felt foolish but he didn t want Lucy to know he had made a mistake. I knew that. said Fuzzy as he jumped down. Yeah, right. said Lucy as she followed Fuzzy. Meanwhile Frenchy had found a table full of balls. There were small balls, large balls, medium sized balls and balls of all colors. Frenchy used his paw to push a ball near the edge of the table. The ball stopped at the table s edge. There was a piece of wood there to keep the balls from falling off the table. Frenchy cocked his head to one side and looked at the wood for a minute. Frenchy was a smart little kitten and he wanted to play with the ball. He wasn t going to let a piece of wood stop him. He carefully put his paw under the ball and lifted it a little as he pushed. The ball rolled over the little piece of wood at the table s edge and bounced on the floor below. Frenchy watched the ball as it bounced. Then he giggled as Little Bit attacked the bouncing ball. That was a lot of fun. He did it again, then again and again. He kept pushing balls off the table. Little Bit was very busy chasing the balls that Frenchy was pushing off the table. She had hit a ball with her front paw and was just about to chase it when Fuzzy and Lucy showed up. Fuzzy went after the ball as Lucy and Little Bit watched him dart around the floor after the ball. He was very quick and agile as he dodged the table legs while he chased the ball. He would catch the ball then hit it and chase it again. Fuzzy was fun to watch. Lucy was so busy watching Fuzzy she didn t see Frenchy push another ball off the table directly above her. She did a little stiff-legged hop to one side as the ball hit the floor beside her. If she had been as furry as Fuzzy the ball would have touched her. She looked up to see Frenchy grinning at her. Hi Lucy, said Frenchy. That was a cute little dance you just did. Can you do it again? He pushed another ball off the table. This time Lucy was ready and she pounced the bouncing ball. She decided she liked ball pouncing. It was fun. Lucy and Fuzzy and Little Bit were chasing the balls all over the floor. As fast as Frenchy could push the balls off the table the other kittens would hit them with their paws and chase them and pounce them and then hit them again. Then they would come back to the table to get another ball. Page 8

9 When all of the balls were gone from the table Frenchy joined Fuzzy, Little Bit and Lucy on the floor hitting and chasing the balls. They had balls rolling in every direction all over the toy store. After awhile the kittens were getting tired and just hit the balls to see where they went. A lot of them went right under the metal gate of the toy store and into the hallway of the mall. Frenchy decided to chase one small, brightly colored ball as it went across the hallway. The ball hit the leg of a mall bench and went a little way down the hall and into another store. Fuzzy saw Frenchy go into the new store and cautiously followed him. When Fuzzy went into the store after Frenchy he saw Frenchy sitting just inside the door looking at a very large U-shaped showcase. What s that thing Frenchy? asked Fuzzy. I don t know. replied Frenchy. But it has a lot of shiny things in it. Let s go see if we can play with them. Frenchy and Fuzzy walked slowly over to the big showcase. Frenchy stood on his back paws and put his front paws on the showcase. He looked through the glass. Inside the showcase he saw lots and lots of bright shiny things. He saw what looked like white marbles tied together in a row. He saw black marbles tied together in a row. He saw shiny things tied in a row. He saw round shiny things. He saw dangly shiny things. Frenchy started to walk around the big showcase. Fuzzy was right behind him. They walked around to the back of the showcase. Frenchy saw a stool. He jumped up onto the stool. From there it was just another short jump and he was on top of the showcase. Surely he could find a way to get to the shiny things from here. He walked all around on top of the showcase. Fuzzy had watched Frenchy jump to the top of the showcase. After a few minutes he asked him what he had found. I can see all the shiny things inside the case but I can t get them from here. replied Frenchy. I ll keep looking down here. said Fuzzy. Meanwhile Lucy and Little Bit had entered the store. They walked around the showcase to where Fuzzy was looking for a way to get into the case. Fuzzy walked along beside the case and then he saw it. One of the glass sliding doors was open just a little. Fuzzy put one of his front paws into the opening. He pushed as hard as he could but the door wouldn t open. Fuzzy, said Lucy, Maybe it opens the other way. Try pulling on the door. Fuzzy pulled hard on the door. It slid open just a little. It opened just enough for Fuzzy to get his head into the opening. He pushed hard and squeezed his head and then his big tummy through the opening. He was now inside the showcase with all the shiny things and the strings of marbles. He was a happy kitten. He was so happy he didn t know what to play with first. Page 9

10 Fuzzy was so big that when he squeezed through the door of the showcase he opened the door wide enough so Lucy and Little Bit got through the opening easily. There were now three mischievous little kittens inside the diamond and pearl portion of the showcase in the jewelry store. Frenchy looked down at them through the glass on top of the case. He smiled. He had never seen the other kittens from above before. They looked different. He sat and watched them as they walked around inside the case trying to decide what to play with first. Fuzzy found one of the strings of white marbles. He picked up one end in his mouth and dragged the string of marbles to the door when Lucy decided she wanted some of them too. Fuzzy was already through the door when Lucy, who was still in the showcase grabbed the other end. Fuzzy was outside pulling the string of white marbles out and Lucy was inside pulling the marbles in. Fuzzy pulled as hard as he could. Lucy pulled as hard as she could. Fuzzy and Lucy were having a tug of war with a very expensive string of pearls. Suddenly the string broke. Fuzzy tumbled over backwards. Lucy tumbled backwards too. Some of the pearls bounced around inside the display case. Most of them bounced and rolled across the floor of the jewelry store. Fuzzy got up laughing and started to chase the pearls around the floor. Lucy got up laughing too but she was still inside the display case. Fuzzy chased a few of the marbles outside the display case then he came back inside. He told Lucy he thought that was a lot of fun and he wanted to do it again. They went looking for another string of pearls to pull apart. While they were looking Little Bit was pushing the pearls from inside the case through the door to the floor outside. She liked to watch them bounce and roll in all directions. Frenchy thought that what Little Bit was doing looked like a lot of fun so he jumped down and joined her inside the display case. Lucy and Fuzzy continued to pull apart strings of expensive white pearls and very expensive black pearls. They even pulled apart a few very, very expensive diamond necklaces. When Lucy and Fuzzy couldn t find anything else that looked like it needed to be pulled apart they went through the door and started to play with all the white, black and shiny marbles on the floor of the jewelry store. After awhile Lucy was getting bored again. She wandered over to the door of the jewelry store and wondered what they could do next. She was looking for another interesting store. She looked at a white pearl near her feet. She decided to let the pearl make the choice. Using her right front paw she hit the pearl as hard as she could. The pearl rolled across the hallway of the mall and into another store. Lucy pointed her ears forward, put her tail straight up in the air and pranced in the same direction the pearl had gone. Little Bit watched Lucy carefully as she followed the pearl across the hallway and into the other store. She carefully followed Lucy. Page 10

11 When she got to the doorway of the store she saw Lucy already up on a table. Little Bit looked around and saw a lot of tables and chairs. At the back of the store was a long table with a glass front. Lucy said Little Bit, What kind of store is this? I don t know Little Bit said Lucy. But there isn t anything interesting up here. I wonder what s on that long table back there. Lucy jumped from the table she was on to a chair and then to the floor. She ran to the back of the store and jumped up onto the long table. Little Bit once again followed carefully. She didn t want to be surprised by anything that might be on the long table. She didn't like surprises. Lucy sat on the corner of the long table and looked down into the big hole in the middle of it. What do you see? asked Little Bit from the floor. I m not sure yet. Lucy replied. But this table is cold and it has a big hole in it and the hole is full of round tubs with stuff in them. Little Bit jumped up beside Lucy. Gee Lucy said Little Bit. Why is this table so cold and what is that stuff in those tubs? Little Bit, you ask a lot of questions for such a little kitten. But I guess that s how you learn things. replied Lucy. I m going to jump down into one of those tubs to find out what that stuff is. Wait here for me. Lucy jumped down into one of the tubs. Meeooww! She jumped right back out again. That stuff is cold on my paws. she said as she shook one of her paws. I wasn t expecting that. It s sticky too She licked her paw. And it s yummy too. she said. She jumped back into the tub. This time she knew what to expect and the cold stuff in the tub didn t startle her like it had the first time. She started to lick the stuff in the tub. It tasted sweet and yummy. What is it Lucy? asked Little Bit. I don t know what it is but it s pretty good. Here, have some. She scooped some ice cream up in her paw and stood on her hind legs to put it on the table for Little Bit to taste. Mmmmmeeowww, it really is yummy. said Little Bit. I m gonna go get the other kittens. Page 11

12 She jumped down and ran back to the jewelry store. She told the other kittens about the new store Lucy had found. She told them that Lucy had found some yummy tasting, cold, sticky stuff and if they wanted to taste it they should follow her. She said I don t know what it is but it sure is yummy for the tummy. The other kittens left the pearls they were playing with in the jewelry store and followed Little Bit to the ice cream store. They watched her jump onto the long table. Then Fuzzy and Frenchy jumped up too. They saw Lucy still in the tub licking the ice cream. They each jumped into a tub and started licking the yummy ice cream. Frenchy jumped into a tub of chocolate ice cream. Fuzzy jumped into a tub of french vanilla. Lucy left her tub of strawberry and jumped into a tub of blueberry. Little Bit jumped into the tub of strawberry Lucy just left. There were a lot of different tubs and flavors. Each kitten wanted to try all of the different flavors. The kittens took turns in the tubs. They jumped from tub to tub until each of them had eaten some ice cream from every tub. Soon their tummies were very full and their feet were very cold and sticky. There were bite marks, claw marks and kitten footprints in every tub of ice cream. There was hair in most of the tubs from the always shedding Fuzzy. There were also footprints and hair all over the ice cream counter that held the tubs. Little Bit was the first one to jump out of the tub she was in and sit on the edge of the table. I m full and now I want to take a nap. she said as she licked ice cream from her paws. Me too. said Frenchy as he jumped out of the tub he was in. Little Bit and Frenchy jumped down to the floor and slowly headed for the door of the ice cream store. They were so full of ice cream they waddled like little ducks. As they waddled across the floor they left little, wet kitten tracks. Lucy followed them leaving her own set of wet kitten tracks on the floor. Fuzzy was the last one to leave the ice cream and that didn t surprise any of them. He always ate the most of everything. That s probably why he was the biggest kitten. Let s find some place to take a nap said Frenchy as he waddled out the door of the ice cream store. What kind of store is that? asked Lucy. She was looking at a store across the hall and two doors away from the jewelry store where they had been earlier. Let s go find out. said Frenchy as he waddled across the hall. All of the kittens had very full tummies as they followed him. As they waddled across the hall they looked like little round balls of fur with legs and tails. Frenchy reached the doorway of the new store and looked inside. He saw a lot of tables with stacks of clothes on them. He climbed up onto one of the tables. With his tummy so full it was not an easy climb but he managed to make it. The clothes on the table were soft and it gave him an idea. He jumped to another table. The clothes were a little softer but not yet soft enough. He jumped from table to table. He wasn t exactly sure what he was looking for but he remembered that a few days earlier a nice lady had picked him up in Page 12

13 the pet store. The lady was wearing something soft and furry. He was hoping to find something like the lady was wearing when he jumped to one more table. Yes! shouted Frenchy. Hey guys. Come over here. The other kittens had slowly waddled across the hallway of the mall and into the store following Frenchy. Now they waddled over to the table where Frenchy was. Little Bit was yawning as she walked. She was a very tired little kitten. They were all very tired kittens. They had been having a very busy evening and now their tummies were full. They all wanted to take a nap. Come on up here, said Frenchy. I found a great place to take a nap. The other kittens climbed to the top of the table where Frenchy was and settled down in a nice soft pile of cashmere sweaters. They wiggled and pushed and squirmed until they were all snuggled together. They were back to back and feet to tummy and head to head but they were comfortable. They enjoyed snuggling together while they slept. Fuzzy was the first kitten to fall asleep. Little Bit giggled at the sounds he made. Fuzzy even purred while he snored. Purr, snore, purr snore. Page 13

14 Chapter Two More Stores to Explore Fuzzy was the first kitten to wake from his nap on the cashmere sweaters in the clothing store. He started wiggling and pushing and stretching and washing himself until the other three kittens were awake. Fuzzy was rested now and he was ready for more fun. While he was washing the ice cream from his paws and his face he noticed several people in the store. Some were men and some were ladies. He liked lady people. They petted him just the way he liked to be petted. He decided to see if one of the ladies would pick him up and pet him. He jumped down from the table and swaggered over to the closest lady. He used his best swagger so he could impress the lady. He turned his purr box up loud. He pushed his ears straight up and pushed his whiskers forward. He held his bushy tail as high as it could go and fluffed it up so much he could have used it to dust the whole store. He was a very impressive looking kitten as he approached the nearest lady. When he got to the lady he sat near her feet, purred as loud as he could and looked up at her for a whole minute. The lady didn t even look at him. Fuzzy decided to make the first move. He started to rub gently against the lady s legs. Still the lady didn t look at him. Fuzzy was confused. Why didn t the lady even look at him? How could she refuse a handsome kitten like himself. He sat next to the lady again for a couple more minutes. Then he made his move. If the lady wouldn t bend over to pet him he would jump up into the lady s arms. So up he jumped. His best jump got him up to the lady s knee. He grabbed the lady s long dress with the claws on all four feet. He clung there for a few seconds. He was expecting the lady to reach down and scoop him up. She didn t do it. She didn t even look at him. Now he was really confused. But he was a very determined kitten. He was gonna get petted! Fuzzy started to climb up the lady s dress. His claws ripped holes in the dress as he climbed but that wasn t any concern for him. He didn t know anything about torn clothes. He was just a kitten and he wanted to get petted. He kept climbing. Fuzzy reached the lady s arm. She was holding her arm in front of her close to her body and it was a good place for Fuzzy to sit after his climb. He sat on her arm and purred but she still didn t pet him. She still didn t even look at him. Fuzzy was not going to let this lady ignore him. He decided to climb up to her shoulder. She couldn t ignore him if he was purring in her ear, not the way he purred. Fuzzy could purr very loud. Fuzzy jumped from where he was sitting on her arm. He grabbed the cloth at the lady s shoulder. He finally felt the lady move. She was going to pet him. He started to smile. But wait! The lady wasn t trying to pet him. She was falling. And Fuzzy was falling with her. Fuzzy stayed on the lady s shoulder until he was sure she wasn t going to stop falling. She kept falling. Fuzzy had to jump. Page 14

15 He jumped to a table full of ladies blouses. He turned and looked over the edge of the table just as the lady hit the floor. Fuzzy s heart skipped a beat when he saw the lady hit the floor. Her head came off. Her arms came off. Her legs came off. The lady fell apart when she hit the floor. Fuzzy was speechless. He had never seen a lady come apart before. The only ladies he had seen before always stayed in one piece. He liked them better that way. Fuzzy was still staring at the different pieces of the lady when Frenchy cautiously walked over to the lady on the floor. He was confused too. He carefully approached the broken lady. He sniffed the lady s broken leg. He sniffed the lady s broken arm. Frenchy looked up at Fuzzy. Fuzzy s eyes were as big as marbles. He didn t have a clue what was happening. He was scared. He was concerned. He was confused, very confused. Fuzzy, said Frenchy. I don t think this lady is a real people. This lady isn t warm and soft like the ladies that pick us up some time. This is a fake lady. She s not alive. Frenchy was right. The lady wasn t a real people. She was a store mannequin. All the people Fuzzy had seen in the store this late at night were store mannequins. They were dressed in clothes the store wanted to model so Fuzzy thought they were real people. But it wasn t Fuzzy s fault, he was only a kitten and this was his first time out of the pet store. He had never seen a mannequin before. Fuzzy jumped down to where Frenchy was sitting next to the broken mannequin. Gee Frenchy, said Fuzzy. I was really scared. I thought I had really broken this lady. I m very happy to find out she isn t real. But, you know what Frenchy, continued Fuzzy. It was fun climbing up to her shoulder and staying there while she was falling. The trick is to jump at the last minute so you don t get hurt when she falls. Now that I know these aren t real people I am going to do it again. Watch me and then you can try that man over there. Fuzzy went to another fake lady and started to climb up her dress. Just like the last time the dress tore a little when his claws dug into it. Fuzzy kept climbing. He didn t stop at her arm this time. He climbed all the way to her shoulder. The lady teetered for a second as Fuzzy shifted his weight and then she began to fall. Wheee. shouted Fuzzy as the lady started to fall. This time he was ready and he waited until the last second before he jumped to a nearby table. The lady crashed to the floor and fell apart just as the other one had done. Great galloping goose ears, that sure is fun Frenchy. Fuzzy said. You try one now. Frenchy climbed a man. He wasn t as big as Fuzzy so his claws tore smaller holes in the man s suit as he climbed. He reached the man s shoulder just as the man swayed backward. Frenchy stayed on the man s shoulder for a second or two then he jumped to a table just as Fuzzy had done. He ran to the edge of the table just as the man hit the floor with a loud crash and came apart. Page 15

16 Wow Fuzzy, said Frenchy. You re right. That is fun. Let s do it again. Lucy and Little Bit had heard the commotion and cautiously came to investigate. What happened to these people? Lucy asked Frenchy as he jumped down from the table. They aren t real people Lucy. said Frenchy as he showed the fake man to her. These are fake people dressed in real people clothes. When you climb up to their shoulders they fall over like this one did. When they start to fall you ride them part way down then you jump onto a table. It s fun. You gotta try it. Yeah Lucy. said Fuzzy as he joined them. Frenchy will do it again to show you how. Frenchy climbed another man and made him fall. He rode him a little longer this time and jumped at the last second. The man crashed to the floor and came apart. Wow. Lucy exclaimed. That does look like fun. Little Bit do you want to try it? Are you sure it doesn t hurt them? asked Little Bit. Fuzzy and Frenchy assured Lucy and Little Bit that the men and the ladies they were climbing and crashing were not real and they didn t feel anything when they came apart. Lucy decided to try to climb and crash one of the fake people. She climbed a lady and rode her part way down before jumping off. She had a big grin on her face when she rejoined the other kittens. You re right guys. she said that is fun. Little Bit it s your turn now. Ok, said Little Bit. I ll climb that lady over there. She climbed a lady wearing a fur coat. Little Bit was small but strong and she zipped up the lady s coat all the way to her shoulder. The lady didn t move. Little Bit walked behind the lady s head to her other shoulder. The lady still didn t move. What s wrong? asked Little Bit as she looked down at the other kittens. Why won t this lady fall down? Fuzzy looked at Lucy and Frenchy. He couldn t figure out why the lady didn t fall either. Lucy and Frenchy thought for a bit then they looked at each other and started to giggle. We know why the lady won t fall. Lucy shouted up to Little Bit. Why? asked Little Bit. Page 16

17 The reason the lady won t fall is the same reason we call you Little Bit. Lucy explained. You are so small you don t weigh enough to tip the lady over. One of us is going to have to climb up there with you to help tip the lady enough to make her fall. Lucy started to giggle again. Soon all four kittens were giggling about Little Bit being so small. Frenchy volunteered to climb up and help tip the lady over so Little Bit could get a ride on the falling lady. After Little Bit s ride Fuzzy and Frenchy went to the next two fake people and rode them to the floor. Little Bit went to look at a window she had seen when she was on the fake lady s shoulder. Lucy followed a short distance behind Little Bit. Little bit went in the direction of the window she had seen. After going under a few tables and around some racks of clothes she found the window. As she approached the window she saw another kitten coming toward her from the other side of the window. She didn t know this kitten so she stopped and arched her back and fluffed the hair on her back and her tail. She wanted to look as big as she could. The kitten in the window also stopped and arched it s back and fluffed the hair on it s back and tail. It wanted to look big too. Little Bit crouched down so low her tummy touched the carpet. The other kitten crouched too. Little Bit slowly crawled toward the window. The other kitten crawled toward Little Bit. Little Bit stopped about two feet from the window. The other kitten stopped too. Lucy had been watching Little Bit from off to one side. She didn t see the kitten in the window but she could see that Little Bit was stalking something. She went into her stalking position too. She slowly crawled up beside Little Bit. Lucy was almost beside Little Bit when Little Bit saw her. But Little Bit saw Lucy on the other side of the window. She was near the strange kitten and she wasn t afraid of it. Little Bit was confused. She didn t know the other kitten, how did Lucy know it. At the same time Lucy saw two Little Bits. One was beside her and the other one was beside a strange kitten in the window. Now Lucy was confused too. Lucy hissed at the kitten in the window beside the second Little Bit. The kitten in the window hissed too. Little Bit cocked her head to one side and watched what was going on. The kitten in the window cocked it s head too. Little Bit looked at Lucy. The strange kitten in the window looked at the second Lucy too. Lucy do you see two kittens in the window? asked Little Bit. Yes I do. replied Lucy. One of them I don t know and the other one looks just like you. Page 17

18 I see two kittens too. said Little Bit. One is a stranger and the other one looks like you. Lucy put her paw on Little Bit s head. The kitten in the window put her paw on the other Little Bit s head. Wait here. said Lucy. Lucy went around to the other side of the window. All she saw was wood. There were no kittens there. Lucy kept walking and came from behind the window on the other side from where she went behind it. I don t think this is a window. said Lucy. I think it is what the people call a mirror. I see you with another kitten I don t know. You see me with another kitten you don t know. The kittens we don t know must be us because we have never seen ourselves before. Lucy touched her own head with her paw. The strange kitten in the window touched it s head with it s paw. Lucy was sure now. She was looking at herself in a mirror for the first time. Little Bit finally agreed with Lucy after she did a few face movements and head touches and the kitten in the window in front of her did all the same things at the same time she did them. They sat there for a few minutes looking at themselves in the mirror. Then Little Bit started moving her ears back and forth. She moved them both forward. She moved them both back as far as they would go. Then she moved one ear forward and one ear back. She was surprised how far she could move her ears and how different it made her look when her ears were in different positions. She could look curious when her ears were forward and she could look very angry when her ears were all the way back. Lucy watched her for a minute the she asked, "What are you doing? I am seeing how far I can move my ears. answered Little Bit. Lucy moved her ears as she watched herself in the mirror. We sure can move them a lot can t we? said Lucy. Yep. answered Little Bit. She started moving her whiskers. What are you doing now? asked Lucy. I m whiskering. answered Little Bit. Look how far I can move my whiskers. She flattened her whiskers along side her face. Then she puffed her cheeks until her front whiskers were pointing straight forward while her back whiskers were pointing out to the side. She was having fun with her whiskers and her ears. Lucy moved her whiskers all around too. Wow. said Lucy. I didn t know we could do all this stuff. This is pretty cool. Being a kitten is fun. I bet people kids can t move their ears and whiskers the way us cat kids can. Page 18

19 Just then Fuzzy and Frenchy joined them. They had knocked down all of the fake people and wanted to know what Little Bit and Lucy were doing. Lucy explained about the mirror to them and they all practiced earing and whiskering for a while. They shortly tired of the mirror and wanted to see what other stores were in the mall. They had been having a lot of fun since they got out of their cage in the pet store and now they were ready for more fun. They had teased the birds and the fish in the pet store. Frenchy had fallen in the fish tank with the fish, twice. They had let a lot of colorful birds loose to fly around the mall. They had played with the dolls and the balls in the toy store. They had ruined a lot of necklaces in the jewelry store. They had eaten a lot of ice cream and made a mess in the ice cream store and they had taken a nice nap. Since their nap they had broken all of the fake people in the clothing store and learned about mirrors. Now it was time to see what other stores there were and what other fun they could find. Fuzzy walked to the folding metal gate that was the door of the clothing store and looked out into the mall hallway and wondered which way to go to find the most fun. Frenchy joined him at the doorway. Lucy and Little Bit were close behind. They all sat there for a few minutes. Frenchy saw some of the balls they had earlier hit into the mall hallway from the toy store. He walked over to one small brightly colored ball and hit it across the hallway. The ball went a little way down the hall and into another store. Frenchy chased the ball across the hallway and into the store. Little Bit saw Frenchy go into the new store and cautiously followed him. When she got to the doorway of this store she saw Frenchy already up on a rack full of flat square looking things. Some were white and some were colored. Some of them had writing on them and some had pictures. Some of these flat things had both pictures and writing on them. She sat in the doorway of the store watching Frenchy walk along a rack of the flat things. Soon she was joined by Fuzzy and Lucy. They all sat down to watch Frenchy as he stopped to chew on one of the flat things. Then he took it in his teeth and pulled it up out of the slot it was in. As the bottom of the flat thing came out of the slot in the rack Frenchy let go of it and it fluttered to the floor. As it fluttered to the floor it looked almost like a bird that couldn t fly very well. Fuzzy remembered that he couldn t reach the birds in the pet store so he wanted to catch one of these birds. He ran into the store and hid at the end of the rack Frenchy was on. Fuzzy went into his stalking position. He slowly crawled to the corner of the rack. He paused for a few seconds. Then he slowly sneaked a peek around the corner. The flat bird was on the floor laying very still. Fuzzy slowly crawled inch by inch around the corner. The flat bird was only two hops and a pounce away from him and he didn t want it to see him and fly away or warn the other flat birds in the rack above. He was now in his attack position. His front paws were just below his shoulders and his back paws were tucked up under his hips. His tail was straight out behind him and the tip was barely twitching from side to side. His ears were pointed forward so he could catch any sound the flat bird made. He puffed up his cheeks so his whiskers were pointed at the bird. He wiggled his hips just a little to make sure he had good traction on the carpet with his back paws. His claws were out to help him get a good grip. He wiggled once more. He was ready now. Page 19

20 Hop. Hop. Pounce. Crunch. With two hops and a pounce Fuzzy had successfully stalked, attacked and caught a greeting card. Wait a minute, said Fuzzy to himself. This might not be a real bird. I don t see any wings. I don t see any feathers or legs or any other bird stuff. Oh boy, this is the doll thing all over again. I sure hope Lucy wasn t watching. But Lucy was watching. Way to go Fuzzy. laughed Lucy. You did it again. Are you going to cook that card or have it framed? I knew what it was. said Fuzzy. I was just practicing. Yeah. Right. said Lucy. You are a silly kitten but you are funny. Everybody practice. said Frenchy as he pulled more cards from their slots and let them float to the floor. Soon the other kittens were pouncing the cards as they landed and even catching some of them before they reached the floor. They were having fun again. Lucy even quit laughing at Fuzzy. Catching and pouncing the cards was fun. Frenchy kept pulling cards from the rack and letting them drop so the other kittens could catch them and pounce them. Soon all the racks were empty. Frenchy jumped down and joined the other kittens as they pounced the cards on the floor. Little Bit was the first kitten to stop playing with the cards. Chasing cards is fun but I m getting bored now. she said as she laid down to watch the other kittens. Me too. said Fuzzy. He laid down next to Little Bit. Let s find another store to play in. said Little Bit as she wandered out the door of the card shop. It s my turn to pick one. said Little Bit. Fuzzy, will you come with me? Sure said Fuzzy. Let s go see what we can find. Little Bit and Fuzzy scampered down the hall. Their ears were forward and their tails were straight up as they scampered down the hallway. A few doors away from the card store Little Bit stopped in front of a shoe store. She sat and looked into the store for a couple of minutes. Page 20

21 I have an idea. she said to Fuzzy. They went into the store. Little Bit looked around the store. It was perfect for what she was thinking. She turned to Fuzzy and told him her idea. Fuzzy smiled and said. That sounds like fun. I ll go get the other kittens. Fuzzy ran back to the card store. He found the other kittens still sitting by the door of the card store. He told them Little Bit had found the perfect store to play hide and seek. He told them she was already hiding and they had to find her. Frenchy and Lucy meowed and grinned. Their favorite game was pounce but hide and seek was their second favorite kitten game. They followed Fuzzy to the shoe store. They sat in the doorway of the store and looked at all the shoes and boots. There were many racks, tables and shelves full of shoes and boots. But no sign of Little Bit. She was already hiding. Little Bit, are you in here? asked Lucy. Meeooww. Yes I am. came a faint answer from somewhere in the store. I am hiding and you have to come and find me. Lucy jumped up onto a table. I ll look on the tables. she said. Frenchy climbed onto one of the racks. I ll look on the racks. he said. Fuzzy was looking at a shelf that was about four feet above the floor and went all the way around the store. It started by the front window and went down the wall, across the back of the store and up the other wall to the front of the store again. The shelf was full of shoes and boots. Fuzzy thought maybe Little Bit might be hiding in one of them. He jumped onto a chair, then to the back of the chair and from there to the shelf where it started by the window. The first pair of shoes on the shelf was a pair of brown men s shoes. Fuzzy carefully peeked inside the shoes. No Little Bit. She wasn t in this pair. The shoes were too close together for Fuzzy to jump over them because he had no place to land so he tried to squeeze between the shoes and the wall. As he tried to squeeze through the small space he accidentally knocked both shoes to the floor. Thud. Thud. Fuzzy grinned. That was kinda cool. He liked the sound of the shoes hitting the floor. He looked into the next pair of shoes. No Little Bit. This time he just used his big paw and pushed the shoes to the floor. Thud, thud again. Fuzzy grinned even more. This was almost as much fun as riding the falling fake people in the clothing store. He kept going. He would look into the shoes then push them on the floor if he didn t see Little Page 21

22 Bit. He kept searching the shelf, down the wall, across the back of the store and up the other wall looking and pushing. When he was done he had pushed every shoe and boot off the shelf and onto the floor. Lucy had been looking in the shoes on the table when Fuzzy pushed the first pair of shoes onto the floor. The thud, thud sound startled her at first and she crouched behind a pair of boots. Then she peeked out and saw what Fuzzy was doing. She watched as he pushed a few more pair of shoes onto the floor. Watching Fuzzy gave Lucy an idea. She would do the same thing. If Little Bit wasn t in a shoe or boot she would push it from the table to the floor so she would know which shoe or boot she had looked in. If it was on the floor she had already looked in it. If a shoe or boot was on the table it needed to be looked in and pushed to the floor. Soon the thuds from Lucy s table joined the thuds from Fuzzy s shelf. Of course Frenchy had seen what Fuzzy and Lucy were doing so he did the same thing from the rack he was on. The store was noisy with the sounds of all the shoes, boots and other footwear hitting the floor. When Fuzzy finished clearing the shelf and didn t find Little Bit he jumped onto one of the tables Lucy hadn t searched yet. Soon all the tables were cleared of shoes so Fuzzy and Lucy joined Frenchy on the racks. It was after almost an hour of throwing shoes and boots on the floor before Lucy found Little Bit hiding in a black ladies boot. With Little Bit s black fur inside a black boot Lucy didn t see her at first. Lucy was pushing the boot towards the edge of the rack when she heard the boot meow. Lucy knew right away that most boots don t meow so she looked inside the boot again. There were Little Bit s big black eyes staring up at her. As Little Bit stuck her head out of the boot she had a big grin on her face. She yawned, she stretched and then she walked to the edge of the rack and looked at the floor of the shoe store. Almost every shoe and boot in the store was on the floor. There was hardly any place to walk without stepping on a shoe or a boot. Little Bit looked at the other kittens. Now she was laughing. You guys sure made a nice mess in this store too. Yes I guess we are getting pretty good at making messes. said Lucy as she started to laugh too. Then they all laughed at the mess they had made. Guess what I did while I was waiting for you to find me. said Little Bit. Did you take a nap? asked Lucy. Of course I took a nap. replied Little Bit. Don t all kittens nap whenever they can? But I also made up a joke before my nap. Page 22

23 A joke? said Frenchy. What kind of a joke? It s a joke in the form of a question. replied Little Bit. Here it is. What did the kitten say when he hurt his toe? The other kittens looked at each other. They thought as hard as they could but they couldn t come up with an answer. We give up. said Lucy. What did the kitten say when he hurt his toe? Me. Ow. replied Little Bit. The kittens all laughed at Little Bit s joke. They thought it was very funny since they were all kittens. That was a good joke. said Fuzzy. We should have been able to guess that one. They were still giggling as they headed for the door of the store. They hopped over all of the shoes and boots while they left the shoe store. What shall we do now? asked Frenchy as they reached the mall hallway. All that looking and pushing made me hungry again. said Fuzzy. You re always hungry. said Lucy. But this time I agree, I m hungry too. Frenchy had the most sensitive nose so he walked into the middle of the hallway and stood there sniffing. First he sniffed in one direction, then he sniffed in another direction. After he had sniffed in all directions he walked slowly down the hallway, his head held high, still sniffing. The other kittens followed him. They trusted Frenchy s nose. He was a good sniffer for a kitten. Frenchy finally stopped in the doorway of a store they hadn t been in before. Now the other kittens could smell what Frenchy had been smelling. They all sniffed. Their little noses were twitching as fast as the noses of a herd of rabbits in a carrot patch. But they weren t smelling carrots. They smelled sausage. They also smelled cheese. Frenchy went into the store and climbed onto the counter next to the door where the cash register was. From there he could see most of the store. Yum, yum. said Frenchy as he looked around. The other kittens joined him on the counter. Their eyes were as big as marbles as they looked around the store. Everywhere they looked were tables and coolers filled with sausages and cheeses. Lots and lots of different kinds of sausage and cheese. Where do we start? asked Little Bit. It all looks so good I can t decide where to go first. Page 23

24 Why don t we each go to a table or cooler and see what s there. said Lucy. When we find something we like we can take a bite and throw the rest on the floor. That way we can eat some while we look and then fill our tummies later from all the stuff on the floor. They all agreed that was a good idea. Fuzzy went to the coolers on one side of the store. Frenchy went to the shelves at the back of the store. Lucy went to the coolers on the other side of the store and Little Bit went to the tables in the center of the store. Fuzzy jumped up onto the counter where the coolers were. The counter was cold. It reminded him of the cold counter in the ice cream store. It also reminded him how good all the ice cream was. Thinking of the ice cream made him even hungrier. He eagerly jumped into the cooler and started to sample some of the sausages there. He chewed into three different sausages before he realized they were the same. He picked up one of the sausages in his teeth and jumped onto the counter by the cooler and dropped the sausage onto the floor. He then jumped into the next cooler and sampled one of the sausages there. It was different but he liked the taste of this one too so he picked it up and dropped it on the floor with the other one. Fuzzy continued sampling all of the sausages in the coolers until he had sampled all of them and had dropped one of each of them on the floor in front of the coolers. Meanwhile Lucy found cheese in her coolers. She liked cheese as most kittens do. She too remembered the ice cream when she felt the cold on her paws. It made her hungrier too. She chewed into the wrapping around a package of cheese with holes in it. She liked the taste so she nibbled some then picked up the package of cheese and dropped it on the floor in front of the cooler. She went from cooler to cooler on her side of the store tasting all the cheeses and dropping the best ones on the floor. Frenchy found some packages of smoked meat and beef jerky on the shelves he was on. He also ate some and dropped some on the floor. Little Bit found candy and jars of jams on her tables. She wasn t interested in any of them so she joined Lucy in the cheese coolers. Soon they had sampled everything they could and had the floor filled with sausage and cheese. Fuzzy was the first to leave the cooler. His paws were getting cold. He started to chew through the wrappers on the sausages on the floor. He was joined by Frenchy and then by Lucy and Little Bit. The each chewed through the wrapper of whatever smelled good, ate some of whatever was in the wrapper and then moved to another cheese or sausage. It wasn t long before their little tummies were full again. Even Fuzzy was full. They finally waddled over to the door of the sausage and cheese store. They d had a very fun night but now they were ready to go back to the security of their cage in the pet store and finish the night with a long sleep with full tummies. They waddled slowly back to the pet store. They were very tired now and their eyes weren t bright anymore, they were barely open. Their tails weren t straight up, they were almost dragging the floor. They didn t hop and prance like they had earlier, they were so full and so tired they could hardly walk. Page 24

25 Little Bit led them slowly back to the pet store. Somehow, even with all the times they had crossed the mall hallway and all the stores they had been in she remembered the way back to the pet shop. Little Bit may have been the smallest of this group of kittens but she was also very smart. She led the kittens all the way back to the pet shop and right to their cage in the pet shop window. They climbed up onto the bench and jumped into the cage. The kittens were home again. They had upset some birds and fish in the pet store. They had chased balls from the toy store all over the toy store floor and into the mall hallway. They had ruined some very expensive necklaces in the jewelry store. They had eaten ice cream from each of the tubs in the ice cream store and left hair and paw prints all over the rest of the ice cream, the counter and the floor of the ice cream store. They had left ice cream paw prints on the sweaters in the clothing store. They also left every mannequin in the clothing store lying broken on the floor with the clothes on each one torn and tattered. They had emptied the racks of the greeting card shop and left chewed and crumpled greeting cards all over the floor. They had left the shoe store with so many shoes and boots on the floor it was difficult to walk into the store. They had also left the cheese and sausage store with open and nibbled cheese and sausage packages all over the floor. They had indeed had a very fun evening. When the store owners opened their stores in the morning they would never believe that the messes they found were caused by four sweet, cute, little kittens. But Fuzzy, Lucy, Frenchy and Little Bit weren t worried about the messes they had made. They were now cuddled together and fast asleep in their box in a corner of their cage in the pet store window. Page 25

26 Chapter Three The Kittens Find Homes Things had been quiet in the shopping mall since the night the kittens had found a way out of their cage and caused so much damage in so many stores. Fuzzy, Frenchy, Lucy and Little Bit were actually getting bored even though they did love the attention of the people who stopped to look at them and sometimes pick up one or two of them to pet and cuddle. One day about a week after their evening of fun two couples stopped to look at them. As usual Frenchy ran to the door of the cage to be the first one to get picked up. He just loved the attention people gave him. He loved to be petted and have his tummy rubbed. Little Bit usually sat and watched with her little head cocked to one side. When she saw that people were interested in any of them she would make her little noise in hopes that someone would pick her up too. The lady of the first couple reached into the cage and picked up Frenchy. He was so cute the way he rolled over in her arms so she could rub his tummy. The lady fell in love with him right away. She just had to adopt Frenchy. As she was about to close the cage door Frenchy jumped from her arms and ran back into the cage. He ran straight to Little Bit and sat beside her. The lady was confused. She was sure Frenchy liked her but she couldn t understand why he had run back into the cage. She asked the pet store owner why Frenchy had done that. The pet store owner explained that all of the kittens were very close. They loved each other like brothers and sisters and they probably didn t want to be separated from each other. He said that Frenchy was showing them that if they adopted him he wanted them to adopt Little Bit too. The lady asked her husband what he thought about that. He said he thought Little Bit was very cute and she would keep Frenchy from being lonely. They would adopt both Frenchy and Little Bit. The pet store owner reached into the cage and picked up Frenchy and handed him to the lady. He then reached in and picked up Little Bit and handed her to the man. As the lady and the man were petting Frenchy and Little Bit the other couple walked up to the cage. Fuzzy swaggered over to the cage door. His golden tail was straight up in the air and fluffed as big as he could fluff it. He wanted to be adopted too. Lucy put on her best smile and walked beside Fuzzy. She didn t want to be left alone in the cage if Fuzzy was adopted. This couple asked the pet store owner if Fuzzy and Lucy were pals too just like Frenchy and Little Bit. The owner nodded his head yes and said that Fuzzy and Lucy played together a lot. It would be a shame to not take both of them. The couple agreed that they would take Fuzzy and Lucy since their friends were taking Frenchy and Little Bit. They all thought having two kittens would be twice as much fun as having only one kitten. They were right. Two kittens are twice as much fun. And they get into twice as much trouble. Page 26

27 The pet store owner asked if they had the necessary kitten stuff like cat carriers to get the kittens home, dishes for food and kitten food. He explained they would also need cat boxes and some cat litter. The people bought all the cat stuff the pet store owner suggested and they bought some toys for the kittens to play with. As they were ready to leave the store the pet store owner asked if he could give them some advice about taking care of the kittens. The people thought that was a good idea. The pet store owner told them that it was best to feed the kittens canned kitten food in the morning and in the evening. If they got hungry in between meals they could have some dry food for a snack but not too much dry food. If they filled up on dry food they wouldn t want to eat their breakfast and supper. He told them that kittens liked to have lots of milk but not to put so much in their bowl that the milk would spoil before they could drink it all. He told them that kittens also liked to have lots of attention and they loved to play with people as well as kitten toys. He also told them that kittens love boxes of all kinds. He said the best bed for them would be a shallow open box big enough for two kittens to sleep in. They should put a towel or heavy shirt in the box to make a soft bed. He also explained that a quick way to get the kittens to bond with them was to put a worn but not sweaty shirt or a used towel, unwashed into the sleeping box for the kittens to sleep on. That way the scent of the people would become familiar to the kittens much quicker and a strong bond would be quickly formed. One of the ladies asked how long it will take for the kittens to know their names and come when they are called. The store owner laughed and explained that cats are smart but do not respond like dogs. Some cats learn their names quickly and do come when they are called. Other cats never respond for whatever reason. He went on to tell them that the best way to get a cat or kitten to learn their name and want to come when called is to say the kitten's name several times when feeding them and petting them. That way the kitten will associate the sound of their name with something they like. They will learn their names much quicker and they are more likely to respond. When he had given them all the advice he could the two couples left the store. They each had two kittens in their carriers and all the kitten stuff they had bought. They were very excited about having kittens in their homes. They agreed to meet in a week to tell each other how their kittens were doing. Frenchy and Little Bit were excited about leaving the cage in the pet store but they were also very worried about what was going to happen next. They had been in the pet store since they were very young so they didn t know any other type of life existed. They didn t know anything about what was outside of the mall. They didn t know what to expect. They didn t even know what a home was. All they knew was that they already liked their people and they were sure their people wouldn t hurt them. Lucy and Fuzzy were just as worried as they were put into their carrier and taken out of the pet store. The kittens didn t like being put into the cat carriers and carried out of the mall. But on the way out they saw some of the stores they had played in when they had their evening of fun. As they passed the shoe store Little Bit giggled as she remembered the mess the kittens had made while they were trying to find her while playing hide-and-seek. Frenchy saw the ice cream store where they had also made a mess while eating so much ice cream. For just a minute it took their minds off the swaying of the carrier as the people walked. Page 27

28 In the other carrier Fuzzy smiled as he saw the clothing store where he had destroyed the fake people. It had been fun climbing on the people and riding them as the fell. The way they came all apart as they hit the floor had scared him at first but Frenchy had shown him the people weren t real and that made him feel much better. Lucy saw the jewelry store where she and Fuzzy had played tug-of-war with pearl and diamond necklaces until the strings broke and let pearls and diamonds roll all over the store. They finally reached the outside doors of the mall and went into the parking lot. Frenchy and Little Bit were completely surprised at how bright the sun was and how nice and warm it was. Fuzzy and Lucy were also surprised at what being outside was like. They noticed the brightness and warmth of the sun, but they also noticed all of the different smells and sounds. Frenchy and Little Bit noticed the smells and sounds too. The noses on all four kittens were twitching so fast they almost fell off. The kittens were smelling many, many smells. All of the smells were new to them. They smelled the different flowers near the doors of the mall. They smelled the grass between the rows of parked cars. They smelled the cars as they drove by looking for a place to park. They smelled so many things they were getting confused. The sounds were also confusing. Some were soft sounds like people talking as they walked across the parking lot a few feet away. Some were loud sounds that some of the cars and trucks made in the nearby street. All of the kittens were scared now. There were too many new things happening at the same time. They wanted to go back to their nice safe cage in the pet store. They didn t like outside. As Frenchy and Little Bit were carried to the car they saw Fuzzy and Lucy being carried in the other direction. They were sure they would never see them again. Little Bit said a soft meow of goodbye to them but Fuzzy and Lucy were too far away to hear. Little bit and Frenchy were very sad to be losing their best friends. At the same time Fuzzy and Lucy watched Frenchy and Little Bit go off with their people. They got further away and then they disappeared behind a row of cars. Lucy and Fuzzy were sad too. They missed Frenchy and Little Bit already. Each of the kittens had tears in their eyes. They had all lived together for a whole month and had a lot of fun together. They had shared food. They had shared toys. They had cuddled together in the same big box while they slept. But that was all over now. They were all heading for new homes and new lives. The man carrying Frenchy and Little Bit put them on the back seat of his car. He carefully used the seat belt to fasten the carrier so it wouldn t move. The lady put the other cat stuff in the trunk of the car. When the man started the car Little Bit meowed. The noise and vibration frightened her. When the car started to move Frenchy meowed. Now Little Bit and Frenchy were both meowing very loudly. They didn t like the noise and the motion of the car. Being carried was bad enough but this was very bad. There were too many new things happening to them and they didn t like any of them. Frenchy and Little Bit kept meowing. They wanted to go back to the pet shop. It took only twenty minutes to get to the house were the people lived but it seemed like hours to Frenchy and Little Bit. The car finally stopped and the man unbuckled the carrier and carried the kittens into the house. Once again the kittens smelled a lot of new smells and heard new sounds as they were carried to the house. They smelled flowers and grass again. This time they heard birds. The sound of the birds Page 28

29 made their little ears perk up but they didn t know why. Their ears just perked up by themselves. It must have been instinct. Then they went into the house. More new smells. Frenchy and Little Bit were completely confused by now. This was just too much for little kittens to handle. They were too frightened to even meow anymore. Little Bit was very thankful Frenchy was with her. She was very glad she didn t have to go through all of this alone. Frenchy was just as glad to have Little Bit with him. He had tried to be brave at first but now he just huddled with Little Bit in the back of the carrier. The man put the carrier on the kitchen floor. The lady came in and put food and water in the cat dishes she had bought at the store. She even put some milk in a little bowl for them. The man put litter in the cat boxes. Each kitten had it s own box. The pet store owner had explained cats liked it better that way. They don t mind sharing toys and food but each cat always wants it s own cat box. How are we going to train these kittens? the lady asked. The pet store owner said they were already trained to use their cat boxes. replied the man. So all we have to do is show them where their food is and where their cat boxes are. We should keep their food dishes here in the kitchen but we will gradually move their cat boxes to the basement. We can move the boxes a few feet every day until we get them where we want them. I will put a little door for them at the bottom of the basement door so they can go down there any time they want. Shall I open the carrier door now? asked the lady. Sure, replied the man. But remember what the pet store owner said about them possibly wanting to find a place to hide for awhile. The move here from the pet store has been a very hard thing for them to go through. Even though they were very loveable in the pet store they are frightened now. We have to give them time to adjust to their new home. We can t force them to play right away. They will let us know when they are comfortable and ready to play. The lady opened the door of the cat carrier. Frenchy and Little Bit were squeezed as far back in the corner of the carrier as they could get. Right now they weren t very cuddly, cute or playful. Right now this was the only place they felt safe. They didn t move. They didn t want to move. They just wanted to be left alone. It was as if the man could read their minds. Let s leave them alone for awhile. he said. They ll come out when they are ready. They are kittens and they are too curious to stay in there very long. The man and the lady left the room. Sure enough, after a few minutes Frenchy slowly crept toward the door of the carrier. Little Bit didn t move. Frenchy reached the door. He looked at what he could see of the kitchen. He saw some white things and some brown wood looking things. He didn t know it yet but he was looking at the stove, refrigerator and the kitchen cabinets. Just a few feet away he saw some dishes just like the dishes in the cage at the pet store. He was still to scared to be hungry but he was thirsty. He pointed his little nose toward the dishes. He sniffed as hard as his sniffer would sniff. Was that milk he smelled? Page 29

30 Frenchy poked his head out of the carrier. He looked to the left. Nothing scary there. He looked to the right. Nothing scary there. He crouched as low as he could. His ears were forward and his tail was almost dragging the floor. He took three more steps. He paused to look around again. Nothing scary yet, but he looked back at the carrier to measure the distance just in case he needed to get back in there with Little Bit who was still in the back of the carrier watching every move he made. Frenchy took three more steps toward the dishes. He was sure now. There was fresh milk in one of the dishes. He loved milk as all kittens do and he wanted some now. Maybe it would make him feel better. He took six steps this time and he was almost to the dishes. He was still crouched as low as he could go but he could see the milk now. He paused to look around him again. He could see more of the room now and he still didn t see anything scary. He didn t know where the people had gone but he wasn t really concerned about that right now. He took the final four steps to the milk dish. He took one last quick look around. He was quite a long way from the carrier now but he was feeling safer all the time. He sniffed the milk. He tasted the milk. It was yummy. He stuck his tongue into the milk and started to lap it up. He was thirstier than he thought. He drank as much as he could. When he finished drinking Frenchy finally sat up and looked around. He felt better now. He stretched his neck and held his head as high as he could. He looked around the room again. Still the same stuff he had seen before. Everything seemed alright. He slowly walked toward the carrier but instead of going into the carrier he went behind it so he could see the rest of the kitchen. He carefully prowled around the kitchen sniffing and touching things until he was sure there was nothing there that would hurt him. When he felt safe in the kitchen he went back to the door of the carrier and looked in at Little Bit. She was in the center of the carrier now. She had been watching Frenchy through the holes in the side of the carrier. She had watched him drink some milk and prowl around the kitchen but she wasn t quite ready to leave the safety of the carrier yet. Frenchy sat near the carrier door for a few minutes. Then he turned to Little Bit and told her he was going to see what was in the next room. Little Bit didn t say anything. She didn t want to leave the carrier but she didn t want to be left alone either. She needed a minute to think about this. Frenchy carefully walked toward the kitchen door. In the next room he saw a big table with chairs around it. It was like the tables in the ice cream store only bigger and fancier. He looked around the room. He saw a couple of big cabinets with glass doors. Inside were dishes and other stuff. He was feeling more comfortable all the time. Frenchy was just about to walk under the table when something touched his tail. MMEEOOWW! Frenchy jumped straight up in the air. The fur on his arched back and his stiff tail was sticking straight up. He looked twice his normal size. His claws were sticking out from between his toes and his eyes were as big as marbles. He was very scared. Something had touched him. MMEEOOWW! Page 30

31 When Frenchy screamed and jumped it scared Little Bit too. She was right behind him. She was the one who had touched his tail. But now she was scared too. When Frenchy jumped and meowed, she jumped and meowed. Her back arched, her tail stiffened, her fur stuck straight out, and her eyes got big. The two kittens had scared each other. They both scampered back to the cat carrier and hid in the far corner huddled together. After a few minutes they realized what had happened. Little Bit had decided to join Frenchy in the dining room. She was walking so quietly Frenchy didn t know she was right behind him. She had touched his tail by accident and when he jumped he scared her too. They both started to giggle. This was just like the time Little Bit had bumped Frenchy as he sat on the edge of the fish tank in the toy store. Only that time Frenchy fell into the tank with the fish. At least this time Frenchy didn t get wet, he only got scared but he was almost over that now. When they had finally calmed down they left the carrier together so each one knew where the other one was. They would try very hard not to scare each other again. As they were investigating the dining room they heard people voices coming from somewhere in the next room. The only scare they had so far was when they scared each other so they decided they would find out where the people voices were coming from. They approached the doorway leading to the room where the voices were coming from. They saw chairs and a couch but they couldn t see any people. They went a little further into the room and then they saw the people who had brought them to the house. They were sitting on another couch. Frenchy and Little Bit sat down near the doorway. They decided to watch their people for a while. The people didn t see them at first, they kept talking. Then the lady saw them. Hello. she said. Are you finding your way around your new home? The man and the lady didn t get up. They didn t want to scare the kittens. They were much taller and they wanted the kittens to be more comfortable with the size difference before they walked near them. After a few minutes Frenchy walked over to the couch where the people were sitting. He sat near the feet of the lady. He was feeling quite comfortable now and wanted to be petted. The lady bent down and put her hand under the middle of his tummy. When she was sure he was balanced she picked him up and put him in her lap. Frenchy started his purr box as the lady started to pet him. Yes, he was a happy kitten now. He didn t have to wait anymore for people to come into the pet store to pet him and give him tummy rubs. He and Little Bit had their very own people now and all he had to do was go to his people any time he wanted attention. Yes, this business of having a home started out kinda scary but it was gonna be alright. Little Bit watched from across the room as Frenchy was being petted. She could hear him purring from where she was. It wasn t very long before she decided she wanted some of that petting stuff too. She walked across the room and sat near the feet of the man. She sat there for a whole minute but the man didn t pick her up. Page 31

32 Little Bit didn t have much patience and she knew how to get attention when she wanted it. She stared at the man, cocked her little head to one side and made her special noise. Mmaahh. She looked so cute both people started laughing. I think she wants you to pick her up. said the lady. The man bent over and picked her up with his hand under her tummy. He put her in his lap and started to pet her. Little Bit was happy now too. She started her purr box even before she was in the man s lap. Frenchy and Little Bit were both happy kittens but they were also wondering about Lucy and Fuzzy. It was strange not to have them around and the missed them very much. But Lucy and Fuzzy were doing just fine. They didn t like being in the carrier and they didn t like the car ride either but now they were at their new home and were busy investigating it. Fuzzy was as brave as he was big and bushy. Lucy was pretty brave too. When their people opened the door to the carrier Fuzzy and Lucy came out right away. They quickly checked out the kitchen of their home and started to investigate the rest of the house. They found their people in the family room watching television. Fuzzy who had already decided this was his house now just walked over and jumped into the lap of his man. Lucy jumped into the lap of her lady. They had just taken over and the man and lady had to pet them whenever they wanted to be petted. The man and lady looked at each other and laughed. They were happy to have Fuzzy and Lucy living with them. And Fuzzy and Lucy were happy too but they really missed Frenchy and Little Bit. Page 32

33 Chapter Four The Reunion A week later Frenchy and Little Bit were sitting on the back of the couch looking out the window. They liked to watch the birds and squirrels in the yard. As they watched them they would crouch down, push their whiskers forward and make little cackling sounds. It was fun to watch the kittens as they watched the birds and squirrels and cackled at them. Then they saw a car come into the driveway. They saw people get out of the car. They were the same people who had adopted Fuzzy and Lucy. They watched as the people came into the house and talked to their people. One of the things they talked about was the kittens. Have you named your kittens yet asked Frenchy and Little Bit s lady. Yes we have, said Fuzzy and Lucy s lady. The big one with the long, bushy hair we call Fuzzy because he always looks like a fuzzy ball of fur. The other one we call Lucy because she is so funny. She is always making us laugh. Have you named yours? Yes, replied Frenchy s lady. The little black and white one we call Little Bit because she is so small. The Siamese looking one we call Frenchy because he looks Siamese. The people didn t know it but the names the people gave the kittens were the same names the kittens already called each other. The people talked for a while. Finally Frenchy s man nodded his head. Then Fuzzy s man got up and walked back to his car. Frenchy and Little Bit watched from the window as Fuzzy s man went back out to his car. He opened the rear door and reached inside. He unbuckled the seat belt and pulled a carrier just like theirs from the car. Why did he have that carrier they wondered. Was he going to take them away from their new home. Frenchy and Little Bit jumped down from the couch and went to the doorway of the dining room. They sat there to watch. They didn t want to leave their new home. They liked it here and they wanted to stay. If their people wanted to put them in that carrier they were going to have to catch them first. The man came into the house with the carrier, put it on the floor and opened the door. The door of the carrier was facing away from Frenchy and Little Bit so they couldn t see inside. Suddenly a head appeared. MMEEOOWW! MMEEOOWW! Frenchy and Little Bit both meowed loud surprised meows at the same time. The head belonged to Fuzzy. As he jumped from the cage they saw the rest of Fuzzy. Then Lucy came out of the cage. Frenchy and Little Bit scampered over to their friends. Page 33

34 There was much nose touching, face licking, tail twitching and meowing as Frenchy and Little Bit welcomed Fuzzy and Lucy to their house. They were all very happy to be together again. When they saw Fuzzy and Lucy s dishes added to others in the kitchen the kittens knew Fuzzy and Lucy were there to stay. The kittens didn t know why they were together again but the lady who had adopted Fuzzy found out she was allergic to cat fur especially Fuzzy s long fur so they had brought Fuzzy and Lucy to their friends so the kittens could be together again. Another week passed and all the kittens very happy in their new home. Frenchy and Little Bit had shown Fuzzy and Lucy all around the house. They showed them the basement where the cat boxes were. They showed them the toy box were their toys were. They showed them the scratching post and where to sit and watch the squirrels. They showed them the big bed where they slept with their people at night. They showed them everything they knew about the house. Then one day their man left one of the outside doors open. It was the door which led to the back porch. They had often sat in the window and wished they could go out onto the porch and maybe into the really big room beyond the porch but so far they had not been let out of the house. Fuzzy was the first to go to the open door. He was not only the bravest but he was always curious about everything. Fuzzy stuck his head through the open door and looked first one way then the other. He didn t see anything that scared him so he carefully stepped down the one step to the porch. Soon he was halfway across the porch. Lucy was sitting in the door way with Frenchy watching Fuzzy. After a few seconds she joined Fuzzy. Frenchy carefully followed Lucy. Little Bit sat in the middle of the room. She would rather wait a little while and let the bigger kittens go first. She wasn t a sissy. She was just very careful. Frenchy sat on the porch next to Lucy and Fuzzy. He looked all around. He was amazed. He had never seen a room this big. The kittens didn t know why they had been allowed to go onto the porch but their people had planned to introduce them to the outdoors all along. They lived on a small farm with a long driveway so there was no streets or roads close to their house which meant the kittens wouldn t have to worry about car and truck traffic. They had a few chickens, some goats and a few ducks in the pond. They didn t have any cows or horses because their farm was too small but they liked it just the way it was. And now they had four lively kittens to chase the mice away from the food they fed to the chickens, goats and ducks. Fuzzy walked to the edge of the porch and looked down at the stairs. Lucy and Frenchy joined him. Once again they heard sounds and smelled smells they couldn t hear and smell inside the house. They were excited. This was gonna be another big adventure like the night they were loose in the mall. Fuzzy do you know what all that green stuff is? asked Frenchy. No Frenchy I sure don t. replied Fuzzy. How about you Lucy, do you know what it is? Page 34

35 No, I don t know either but the people walk on it so it probably won t hurt us. The birds and squirrels walk on it too. said Frenchy. Let s go see what it is. You first Fuzzy. What? Why me first? asked Fuzzy. Because you always go first and I don t see any reason to change now. said Frenchy. As Fuzzy started down the stairs Frenchy whispered to Lucy It s also safer for us when he goes first. Lucy giggled and nodded her head. Yep. she said. Fuzzy slowly walked down the porch steps. When he reached the bottom step he stopped. He looked back at Frenchy and Lucy. He saw that Little Bit had joined them on the porch. Fuzzy reached his neck down and sniffed the gravel by the step. Then he carefully touched it with his paw. The gravel seemed to be ok so Fuzzy stepped down. First one paw, then another and another until he had all four paws on the gravel path by the porch steps. The gravel was rough and uneven. He had never walked on anything like this before. Fuzzy was familiar with the carpet in the house. This stuff was very different. He took a few steps. The gravel would take a little while to get used to. Fuzzy was curious about the green stuff that covered most of this big outside room. He had only seen grass from the window. He didn t know how soft it was and how nice it could be to roll in. He carefully walked to the edge of the gravel where he could sniff the grass. He liked the smell. He reached out a paw and touched the grass. It moved when he touched it. He quickly pulled his paw back. He reached out his paw again. He touched the grass again. It moved again but this time he pushed his paw down on the grass. The grass was soft, very soft. His paw sunk into the grass all the way past his ankle. He took a step into the grass, then another. Soon he had all four feet in the grass. It felt soft and cool on his paws. He smiled. He liked the grass. The other kittens watched Fuzzy as he took a few steps in the grass. Then he hopped. He hopped again. He liked hopping in the grass. It was soft when he landed. Lucy was the next kitten to leave the porch. Then Frenchy and finally Little Bit. They each took turns doing what Fuzzy had done. First they tested and investigated the gravel. Then they tested and investigated the grass. Then they hopped in the grass. The rest of the kittens decided they liked the grass too. They were all smiling as they hopped and rolled and ran in the grass. Fuzzy and Frenchy wandered a few yards from the porch as they played in the grass. Lucy and Little Bit stayed near the porch. Little Bit kept looking around. She was curious about the breeze she felt on her face and her fur. She had never felt wind before. She couldn t understand why she could feel it but she couldn t see it. Just then a leaf blew slowly across the lawn between her and where Fuzzy and Frenchy were playing. She watched it for a few seconds then instinct took over. Little Bit crouched. She pulled her paws up under her and in an instant she was off. A quick little run and a pounce and she had the leaf. She held the leaf down with her paws so it couldn t blow with the wind. That was fun. She had actually pounced something other than one of the other kittens or a toy. She was proud of herself. She looked back at Lucy to see if she was watching. Page 35

36 Suddenly she realized that she was out in the lawn almost five feet from the porch. Her heart pounded. The hair on her back stood up a little. She quickly jumped up and ran back to the porch as fast as her little legs could carry her. She jumped up onto the steps behind Lucy. She felt safer now and she soon calmed down. She looked back out onto the lawn. The breeze was blowing the leaf again. Little Bit just watched as the leaf blew farther away. She d had her adventure for the day. She was content to watch the rest of the kittens for awhile. Soon Lucy joined Frenchy and Fuzzy on the lawn. They played hop and pounce and sniff and roll and other kitten games until they were tired. Frenchy walked back to the porch and joined Little Bit. Lucy and Fuzzy joined them a few minutes later. They rested for a few minutes then they went back into the house and had a snack on some dry kitten food. Now they were ready for a serious nap. They had been playing hard and now it was time to rest. They all crawled into their big box with towels on the bottom. They curled up together and took a nice long nap. After their nap they played inside the house the rest of the day. The next day they wanted to go back outside. Fuzzy went to the back door and meowed. Frenchy joined him. They were making so much noise their lady opened the door for them. She told the man he would have to put in a little cat door for them so they could go in or out whenever they wanted. The man agreed to do it that day. It was a new day and the kittens were well rested and ready for a new outdoor adventure. Today they would go a little farther from the house and see what they could find. This time it was Frenchy who was the first one out the door and onto the soft green grass. He and the other kittens had played a lot on the grass the day before so he was comfortable being there. Today he noticed a small red house at the far end of the lawn. He hadn t seen it yesterday because all of his attention had been on the grass. But now he just had to know what was in that little red house. As he pranced across the lawn with his tail straight up he was followed by the other kittens. Even Little Bit was on the lawn and following Frenchy. As Frenchy approached the little red house he heard strange noises. He had never heard noises like these before. He stopped to listen. The other kittens stopped too. Frenchy cocked his head to one side and perked his ears forward and as high as they could go. He was listening very hard. Cluck, cluck, cluck. All of the kittens were very curious now. These were new and strange sounds. Frenchy walked slowly toward the little red house. The sound was coming from the house. Cluck, cluck, cluck. Frenchy was almost to the corner of the red house when a big bird came around the corner and stopped to look at him. Frenchy stopped too. He looked like he was frozen. He even had one paw still in the air. He didn t even blink. All of the kittens stopped right where they were. They had seen birds before from their window but not one this big. This was the first time the kittens had seen a chicken. Page 36

37 They were a little scared but the chicken seemed to be just as scared of them. It had probably never seen four kittens before. The chicken turned and clucked loudly as it went back behind the red house. Frenchy and Fuzzy followed it. Lucy and Little Bit stayed where they were. They were going to let the boys handle this big bird. Frenchy peeked around the corner of the red house. The chicken was near a small door. There were other chickens there too. When they saw the two kittens they all started clucking. They made a lot of noise but Frenchy and Fuzzy weren t scared. Suddenly another chicken came out the door of the red house. This chicken was bigger and he looked mean. Fuzzy and Frenchy didn t know it yet but this chicken was a tough old rooster and he didn t want any kittens near his chicken house. The rooster started clucking very loud as he slowly walked toward Frenchy and Fuzzy. Frenchy started backing up then he turned and walked back toward Lucy and Little Bit. Fuzzy didn t see Frenchy leave. He was thinking the rooster wouldn t mess with two big kittens like himself and Frenchy. But the rooster had his own idea of what he wanted to do. He wanted these kittens away from his house. He kept walking toward Fuzzy. When he was about five feet away he jumped in the air, flapped his wings and crowed as loud as he could. FLAP! FLAP! COCK-A-DOODLE-DOO! MMEEOOWW! The rooster had scared a big meow out of Fuzzy. The rooster s flapping and crowing was enough to convince Fuzzy it was time to leave. The rest of the kittens felt the same way. They all turned and ran back toward the safety of the porch. Frenchy and the other kittens had been closer to the porch when the rooster flapped his wings and jumped and crowed but Fuzzy ran so fast he was the first one onto the porch. When they reached the porch they stopped to look back toward the hen house. They saw the rooster wasn t going to follow them. He stayed by his little red house with his hens. The kittens started to giggle about what had happened. Their hearts were still pounding but they all thought that the meeting with the hens and the rooster was a fun adventure. Little Bit looked at Fuzzy. Gee Fuzzy, she said. You sure can run fast when you re scared. I wasn t scared. said Fuzzy. I just thought you guys wanted to race me back here to the porch so I ran fast. Yeah, right. said Lucy. All the kittens laughed. Page 37

38 The kittens laid down on the porch and rested for a few minutes. When they had calmed down and their hearts had stopped pounding Lucy suggested they investigate the other red building on the other side of the lawn. They all agreed that this might be fun but no one wanted to go first. Finally Lucy said she would lead this time but they had to be very careful. Lucy led the way to the other red house. This house was larger than the chicken house and it had a fence behind it. As the kittens got closer they could see big hairy animals inside the fence. They all walked slowly and were ready to turn and run back to the porch if they had to. They would walk a little ways toward the new red house then they would stop for a few minutes and watch the animals in the pen behind the red house. After a while Lucy realized that the animals couldn t get out of the pen. She slowly approached the fence. She got right up to the fence. She wanted to get a good look at these animals. She and the other kittens had never seen a goat before. One of the small goats saw her. He was a baby goat and he had never seen a kitten before. The baby goat put his little head close to the ground and slowly walked toward Lucy. Lucy was a little nervous but she sensed that this goat was a baby like she was and it wouldn t hurt her. She let the goat walk right up to the fence where she was sitting. The baby goat sniffed Lucy. Lucy sniffed the baby goat. Soon the other kittens came up and sniffed the baby goat. The baby goat sniffed them. Then the baby goat turned and walked away. He had sniffed the kittens and he wasn t curious anymore. He went off to play with the other goats. From near the goat pen where they were now they could see the pond. Little Bit stood up on her back legs so she could see the pond better. She got back down an all four legs and said to the rest of the kittens. It looks like a big water bowl and I m thirsty. Let s go get a drink. The other kittens thought that was a good idea. They were all very comfortable with being outside now so Little Bit led the way to the pond. She was still very cautious though. Every now and then she would stop and turn around to make sure the other kittens were close and that she could still see the house they lived in. She want to know which way to go if something scared her. Soon they were at the pond. Great galloping goose ears, said Fuzzy. This sure is a big water bowl. And why are those chickens swimming in it? Fuzzy was looking at the ducks on the pond. He didn t know the difference between ducks and chickens yet. The ducks stayed away from the kittens. They weren t sure what these four little furry things were but they knew they were safe in the middle of the pond so that is where they stayed. That was just fine with the kittens. They still remembered the meeting they had earlier with the rooster. They didn t want to do that again right away. After their drink the kittens headed back toward the house. They were very happy kittens now and they pranced and hopped and jumped as they played on their way back to their house. Page 38

39 They had been in their new home for a month now and had almost forgotten about their cage in the window of the pet shop. They had a warm place to sleep and plenty of food to eat. They had the freedom to run anywhere on the farm and two people who loved them very much. They were four very happy kittens. End Hello, Little Bit and I hope you liked this story and will share it with others. Thank you, Jim & Little Bit Page 39