The Homeless Kitten

“Do you think they’ll want his toys at the shelter?” Mum said doubtfully, holding up a catnip mouse with half its tail gone and a hole where the stuffing was coming out.

“He loves that mouse,” Lily said, with a catch in her voice. “You have to take it!” She abandoned her cereal – she wasn’t hungry anyway – and got down on the kitchen floor, looking for all the jingly balls, feathers and other toys that were scattered about. Of course, Stanley’s favourite toy was Hugo, she realized, looking at them both under the table. Mum and Dad had decided that as long as someone stayed with them both the whole time, it was OK to let them be in the same room until Mum took Stanley to the shelter.

Hugo was lying full length under the table – probably hoping for Carly’s toast crusts – and Stanley was playing with his paws. He was hopping over them, pouncing and patting at them with his own. Every so often Hugo would yawn and move a paw a little, so that Stanley leaped on it with ferocious tigerish growls.

Mum kept turning round from the bacon she was cooking and glancing over at them, obviously checking that they weren’t about to fight again but they weren’t. It was a game, it always was. Lily stared at them, trying not to let herself start crying again. She still couldn’t quite believe that this was happening. How could they be happy together now, when Hugo had been so furious last night and Stanley so terrified?

“Can you get that, Lily?” Mum said, as the doorbell rang. “I don’t want to leave this pan. It’s probably just the post.”

Lily got up and went to the door, opening it just as her dad came downstairs. Their next-door neighbour, Anna, was standing there, looking worried.

“Hi, Anna.” Dad came over to the door. “Is everything all right?”

Anna smiled. “I hope so… But I’ve come to apologize, just in case.”

“OK…” Dad said, looking puzzled. “Would you like some coffee? We’re just having breakfast.”

“Oh, I didn’t mean to interrupt!”

“Honestly, it’s fine.”

“I’d love a coffee.” Anna smiled, and followed Lily and Dad through to the kitchen, where Mum was dishing out the bacon.

“I do feel bad, though,” Anna continued. “I’ve a horrible feeling that Pixie’s been in here again. She bolted in through the cat flap at about midnight, in a bit of a state. She was soaking wet and all the fur that wasn’t plastered down with water was sticking up. And I heard a lot of barking, so I wondered if she’d climbed through Lily’s window again and had had a bit of a bust-up with Hugo… You mentioned she’d come in that way before.”

Anna looked between Mum and Dad as the whole family stared at her. “I really am sorry,” she added. “I know she’s a nightmare. My neighbours on the other side got quite cross with her the other day – they found her on the kitchen table licking the butter…” Her voice trailed away. “Oh no, what did she do?”

“It was Pixie!” Lily breathed, remembering her open bedroom window. “It was Pixie, not Stanley! Hugo was barking at Pixie!” And that meant Stanley didn’t need to go…

“Mum, do you think…?” Lily put her hand on Mum’s arm, trying to get her to listen, but Mum was looking at Anna and not paying attention.

“She was in here, then. Oh dear…” Anna looked around the kitchen. “I really hope she didn’t break anything.”

Dad laughed. “Actually, I think she broke a mug but don’t worry, Anna. That’s about the best news you could have given us. We came down last night because Hugo was barking his head off to find the kitchen in a bit of a mess and Hugo with a scratch on his nose. No, no, it’s OK!” he added, seeing Anna put a hand up to her mouth. “You see, we thought it was Stanley who’d done it. We were going to take him to the animal shelter this morning and now we don’t have to!”

“Pixie scratched Hugo?” Anna looked down at Hugo guiltily. “Poor Hugo. She’s a horror, she really is.”

“But you love her to bits,” Mum said, laughing.

“I’d better start locking the cat flap at night.” Anna sighed.

“Mum.” Lily pulled at her sleeve. “Mum, listen, please, it’s important. You need to call the shelter.”

Mum gave her a hug. “It’s OK, Lily, you don’t need to tell me. We’ll call them right now and let them know we don’t need to bring Stanley in after all.”

“I should have listened when you said that Hugo wouldn’t have been barking like that at Stanley,” Dad said, shaking his head. “I mean just look at them.”

Everyone looked down under the table. Stanley, worn out from his game, was collapsed over Hugo’s enormous paws. As they stared at him, he opened one eye lazily, just a slit of green peering up at them all.

“Please…” Lily whispered. “Couldn’t we keep him? I know we had Hugo first but Hugo loves him, too.”

“Can we?” Carly put in. “It would make Hugo sad if he had to go,” she admitted. “I think Stanley should stay.”

“Yes! Oh, Carly, thank you!” Lily hugged her sister tight.

Mum smiled. “I’d better go and ring the shelter, hadn’t I?”

“What are you going to say to them?” Lily asked anxiously.

“I’m going to ask them to take his photo off the website – he’s already got a home.”

Lily threw her arms round her mum and then her dad and even Anna – she wanted to hug everyone.

Then she crouched down beside Stanley and Hugo. “You’re staying,” she said, stroking the fluffy white fur on Stanley’s tummy. You’re our kitten now!”

Stanley opened the other eye and stretched, rolling over on to his back and padding his front paws against Hugo’s nose. Hugo snorted, shifted his head and gently licked the little kitten.

Stanley uncurled himself from the big dog and stood up, stretching again and arching his back as he yawned. He padded deliberately over to Lily, and rubbed the side of his head lovingly up and down her shorts. He climbed on to her knees and stood up, nudging her chin with the top of his head and purring loudly. Then he jumped down and touched noses with Hugo.

“They’re perfect,” Lily whispered, crouching down to stroke Hugo. “They belong together, here with us.”