Here Kitty Kitty
It wasn't a good day for Muffin the cat. She'd gotten kicked twice by her owner, eight year old blond Sadie Kane. Twice. Think of how many times Muffin had gotten kicked before.
Where the heck were the ASPCA when you needed them?
Muffin was a funny cat. She was like a mini-leopard or some other big cat, with pointy Chihuahua ears and her yellow eyes, which never seemed to rest on anything. There was a charm on her neck – Sadie didn't know what the charm was, and she didn't bother. She was only an eight year old who liked to get into trouble, of course.
She yawned, curled up on Sadie's pillow. Sadie had gone to school ages ago, and the Fausts (Sadie's grandparents, who had gotten custody of her when she was six) never walked into Sadie's room unless they were coming to confiscate something. Maybe gum.
Of course, nobody really dared to walk into Sadie's room, besides Muffin or maybe Carter Kane (her brother) when he came for Visitation Days. Maybe it was because of the ripped up Barbie dolls on the floor.
Muffin yawned, content on her little spot on the pillow. She licked a paw, stretched, and leaped off of Sadie's bed, stealthily maneuvering her way through Barbie dolls like the ninja-cat she was. Abruptly, she stopped in front of the door, staring at it. Footsteps?
The door swung open, smacking Muffin in the face.
"Mrrrrooooww!"
Mrs. Faust winced as Muffin dove under Sadie's bed. "Oh, dear me. I'm sorry, Muffin."
Muffin let out a pained "meow" from under the bed, and watched Mrs. Faust's feet leave the room. (Of course, she wasn't really hurt; it was just funny to see Mrs. Faust and her reaction whenever she "hit" Muffin with the door.)
Well, one pain of the day down.
She crawled out from under the bed, moving aside Barbie dolls on her way out the still-open doors. Muffin leaped down the stairs, and stalked into the living room, where Mr. Faust was watching TV. Apparently, Sadie had come home during Muffin's nap, because she was sitting on the floor, writing stuff down on a piece of white paper.
Muffin stalked up beside the little girl, and climbed into her lap, purring affectionately.
Sadie made a funny face. "Muffin, go away."
"Meow?"
"If only you'd gotten a dog," Mr. Faust grumbled. "Then it wouldn't be such a spoiled pain."
Sadie made a face at her grandfather, and returned to writing. Muffin watched Sadie write, purr-chuckling the entire time. Or however cats laugh.
Mr. Faust stood and departed for the kitchen, grumbling to himself all the way.
Sadie stood up, sending poor Muffin tumbling off her lap, yowling. The little girl squinted down at Muffin, then broke out into a grin. "Sorry. I'm going to go get some crackers."
She turned, and took a step forward.
"Mrroooooowwww!"
That was cat-speak for "Ow, my tail!"
Of course, translating every part is bad for eyes under the age of ten.
Sadie just marched away, leaving Muffin rolling around in pain. A hit in the face didn't matter, but you try getting your tail stepped on by something four times your size.
"Sadie," Mrs. Faust called from upstairs, "did you step on Muffin's tail? Again?"
Sadie walked back out of the kitchen, nibbling on a cracker like one of those chipmunks Muffin liked to stalk. "Yeah. It's not like she's a goddess and needs to be respected, right?"
Muffin stopped rolling around, and got to her feet. Or paws. Or whatever. The charm on her collar flopped around on her chest.
If only they knew.