Chapter 4 – Smudge's Hardship
"Where have you been?" Smudge twitched his tail. "I was worried about you."
Rusty glanced back at the forest. "I spent a little more time than I originally wanted because I got attacked by a wild cat."
Smudge stared at his friend. He couldn't see any damage. In fact Rusty looked fine. Happy even. Smudge narrowed his eyes. "Are you telling the truth, Rusty?"
"Of course I am!" Rusty exclaimed. "I beat the wild cat and then some other wild cats offered to let me join them."
Smudge gave his friend a look of disbelief. "But you don't really want to stay with them, do you?" Smudge twitched his tail. Rusty had come back after all.
"I'm thinking about it," Rusty said, glancing back at the forest again. "I enjoyed being there. Joining could be fun."
Smudge gaped at Rusty. "You haven't ever caught a mouse before. You could starve to death! Think about everything you have here – a warm bed, daily meals, a bowl of milk each night. You even have freedom. If you didn't, you wouldn't be able to see me."
Rusty meowed, "That is true, Smudge, but it doesn't really feel like freedom. My twolegs don't even change my food out every night. That's what I woke up to this morning, stale kibble." He sat on his haunches. "Same four walls, same brown carpet, same toys – when was the last time my twolegs actually got me a new toy? They haven't even replaced the stuffed mouse that I tore apart two moons ago."
Smudge sighed and looked down at his paws. "I guess you have a point. But Rusty, we're all going to miss you. What am I going to do without you?" Smudge looked up, but Rusty was already heading back to his twoleg nest.
Smudge couldn't believe it. One of his only friends was about to leave for basically nothing. And Smudge couldn't imagine leaving his twolegs behind.
"Smudge! Smudge! Here kitty, kitty." His twoleg female called from the porch.
He felt a rush of affection. His twoleg female gave him milk every night, and fresh, soft kibble that tasted like fish each morning. She also was really kind and petted him often. He liked having his fur stroked and he liked cuddling up to her on her big, soft bed. Each morning, she dragged a toy around for him, one that smelled of catmint. But he also knew how terribly sad she would be if he left her. And lately, she'd been depressed. She told him all about it, though he didn't understand much of it – only that she needed him there and would work hard to make him comfortable just to hear him purr.
Probably she was sad because the twoleg male had left the twoleg nest. The twoleg male had been sick for a very long time. One day, there were strangers in the house. They'd come in a twoleg monster that howled, and they'd rolled the twoleg male away on a strange table with wheels. He'd never come home again and the twoleg female had cried and cried.
No, Smudge couldn't leave her, too. She'd lost enough.