A/N: Well I just got back from visiting with my friend in New York (a 7 hour drive!). Her cat had kittens not long ago, they are nearly 6 weeks old now. I've picked out two of the three kittens to adopt when they are ready to be separated from their mom, and when the remodeling gets done on my house. I'd had pictures of the babies from my friends webcam, but I hadn't realized just how much one of the kittens (which I fell in love with pretty much immediately) resembled a certain main character in this story...

I'm going to try and post a link, but I'll need to change the symbots a bit, as FanFiction seems to remove any url's.

groups-msn-com/ThisGroupisJustaWasteofServerSpace/sam.msnw

Just replace the two - where it says groups-msn-com with .

I've named this little guy Sam (of course lol) The resemblance to Sam Carter the Cat is just uncanny, with his blue eyes and pale fur. Main differences is he's a male (we are pretty sure at any rate, but the name is fine if we are wrong lol), a bit younger than Sam the Cat, and he doesn't have a tail. But he's pretty darn close to what I'm visualizing Sam to look like, even the stripes.

The first picture is Sam by himself. In the second picture, that's his brother Dragon (who I am also adopting). In the last picture, Sam is asleep with his other brother, Lucky (the only one of the litter that has a tail) At least I'm pretty sure about Lucky and Dragon... without being able to see the tail or the bodies its hard to tell who is who, since they are both orange stripy. Sam had a third sibling that died, who had the same colorings.

When she'd finished, the cat was laying still again, sleeping quietly. As Charles watched them, he fervently hoped that the little cat would make it.

Chapter 41

Two days later, Charles paused in the doorway as he came in from the fields. He could hear his wife singing again, the words gently drifting towards him.

Here comes the sand man
To put you to sleep.
The dust he will sprinkle,
Brings you sweet dreams.
Don't you fret, I'm right here.
Nothing can hurt you,
As long as I'm near.
Sleep a sweet sleep,
Dream your sweet dreams,
Nothing can hurt you,
As long as I'm here

He moved so he could see her, and wasn't surprised to find her sitting in her favorite rocking chair, pulled up close to the fire. The little cat was curled in her lap, as Mary worked her way through the mending basket.

Mary looked up from her knitting and smiled at her husband, the firelight framing her soft white curls. She motioned towards the sleeping cat, and made a shushing movement. Charles smiled and nodded, approaching the pair quietly, dropping a kiss on his wife's forehead before looking down at the sleeping cat curled in Mary's lap.

It was now the second day after finding the little lost cat, and Bill had been right with his prediction. The little cat had clung to life the first night, and seemed to be doing better, only to take a sharp downward turn on the second night. Mary had been up most of the night with it, coaxing the sugared water and antibiotics down as best she could. As the night turned to day, the cat showed signs of improvement.

Mary was also watching the sleeping bundle. "She wakes every now and than, as if her dreams haunt her. I can't imagine what she must have gone through, or how she got some of those injuries, poor little thing." Mary shuddered at the thought of someone shooting at the poor little cat. She was disgusted at the idea of someone taking a shot at a defenseless creature just for fun. "I'm worried about Bella, she hasn't really woken more than a minute or so since we found her."

Charles looked at his wife, she'd named the cat the day before, and he worried she was already too attached to the little thing; if it didn't make it she'd be crushed. Trying to stop Mary from giving away her affection though was like trying to stop a bear from taking all the honey from the bee tree. He reached down, and gently touched the cat. Her fur was soft and warm, thanks to Mary's constant attentions. No trace of the mud and grime that had coated her several days ago. At his soft touch, the cat stirred slightly before settling back into slumber.

"I'm sure she'll be fine, now that the worst is over. She's been through a great deal, and she'll probably sleep a lot until she's doing better." Mary nodded at her husband's words. She knew it was true, but it still helped to hear it. Mary sighed. Charles had been outside in the field all day while she'd been tucked up nice and warm inside. And here she sat, dinner not even started, while he was cold and tired.

She looked down at the sleeping cat, and was reluctant to leave her, she'd only just settled again. Bella seemed to sleep better when she held her. She didn't want to move so soon after getting Bella peaceful again, but she was even more reluctant to leave her husband alone in her kitchen. Despite her best efforts, the man could burn a boiled egg.

Charles seemed to understand, as he suddenly said, "Here, let me take her for a little while." He held out his hands for the sleeping ball of fur. He'd already taken off his muddy coveralls and washed up, he was ready to sit for a little while and warm up.

Mary seemed startled at first. It wasn't often that her husband took an interest in one of her strays. She decided not to question it too much, and moved to switch places with Charles, being careful not to disturb Bella. She needn't have worried, Bella settled immediately into Charles' lap. Mary didn't know if she should be jealous, or touched.

Mary checked in on the two frequently while she bustled about the kitchen. At one point she'd caught Charles absently stroking Bella as she slept. Later, when she peeked in on them again, Charles had fallen asleep, his hand resting lightly on Bella's side.

When dinner was done, Mary went towards the living room to wake the sleeping pair; she had decided that it was time that Bella try to get something other than sugar water in her stomach. She'd made up some of the formula she'd made for the kittens that time, thinning it a bit so it wouldn't be too rich. She had no idea how long it had been since the poor mite had had a real meal. Meaning to wake the two gently, Mary entered the room quietly only to discover Bella was already awake, her blue eyes wide and clear for the first time since they'd found her. She was looking back and forth from her to her sleeping husband, confusion evident on her face, mixed with fear.