Chapter 13

Food.

I woke up, thinking about food.

Where did I wake up? Oh, in a tire. In my life, where else would I wake up? Next to the cat of my dreams?

Hah, that's funny. But seriously. When I opened my eyes, I froze. Like, almost literally. Scourge's eyes stared down at me. He was sitting on the tire that I was currently sitting in. Calming down, I meowed, "Good morning."

"Morning?"

He gave me a funny look. Once I was really awake, I saw the sun burning bright overhead. Normally that wouldn't matter, but, it was right above me. Meaning it was sunhigh.

I sat up and started washing. I caught a bit of black fur in mine when I twisted my head to reach my back. So yeah, I did sleep next to Scourge. I wasn't too sure myself, actually. Suddenly, my stomach rumbled. It didn't rumble so much as it thundered, the way a monster would.

Embarrased, I looked at Scourge and sheepishly grinned. His eyes sparkled with laughter when he meowed, "As usual, I grabbed something to eat."

I looked out of the tire to where Scourge had gestured to with his tail, and saw some weird, cpeices of brownish-tan stuff, that almost loked like dry, hard rocks. Three peices the size of my paw.

"What. Is. That?"

"Chicken. You've never had it?"

I leaned down and sniffed at it cautiously, before taking a tiny bite. Then another, and another, until only a few crumbs were left. "That was delicious!"

Scourge's ears suddenly swiveled backwards, and he turned to see a scrawny old cat, so scrawny in fact, that I could probably count each and every last rib.

"S-Scourge?" His voice rasped as if he would drop dead any second now, which I didn't doubt.

"What?" The black tom leaped onto th big green box, and sat with his head held high on the black top.

I saw the older cat's pale gray pelt was mangy and ridden with fleas. I there was a tick behind his ear too.

"W-Well, y' see, cats have been tellin' me you're the one in charge around here."

"Yes, so?" Scourge sounded impatient, angry, even.

"I-I was comin' here to ask 'bout these two young cats stealin' prey down by my place, an' I was wonderin' what I should do."

Seriously? He can't just stand up for himself?

Scourge hesitated before replying, "Why have you come here to me for an answer? Have you ever tried standing up for yourself?"

Our guest thought for a moment. "No."

"Then try it."

And he left with his head high and his tail higher. Obviously, he believed Scourge really was this huge god to cats around here, and had all this control.

Shocked, I asked, "What was that all about?"

He shrugged, "I don't know, I guess cats trust me."

The irony.