Chapter 5: Delicious omelette
After a long and eventful night, morning light slowly crept over the city of St. Louis. Theo Flakes had slept peacefully all night long up until now.
"Yoohoo! Theo!" A cheery feminine voice said breaking Theo's slumber
Theo slowly awakened and sat up before opening up his young little eyes. It took a few seconds for his sleepy vision adjust before finding Ivy Pepper right on his side with a super friendly look on her face. Theo was caught off when he looked around and found himself sitting on a soft bed in a small cozy bedroom in some kind of small apartment and not in Mitzi's office at the Lackadaisy anymore.
"Goodmorning buddy! How did you sleep?" Ivy asked in a cheery tone
"Ummm I slept okay. But...where am I?" Theo asked as he looked around the room
"Why you're here in my home. I brought you here while you were still sleeping last night and I tucked you into my nice soft bed here." Ivy explained
"Ohhh so this is your home?" Theo asked
"That's right. And it's your home too since you will be staying with me for the time being." Ivy smiled as she scooped Theo off the bed and held him in her arms
"Now how about we get some breakfast in that little tummy of yours before we head out. Sound delightful?" Ivy said as she carried Theo out of her bedroom and into the small kitchen area of the apartment
Ivy's apartment wasn't very big but it was decent and warm enough for a single person.
"Tell me Theo, what you do usually crave for breakfast?" Ivy asked as she helped Theo sit down into one of the empty chairs of the small dining table
"Ummm I usually like to eat an omelette." Theo requested
"An omelette. Now that I can make. You sit just tight." Ivy said before she went into the kitchen and proceeded to make the said meal
5 minutes later
Theo patiently waited at the table softly tapping his paw on the surface until Ivy finally presented a large plate with a nice steaming hot egg omelette filled with seasonings and delicious bacon and tomatoes. Ivy sets the plate on the table in front of the kitten boy and sets out the utensils.
"Here you go dear! Nice and hot! Eat up!" Ivy smiled as she ruffled Theo's head before walking away
Theo smiled and licked his lips before he grabbed the utensils and proceeds to chow down on the delicious breakfast while Ivy cleaned up around the kitchen. Later after finishing the whole omellete, Theo gladly helps Ivy clean the dishes at the sink.
"Thank you so much for that omelette Miss Pepper!" Theo smiled as he dried one more final plate with a white towel
"You're very welcome sweety! I'm glad you loved it!" Ivy smiled before shutting off the sink faucet and taking the towel from Theo to dry her own paws
"Really it was a delicious omelette. The way you made it reminded me of..." Theo stops mid sentence with his smile vanishing
"...Reminded you of what Theo?" Ivy asked in concern noticing the child's unhappy expression
"R-Reminded me*sniff*...of my mom's cooking." Theo quivered as he looked down to the floor in sheer grief with a single tear falling from his eye
"Oh goodness gracious come here." Ivy said as she immediately knelt down to Theo's level and wrapped her arms around him pulling him into a warm and comforting hug
Theo gladly hugged his caretaker back tightly as he sobbed into her shoulder.
"Shhhhhh it's alright dear. I'm right here for you. Shhhhhh. Just let it out." Ivy soothed and comforted the kitten boy with all her heart
The two cats silently stayed in each other's warm and soft embrace for one minute with Ivy giving Theo soft rubs and tender pets behind his ears. Eventually they seperated with Theo wiping away his remaining tears.
"You feel okay now?" Ivy asked softly
"*sniff* Yeah. I-I think I'm okay." Theo said calmly
"Wonderful!" Ivy smiled brightly before she cupped Theo's cheeks and planted big caring kiss on his forehead
*MUAH!*
The kiss managed to cheer Theo up as a thin smile reappeared on his little face.
"There's that sweet little smile! *Giggles!*" Ivy giggled cutely before she took Theo's paw and guided him over to the main door of the apartment
Once at the door, Ivy proceeds to take a small blue scarf off a nearby coat hanger and wrap it around Theo's neck.
"It's gonna be a tad bit chilly today so you're gonna need this scarf around your neck sweety." Ivy said as she tightened the scarf snug around Theo's neck
"Thank you Miss Pepper. It's soft." Theo said
"Indeed it is, now let's get your shoes so we can go meet up with the others." Ivy said as she grabbed Theo's small shoes from nearby
Cut to 20 minutes later
After getting dressed up and leaving the apartment, Theo and Ivy we're walking on their way to the Little Daisy Cafe to meet up with the rest of the Lackadaisy cats which was not too far. They held paws as they walked down the sidewalk under the brightly lit morning sky.
"Umm Miss Pepper? Where are we going again?" Theo asked
"Why we're going to meet up with my same friends from last night. You know Rocky, Freckle, and Mitzi." Ivy kindly explained
"Oh...Wait! That big mean cat isn't going to be there right? The one with an eyepatch." Theo asked nervously
"Oh you mean Viktor?" Ivy asked
"Y-Yes."
"Awww now you just ignore that big orange meanie. If he has a problem with you, he has to deal with me first. You don't need to worry about a thing dear. I will always be with you at all times." Ivy assured Theo with a wink
Pretty soon they finally reached the cafe and walked right in through the front door.
*DING-A-LING!* The bell above the cafe door rang
Inside the cafe, Rocky and Freckle were sitting together at one of the tables playing a silent but intense game of chess against each other.
"You're move Freckle." Rocky said after moving his piece
Meanwhile at another table, Mitzi May was enjoying a steaming hot cup of coffee while reading the morning newspaper. The silence of the room was filled by gentle music coming from a record player box at the back of the cafe.
"Goodmorning yall!" Ivy cheerfully said getting everyone's attention
Mitzi looked up from her paper and smiled lightly before she got up from her table and went up to greet Ivy and the young kitten child.
"Well Goodmorning there Ivy. How is the little guest doing so far?" Mitzi asked referring to Theo
"Oh he's fine and dandy. He slept like a baby all night. And I gave him a delicious breakfast before coming here." Ivy smiled
"That's wonderful to hear." Mitzi said
Mitzi then kneels down to the floor to be face to face with Theo.
"Why goodmorning there you little angel. How are you feeling?" Mitzi asked with a warm smile as she gave the child a soft caress on his cheek with her gloved hand
"H-Hello Miss May. I'm feeling okay...Y-You look pretty today." Theo complimented as he held Mitzi's paw on his cheek
"*Gasp* Well isn't that the sweetest thing I've heard out of a young one like you." Mitzi smiled feeling touched by Theo's words
"Psst! Mitzi!" Ivy said getting Mitzi's attention
The golden furred cat stands back up to face Ivy again.
"What is it Ivy? Something wrong?" Mitzi asked
"Remember what we were going to ask Theo last night." Ivy reminded
"*Gasp!* Oh that's right. Bring him on over to my table right here and we can talk with him." Mitzi said
With that, the two female cats walk Theo over to the said table. Ivy helps Theo sit up on the chair on one side of the table before she takes a seat with Mitzi on the other side of the table. Right now the young kitten child was sitting face-to-face with the two adult cats in front of him wondering what was going on.
"*Deep breath* Theo, sweetheart, we are going to ask you some very important questions and we need you to listen to us very carefully and give us your best answers. Are you alright with that honey?" Mitzi kindly requested with warm tenderness in her voice
"Ummm Okay. I can do that." Theo obliged
"Good boy. Now Theo, since your parents are umm...gone, we need to find you a new place to live. And before you ask, no we are not going to send you away to an orphanage. You understand sweety?" Ivy said
"Yes Miss Pepper...what questions do you want to ask me?" Theo asked
"Well the first thing we want to know is do you have any grandparents or any other relatives that we can contact?" Mitzi asked
Theo sadly looked off to the side as he fidgeted with his paws and swung his legs.
"...I-...I don't have any grandparents. My daddy's parents both died after I was born...and my mommy's parents live all the way in another country. But I do have an aunty that I'm very close with. She is my daddy's sister. But she's the only relative I know. I don't have any uncles or anyone else that I know of." Theo explained
"Well Theo, it's a relief for us that you have a close aunt. That's all we needed to know." Mitzi smiled
"Does she live here in St. Louis by chance?" Ivy eagerly asked
"No. My aunty lives by herself up in Chicago." Theo answered
Both Mitzi and Ivy were blown away in shock upon hearing that information.
"She lives all the way in Chicago!?" Ivy exclaimed
"Goodness gracious that's awfully far!" Mitzi added as she had her paw over her chest
"She really does live in Chicago." Theo repeated
"Do you know where in Chicago your aunt lives? Like do you know her address or number?" Mitzi asked
"No I don't. I really wish I knew her address so I could tell you, but I don't. She mostly comes here in St. Louis to visit me. I've never been over to Chicago to visit her." Theo sadly explained
"Do you at least know her name?" Ivy asked in worry
"Yes. Her name is Natasha Flakes." Theo said
Mitzy and Ivy both look at each other in concern before looking back at Theo.
"Umm Theo sweety, you sit tight here while me and Mitzy have a little discussion." Ivy said before she stood up from her chair and stepped away from the table with Mitzi following along
Both Ivy and Mitzi were now standing close together and facing away from Theo at the table to have a little private talk.
"What are we going to do Madam Mitzi? I mean it's good to know he has an aunt but we don't know where she lives in Chicago. How do we contact her?" Ivy whispered
"Hmmm...maybe we could reach out to her by contacting the Chicago newspaper company and have them put an ad in the paper." Mitzi suggested
"An ad in the paper?" Ivy asked
"Yes, an ad that will ask Theo's aunt come forward. I will put my number and information in the ad so Natasha Flakes can contact me. I know this all doesn't sound simple and it might take days but it's our only option. Unless you can come up with ideas of your own Miss Pepper." Mitzi said
"...Well I suppose it's the only way. Normally I would try to look for her name in the phone book, but our local phone books only list people that live inside our city." Ivy said
"You're right about that. Now I will see about contacting the newspaper company this afternoon." Mitzi said
"Wonderful!" Ivy smiled
"GAH DAMMIT!" Rocky shouted causing everyone in the cafe to jump
End of chapter 5
Author's note: I hope you guys are liking this sweet story so far. I apologize for the long wait of this new chapter, but as an appreciation of your patience I have a special treat for you guys. Check out my deviantart page where you will find my first cute picture of Theo Flakes in case you guys been wondering what he looks like. Enjoy!