Troubled Travels

Troubled Travels

Sandra was sitting on the back steps watching Amanda and Alex eat.

“Mommy said you guys were federal cats, what ever that means. She said it meant you need to stay outside but I could put food out for you. I guess that’s ok too.”

“Meow, meow”

As feral cats Amanda and Alex do need to live outside, but there are many humans that will at least provide food and some that make warm places for outside kitties to stay dry when it rains. Sandra was one such human.

It was time to go, so Amanda looked up at Sandra giving her a kitty smile and wagged her tail. Alex did the same. It was a sunny day but clouds were moving in. Alex suggested heading back to the alley where he first met Amanda. But Amanda said they were on an adventure and to make it a true adventure, they had to keep going away from the alley. Alex had to agree.

Amanda wanted to follow the streets, but Alex suggested taking the alley. Besides, maybe they might find some treats to make the trip more exciting. Alex explained that following the streets was more dangerous because there were too many humans that did not care if they hit some stray animal. A prophecy that all too soon would come true. But for now, they were two happy-go-lucky kitties out to see the world, or as least the city.

It was starting to get dark. They decided to head down one more alley then look for shelter. It felt like it might rain also. About halfway down, another outdoor kitty jumped out at them.

“MEOWWWWW” (kitty for who are you and what are you doing in my place?)

Alex told him they were just looking for a bite to eat, a place to spend the night then they would be on their way. Amanda’s charming smile helped turn the tide and they were led to a place that was at least dry and wouldn’t be hurt by a rainstorm. To protect his sources, Max, the new kitty they met, brought them something to eat. As they ate, Max joined them to learn about their travels. All three jumped when the first lighting bolt and clap of thunder hit. Then the rain started. Max was stuck where he was.

It was a loud, yet light rain that night. In the morning Max brought a few tidbits for his new friends then bid them on their way. Avoiding puddles, Alex led the way to, someplace. Neither of them had much of an idea of where they were going but the trip there was fun.

“Mew, Mew”

Turning the corner, Amanda saw it first. A kitten was lying on the grass. Slowly she approached her and saw the blood. But before she could get any closer, a human came out of the house.

“Amanda, come here, quick. Skittles got hit by a car!!”

Amanda scampered back to Alex.

“That human has the same name as me. But what about the kitty? Its hurt.”

Both Alex and Amanda watched as the human Amanda rushed out to see the problem.

“How dd she get out? The Henderson’s always kept skittles inside.”

“We can find that out later. Right now we need to get her to the vet.”

George, the male human, brought a box out and laid Skittles on the towel he had placed inside. Neither Amanda nor Alex understood but it looked like they were trying to help. There wasn’t anything they could do so they headed back to the alley and away from the scene. It was best for outside kitties to stay in the shadows. Their day was about to get much worse.

This time the sounds were much worse, and much scarier.

“Meooooow”

“That is a kitty in trouble.”

They said it almost together. Running as fast as they could, they stopped short when they saw the source of the painful sounds. One of their brethren was tied up on a rope and some human kids were throwing rocks at it. It was a game to see who could hit it from the farthest distance. Wasting no time, Alex jumped on the closest boy with his claws fully extended. His action brought out more kitties. They could smell the fear on the humans so they started to attack also. It did not take long for the kids to run off. Amanda managed to bite the rope off of the trapped kitty. She was sore, but could move.

“Let’s get out of here before those humans come back. They aren’t going to be happy.”

Everybody agreed and they ran as fast as they could. Miss Peach suggested heading for the woods nearby. At least it was a safe place to hide and regroup. Amanda and Alex went with the group but planned on leaving as soon as it was safe.

“Meow, Meow”

Somebody had found a hole big enough for all of them to hide in. As soon as everyone was safely tucked in and out of sight, Alex apologized for starting so much trouble. Someone said not to worry about it since his actions saved a fellow kitty.

Alex stepped out of the little cave for a few minutes only to be met by a skunk.

He told Alex he saw what happened. If the humans came looking and had a dog with them, their little hiding spot would be safe. He said he would stick around for a bit to make sure they were ok. Alex thanked him and went back to tell the others.

As it turned out, they were safe no matter what because the humans weren’t going to come looking. The boys did tell their parents what happened but got in trouble since they had been warned not to be cruel to the animals. The boy with the scratches was bandaged up and told that he was lucky that was all that happened to him.

The kitties didn’t know about all of that, but by morning their little skunk friend came by and said that no one had even tried to find them. They could go on their way like nothing had happened. Alex and Amanda wished everyone well and headed off for another part of their adventure.