Old Tom
Old Tom was asleep on the front window sill. The front door latch jiggled, then clicked. Startled awake by the sounds Old Tom slowly pushed his paws against the window frame. “Mroow.” One paw slipped off the frame edge, Oops, careful, mustn't fall. Tom arched his back into the warmth of the sun softening the painful stiffness of his old joints. The front door swung wide open while Tom contemplated the need to abandon his throne. “Mmmmeeeeww!” What’s this? Forgot something did we? Tom’s human awkwardly burst through the doorway holding something, turned and kick hard the old wooden door shut. “Moew meeeewo”Second breakfasts perhaps?
The human flew through the living room, through the dining room. “Meow!”One last scratch behind the ear would have been a nice hello. The human headed straightway into the kitchen with his armful, followed by the crinkle-crackle of the food bag, and the sweet tink, tink, thud sound of the hard bits hitting a porcelain bowl. “MEAW?”Hmm, food? Tom continued talking to himself, “Mow?merowwaooow?”What’s this, double breakfasts?! Tom leapt down and meandered indifferently around the living room furniture, then zipped between legs of the dining chairs, ending up seated between his human's feet in the kitchen doorway. There in the middle of his kitchen was a very small, very dirty, furry scruff of fur half in half out of a bowl of dry food. A kitten! Sitting beside it was a bowl of fresh water.
“RWWWWA, mooew. ppthth.”Well, you at least had the decency to not use MY bowls. Tom looked up at the human, purred and nuzzled the legs as he circled them to praise his challenged human for doing something right before sauntering over half way to the fur ball. Tom sat. Tom stared at the mongrel, waiting to be noticed and bid the respect a cat of his age and stature was due. The kitten continued to devour the meal as if it was the last and only meal to have ever been eaten by any living creature. Looking back to his human, Tom saw it was enamored with this show of devastation and the heartbreaking scam.
Humph. Tom losing the last bit of patience in him, flicked his tail and strutted up to this morning’s center stage, fully prepared to regain his headliner status with a stellar performance. When Tom was a foot from the kitten, it removed its small head from the bowl of food and looked at Tom. Neither feline moved.
The small kitten and the old cat were transfixed, waiting to take a defensive stance on signal. In unison backs arched, tails straight and true, each crouched to pounce, baring teeth they both hissed in chorus followed by well orchestrated spits. Then they sat in a synchronized motion. At the Olympics, they would have scored a ten.
The human bent down to kneel and watch from a safe distance. The two felines, one old, one young, sat staring each other down. Finally, Tom raised his head ever the slightest, the kitten lowered it's own and began a slow stalking crawl towards the old grey cat. Old Tom waited until the head was within paws reach. Old Tom reached up and out over the small head, THUD! and thunked it.
“YEOWWWWW!” The kitten rolled inward into a ball and yowled in mock pain.
The human was not confused. "Tom! Did you have to set it to making noise?”
Tom's looked back at the human, “Owwwl?” What did I do?
Rolling on the kitchen floor the kitten made its way within reach of Old Tom's tail and pounced. Tom grimaced. “Ewww!” HEY! Tom flicked the fur off his tail and stood on all fours over the small attacker.
“Meeowww, pppprrrrrrrrrrrr.” The kitten mewed and purred. Tom tried to maintain his sense of serious domination as the kitten mewed and purred, and rubbed up against him.
"So I can leave it to you to take care of him and show him the ropes while I am at work?,” the annoying human requested of Tom.
"Ya- owl?” Are you kidding me?
"Good, I have to get going. See you at five,” the human locked the door on the way out.
