A New Friend

by Leo

I felt like playing but my devoted slave was engrossed in her computer, e mailing people on the other side of the world. I kept jumping on the keyboard and playing with the mouse, but she kept lifting me down and continuing to type. You would think she'd rather play with me than type notes to people she's never met. Humans are so curious ! I went in search of my mother, Queenie as she sometimes plays with me but she was devouring a large bowl of food. When I asked her to play she told me to go away as she was having her tea. "You only had a meal an hour ago.!" I retorted. "Well I must keep my strength up. I'm very hungry too as I didn't have much tea" she replied. I wondered whether to point out that if she ate much more she wouldn't get through the cat flap, but thought the better of it, for despite her expanding waistline, she was still more than able to run after me and swat me with her paw. I went in search of Ginger, but he was nowhere to be found. I then remembered he'd said he might go and visit his friend Jack in the next street. I knew it was hopeless asking Josephine to play as she'd only tell me to get lost and hiss at me so I wandered mournfully down the garden feeling rather sorry for myself. It was a quiet Sunday afternoon and no one appeared to be around, so I jumped on the fence to watch for birds in the next door garden. I'd just settled on my rather precarious perch when to my horror a huge tawny coloured dog appeared from behind the neighbour's garden shed. I knew it lived there but had always managed to avoid meeting it before. I was wary of dogs as my devoted slave told me they could hurt me and forbade her friends to bring any to my house. I knew it couldn't reach my elevated perch, but it seemed I couldn't even enjoy an afternoon's bird watching as the dog would start barking and scare them all away. To my surprise it didn't seem annoyed by my presence though I stiffened poised for flight as it ambled towards me. "Hello" it barked." I'm Suzie, who are you ?" I wouldn't usually lower myself to answer a common creature like a dog but as dogs went it wasn't bad, it's fir was even a similar hue to my own though naturally not as clean and without my beautiful stripes. "My name's Leo." I answered shortly. "Would you like to play? "she asked." I can stay out until my master and mistress call me ." I stared at it incredulously. "You come when you're called ?" I mewed in amazement "and you let humans give you orders ! The dog looked as baffled as I was. "Of course "it replied." My purpose in life is to be obedient to my kind master and mistress as they are kind enough to give me food and shelter and take me for walks. Don't you have a master or mistress to care for look." "I have a slave naturally !" I replied amazed that dogs could be so servile. "There's a lot of room for improvement as she can be slow at filling my dish take up too much room in bed or even ignore me while she sits at her computer but I love her really and I'm trying hard to train her better !" The dog looked horrified, I was enjoying myself shocking it so much. "She knows she has to be nice to me," I continued "I could easily leave her and find a new slave if she didn't devote her life to making me happy!" The dog was rendered speechless for a few moments .She finally responded by changing the subject. "Can you play fetch the stick ?" she asked I shook my head and turned to jump back in my own garden but the dog called after me. "Please don't go, Leo." She barked" I'm lonely, my master has gone out to the garden centre and my mistress is in the bath and I'm not allowed upstairs. Why don't you come in my master and mistresses garden, they won't mind if you don't tread on the plants. "You just want to chase me, " I mewed warily "I promise I won't." she replied." My master and Mistress said I mustn't chase their neighbours' cats." I jumped cautiously over the fence and for the next few minutes wished I hadn't as Suzie insisted on showing me round the garden all the while extolling the virtues of her master and mistress and telling me to be careful. I was much more interested in the delicious smell of freshly cooked turkey wafting from the open kitchen door. Suzie noticed my interest "My mistress has cooked a turkey roast dinner tonight." she explained." She's put it on the top of the fridge to cool. It's my favourite !" Maybe they'll give me a slice if I beg nicely ." An idea was starting to form in ever fertile brain. "Have they forbidden you to touch it I asked ?" "I can't reach it so why should they ?"Suzie replied ."They usually share it but I wish I could have some now." Silently I agreed with her "Let's have a look at it ?" I suggested. Suzie hesitated. "My master and mistress said not let any people in." she said," But they didn't mention cats, so I think it should be alright." She ambled through the kitchen door and I cautiously followed her There, on top of the refrigerator was a delicious piece of roast turkey still steaming slightly from the oven. It glistened with gravy and juices. My whiskers twitched and my mouth started to water. It was so easy to reach too, due to the conveniently placed worktop which would serve as excellent platform to leap from. "Doesn't it look delicious ?" Suzie said wistfully. "Would you like some ?" I asked. "Yes," but .." Before Suzie was able to remonstrate, I'd leapt nimbly up to the roast. I grabbed it in my mouth and jumped down again. I hesitated wondering whether to take it back to share with my mother but decided that would be unfair to my new friend. I dropped it on the floor and together we tucked in to enjoy the feast. I was shocked by Suzie's table manners, the way she gulped and gobbled and hardly chewed before she swallowed but that didn't distract me from enjoying every mouthful of the delicious juicy turkey. I was just starting to feel rather full when a woman dressed in a bathrobe appeared in the doorway. We'd been too absorbed in our meal to hear her approaching. I decided now was a good time to leave and shot out of the kitchen door and jumped straight back over the fence into my own garden. I could hear her angry shouts as I ran. "Suzie, how could you, you bad dog !" A few days later I overheard my devoted slave talking to the neighbour over the garden fence. "I'm baffled how my dog managed to get a turkey roast down off the fridge." She said" I could have sworn though I saw a ginger cat running away. I was wondering if your ginger cats were friendly with my Suzie?" My devoted slave burst out laughing. "Leo and Ginger ?!" she exclaimed ." No it couldn't be them, they'd be terrified of Suzie. I know she's friendly but they don't .They'd not go in your house as they would see her around. It must have been one of the cats from the next street." "Maybe ." said the neighbour." perhaps I imagined I saw a cat even as it was gone so quickly I was furious with Suzie, I still am in fact as we had guests coming and had to feed them on fish and chips" I crept back inside still remembering the delicious taste .She was certainly better at cooking than my devoted slave but I'd no plans to move and live a dog's life !