Clue Of The Whispering Pawprints

One autumn evening, I found myself unable to sleep, as I was restlessly thinking of the school trip in the morning. I thought to myself

"A midnight snack might help me fall asleep."

So I went downstairs to make something for myself in the kitchen, a nice PB&J or maybe a warm bowl of the instant chicken soup I saw in the cupboard. Only to discover that we ran out of Jam and the box of chicken soup was empty. So rummaging through the fridge, I ended up talking to myself:

"It's too early for cereal; the sugar will keep me up. And making something from scratch would be too much work."

Giving up I sat on the counter, thinking of going back upstairs and giving sleep another chance. When I suddenly heard a voice:

"Since you're up, do you mind opening the door or the window for me?"

Looking around, I saw no one.

"Down here…"

"Oh… hello there…" I said when I saw my mother's Persian staring at me.

"Yes, good evening, I'm sorry to interrupt your deep thinking but, as I requested earlier, would you mind opening a door or window for me? I would like to visit a friend of mine."

It was strange, at the time I felt that talking with the cat was just a regular thing and calmly replied.

"Mom told me not to let you out at night. There's a fox den nearby; she's afraid that you might get eaten by the fox."

"That's silly; cats and foxes often cross paths at night but tend to mind our own businesses. Also, the fox at that particular den is the friend I wanted to visit."

"Oh, I see, well allow me to walk you to the door then."

"I appreciate it."

As we were walking to the door the cat looking at me said:

"Might I inquire why you are up so late in the evening?"

"I'm having trouble falling asleep; I thought a snack would help me fall asleep, so I went down to the kitchen."

"Would you like to join me then? A nice evening stroll can sometimes help with your problem."

"It's night time, isn't it dangerous for me to go outside?"

"Normally I would agree, a child shouldn't be out at night, but I'm with you, and this area is quite safe."

I was thinking of turning down his offer, but the thought of discovering what a cat does out at night intrigued me.

"Alright, let me get my coat."

I went up to get my coat and house keys and met my cat on the front porch.

"Alright, I'm all set, let's go."

"Wonderful! We'll need to pass by somewhere first before going to my friend."

The neighborhood was rather different at night, that's actually an understatement; the neighborhood seemed like another world at night. There were other cats, and other animals walking around, and a few things flying and glowing, maybe fireflies but I haven't seen any in my neighborhood before.

"I've been out at night before, one time with friends during Halloween, but the neighborhood was nothing like this."

"Well, that's because you're with me, and we tend not to go out when there are too many people outside."

"I see any particular reason why?"

"Humans are a rowdy lot, we like you guys, but you act as if you're the only ones that matter in the world."

"I can't say that's untrue" I said while laughing.

"We're here!"

"We're where?" I asked seeing nothing but a tree.

"I stashed a few things in this tree, one moment while I get something." He said while climbing the tree.

While waiting, I found myself greeting cat's passing by a good evening, where one cat nodded and continued on his way.

"Look out bellow!"

A voice from above shouted as what looked like a piece of cloth tied together as a makeshift bag, landed in front of me.

"What's this?"

"Some nuts and berries, its rude to go to a friend's house home empty handed. Would you mind carrying it, the bag got heavier, I put a little more than usual to accommodate you as well."

"Oh, no problem, but you didn't have to do that."

"Nonsense, I invited you to come with me, besides you were thinking of having a midnight snack weren't you?"

I smiled, and as we started walking "Thanks, Cat"

"Don't mention it."

The tree we went to was the opposite direction from the fox den, so on our way to it, we ended up passing by the house. I've walked these roads a thousand times before, but it was as if I was in another world, a place so different but at the same time so familiar.

"Have you been friends with the fox for a while?"

"Yes, I stumbled upon his den a few days after your mother took me home. Luckily, that day, curiosity did not kill the cat."

We continued walking until we reached the place where the row of houses ended, the edge of the forest where the fox den can be found. Funny thing though, the closer we got, I began to notice that there was light coming out from the den.

When we reached the den's entrance, the cat told me to wait while he talks to the fox a second. I nodded, and he went inside…

______End of First Chapter______