by Holly Webb
Chapter Three
Fluff hunched her shoulders worriedly, trying to work out what had gone wrong. The gap had looked perfectly big enough – her whiskers had fitted through, so the rest of her should have been able to. Then she realized – it was her collar. It had caught on something, maybe a nail sticking out of the fence. Suddenly Fluff panicked and started to struggle, pulling backwards and forwards desperately, mewing frantically and scrabbling with her paws. She mewed for Ella to come and help her, forgetting that Ella was at school. But after a couple of minutes she was too exhausted to struggle any longer, and she slumped to the ground, her neck aching where the collar was pulling at her.
Fluff lay panting miserably, wondering what to do. She supposed she would just have to wait for someone to rescue her. When she didn’t get home in time to meet Ella from school, they would start to worry, wouldn’t they? Or maybe Mrs Jones would come out to look at her pond again. Fluff shivered. It was going to be a horribly long, cold wait.
Fluff mewed with frustration. It was just so stupid. Her collar was too big, and it had got caught. It wasn’t her fault! She gave a furious wriggle, and suddenly felt the collar stretch. Perhaps instead of trying to pull the collar off the fence, she should be trying to get out of the collar altogether. She pulled downwards, trying to stretch the collar even more. It hurt a bit, but the collar did seem to give. Now if she could just pull herself backwards…
Fluff popped out of the collar, feeling as though she might have pulled her ears off. She twitched them. No, they were still there. She’d done it! Feeling very proud of herself, she examined the collar. There wasn’t a nail, just a sharp splinter of wood sticking out of the fence. Fluff hadn’t been as far as the next garden on her travels before, so as she came out from under the fence she looked around carefully, trying to work out if this was another cat’s territory, or even worse, if there was a dog around. Everything smelled all right, but she wasn’t sure how the snow changed smells, and she wanted to be extra cautious. As she sat watching, she noticed a strange metal thing in the middle of the garden, a pole, with things hanging from it. Fluff sat with her head on one side, trying to work out what it might be. Suddenly two birds flew down to perch on the hanging bits, and she realized it was full of birdseed. Fluff ’s ears pricked forward, and she sank into a hunting crouch. If only she could get closer… Fluff hadn’t had much opportunity to practise her hunting skills yet, but she was keen to learn. Her mother had tried to teach her how to catch mice back at the farm, but Fluff thought birds looked more fun to chase.
With a heavy flumping sound, a pair of enormously fat wood pigeons thumped down on to the snowy grass. They were too big to perch on the feeders, but there were a few bits of seed and nuts scattered about in the snow underneath, and the pigeons set to gobbling them up greedily.
Fluff ’s heart began to beat faster with excitement. This was her chance! How pleased Ella would be if Fluff brought her back a pigeon! She left her hiding place and crawled closer on her tummy, low to the ground, her paws muffled by the snow. The pigeons completely ignored her, too busy making sure they didn’t miss any bits of seed that might be half-buried in the snow. With a massive burst of energy, Fluff pounced, fastening her teeth into the tail of the nearest pigeon, which let out a loud squawk of surprise. She’d done it! She’d actually caught something!
The pigeon looked round, saw that it was being attacked by a cat in the middle of its lunch, and panicked. All right, so it was only a very small cat, but then pigeons are known for having very small brains.
Squawking in horror, the pigeon tried to fly away, but this was a bit difficult with a cat attached to a vital part of its flying equipment. Fluff hung on grimly as the wings beat up and down. Her first catch was not getting away. Seeing that flapping wasn’t going to work, the pigeon changed its tactics, and began to run and flap, trying to build up some speed to help lift itself off the ground. Rather like a feathery plane thundering down the runway, it set off across the lawn. Fluff was dragged along behind like a waterskier, her paws making great tracks in the snow.
At last the pigeon managed enough lift and pulled itself off the ground with a mighty effort, taking Fluff with it. Her front paws left the ground, and she peered down worriedly. Surely the pigeon couldn’t actually fly off with her… There was no way she was going to let go! Luckily for Fluff, the tail gave up instead. A great clump of feathers came right out, and the pigeon flew off looking decidedly bald. It landed clumsily at the top of a nearby tree, and squawked abuse at Fluff, furiously preening its mangled tail. Fluff sat on the ground, panting and spitting feathers. Did that count as catching a pigeon? she wondered. Could she claim it as half a pigeon, perhaps? She heaved a happy sigh, and spat out a last feather.
Fluff gazed up at the pigeon, still angrily squawking at her, and noticed that it had started to snow again. She danced around the lawn, pouncing on the twirling snowflakes. This was so much fun! It was cold, of course, but her thick fur was keeping her cosy, and in a few minutes she would head back to her cat flap and the lovely warm house. She chased round and round, whisking her tail, still full of excitement after her hunt. The snow was coming in big, thick flakes now, large enough to snap at with her teeth.
Fluff was enjoying herself so much that she didn’t notice how heavy the snow was becoming. The pigeons and the other birds had disappeared, and it was terribly quiet. Fluff opened her mouth and tried to catch a particularly plump and dizzy snowflake, and then looked around in surprise. She couldn’t see! The whole garden was a mass of whirling white and grey, and Fluff couldn’t see anything beyond two whisker-lengths away. She shuddered. This was too much like her scary journey a couple of months before. She needed to get home at once. But – where was home? Fluff gulped. She couldn’t even see the fence.
A gust of icy wind rushed at Fluff, and she felt as though it had blown right through her. Her ears were laid back against her head, and the snowflakes felt like stabbing needles as they blew into her fur.
Worriedly, she peered around her. She could just about see the tree that the pigeon had flown into, so the fence must be over there somewhere. Leaning into the wind, she ploughed forward. It was so cold now! Oh, at last, there was the fence. Fluff ’s panicky feeling eased a little. She only had to get across next-door’s garden and she would be home. She wriggled under the fence, and then followed her nose straight across. She was nearly there – and once she was back home, she was not coming out again. Not till it stopped snowing, anyway.
Fluff almost bumped into the next fence, but she didn’t mind, she was just so glad to see it. She popped out from underneath; she was back in her garden!
Except – this didn’t look like her garden. Even with the snow everywhere, it didn’t feel right. Ella’s garden had lots of little walls and hedges and things, but this garden was big and flat. Had she miscounted the number of fences? Fluff didn’t think she’d gone into another garden after next-door-but-one, but perhaps in the excitement of exploring, she had…?
Feeling frightened, she scurried across this strange garden to the next fence, hoping desperately that this time she would see somewhere she knew. The snow was drifting up against the fences now, and she had to half-burrow through. Hopefully, she pushed the snow out of the way with her nose, and stared around. This garden was full of play equipment, a slide and a little wooden house, half covered in snow.
Fluff had never been here before. Fluff had gone the wrong way in the storm – and now she was completely lost!
Chapter Four
Fluff stood still for a while, sniffing the air, hoping to catch a familiar scent that would lead her home. But the snow deadened the smells as well as the noises, and Fluff felt completely blind. What should she do? Had she gone past Ella’s house in the storm somehow? Should she be going back or forwards?
One thing was certain. She had to move somewhere. Sitting still wouldn’t keep her warm. She could feel the cold seeping into her bones – even her whiskers ached with it. The awf
ul thing was, she might be going even further away from home! Miserably, Fluff forced her paws to keep plodding on through the deep snow. Without realizing, she slipped through a gap in a broken-down old fence at the bottom of a garden, and strayed into the old wood that ran along behind the houses on Ella’s street. It was even harder going. She was wading through drifted snow under tall and menacing trees. Fluff knew she’d never been anywhere like this before, and it made her shudder. The trees seemed to wave their dark arms at her, and their roots tripped her up. It felt as though they did it on purpose, sending her rolling into hollows of deep snow, so she had to struggle and fight her way out. Every time it happened, Fluff grew just a little bit more tired.
It was getting dark, and even harder to see. Fluff wished sadly that she had listened to Ella, and never gone out in the snow. She still didn’t quite understand how she had managed to get so lost. One minute she had known exactly where she was, and the next she’d had no idea. It had all happened so fast. Fluff shivered. There was nothing she could do about it now. She needed to rest, but where could she go? There were a few places under the trees, where the roots had made little burrows, but they didn’t look very warm. Fluff needed somewhere out of the biting wind.
Suddenly, something loomed up out of the gloom. Fluff peered forward doubtfully. It certainly wasn’t a tree. In fact, it looked more like a house.
With a fresh burst of energy, she trotted forward, picking her way carefully over the snow. It was a tumbledown old cottage, built for the gamekeeper who guarded the wood, but it had been empty now for years and years. The door was boarded up, but there were plenty of holes where a small cat could creep in. Fluff sighed with relief as she squeezed herself between the boards. Even just inside the door the difference was wonderful – no more freezing wind slicing through her fur.
Staggering with tiredness, Fluff headed further in, looking for somewhere comfortable to sleep. Gratefully she spotted a pile of old blankets in one corner. They were smelly and stained, but Fluff wasn’t feeling fussy. She burrowed in, wanting to be as warm as possible, and hollowed herself out a little nest in the rags. She closed her eyes, wrapped her tail round her nose, and let a warm tide of sleep wash over her. All at once she was back home, with Ella, being stroked, and fed cat treats.
But then she heard a noise. Fluff twitched in her sleep, fighting to stay in her lovely dream. Oh, she didn’t want to wake up, and be back in this cold, real adventure! Something was breaking into her dream – a mewing sound. Fluff sighed. It was no good, she wasn’t asleep any more. She poked her head up from her blanket nest, and gazed round grumpily. She couldn’t see anything, and the cottage was silent, except for the eerie shrieking of the wind outside. Was it that she’d heard? It must have been. Fluff was just settling back down to sleep when she heard the mewing again.
Something was crying for help!
Ella rushed home – as fast as she could in slippery wellies – full of news about her fun day. School had been all about snow – talking about snowflake patterns in science, writing snow poems in English, and lots and lots of playing outside in the snow at lunch and break.
“We had a brilliant snowball fight,” Ella told her mum happily, as she watched her make a mug of hot chocolate. “Oooh, can I have marshmallows, please? Excellent.” She took the chocolate and sat down, sipping it slowly. “Yum. It’s so cold out there, Mum, my fingers are freezing, even though I had my gloves on.” She gripped the warm mug tightly. “They’re only just thawing out.” Ella took a big mouthful of chocolate, and sighed happily. It was nice to be back inside. “It’s so cool that it’s Friday, and we’ve got the whole weekend free. Can we go sledging in the park tomorrow?” Then she looked round, suddenly realizing that she hadn’t seen Fluff since she got back. “Mum, where’s Fluff? She didn’t go out, did she?” Ella asked anxiously.
Her mum looked surprised. “But she’s got her cat flap now, Ella, she’s allowed outside! I saw her playing in the garden earlier.”
Ella looked worried. “I told her not to. I was scared she’d get lost in the snow again. I suppose it was silly to think she wouldn’t go out.”
“I don’t think you need to worry, Ella,” her mum said reassuringly. “Fluff ’s not a baby any more. I know she’s still tiny, but she has grown! She’s definitely old enough to be out there.”
“But it’s been snowing really hard today, Mum! And Fluff always comes back to see me when I get home from school. Always.” Ella got up to peer out of the kitchen window. “The snow’s really deep in the garden. She could easily have got confused about where she was going. Oh, why didn’t I just lock the cat flap?”
“Ella, it’s not fair to lock it, unless we really need to. Fluff wouldn’t understand why she couldn’t go out. She’d just get upset.” But Ella’s mum came to join her at the window. “You’re right though, it is odd that she isn’t back yet. I wonder where she’s got to.”
“We should go out and look for her,” Ella said, heading for the hallway to put all her outdoor things back on.
“Oh, Ella, no, I’m sure we don’t need to. Sit down, finish your hot chocolate. Honestly, Fluff was having a lovely time out there earlier on. She was playing with the snowflakes. She’s probably just got too caught up with exploring. I’m sure she’ll be home in a minute.”
Ella trailed reluctantly back to the table. She knew Mum was right, but something was still niggling at her. Fluff had never missed meeting her before.
Ella’s mum didn’t sit back down, but stayed thoughtfully staring out of the window. She wished she was as sure as she was making out to Ella. She didn’t think Fluff was lost, but she was worried. Fluff should have been back – was she hiding out somewhere, waiting for the snow to stop? She just couldn’t help feeling that it was an awfully cold day for a small kitten to be stuck outside…
Fluff stood up, her whiskers twitching. Usually hearing another cat would have made her fur stand on end, and she’d be wanting to fight and defend her territory. But there was something about that cry. She didn’t think that the cat making that noise was going to be putting up much of a fight. She picked her way out of her blanket nest, and stood still, listening carefully. She’d been so sleepy when she heard the mewing that she wasn’t quite sure where it had come from.
There it was again. So quiet. So weak. Fluff listened anxiously. The other cat wasn’t in this room, she was almost sure. She picked her way over the rubbish and fallen bricks, and peered through the doorway. The cottage was tiny, only two rooms. The inner room was full of broken furniture, and Fluff leaped up on to an old chair to try and see what was happening. The room was silent, and she looked around worriedly. She was sure she hadn’t imagined it. Although – the mew had seemed to be part of her dream at first…No! There it was again. The cry was coming from a battered cupboard on the other side of the room. Fluff wove her way carefully through the junk, and nosed at the door. It swung open slightly, and cautiously she stuck her head inside.
Staring back at her out of the gloom was an enormous pair of green eyes.
The mew came again, and Fluff watched in horror as a tiny white kitten struggled to its feet, desperately trying to reach her.
The kitten could hardly stand, and at once Fluff jumped into the cupboard, nosing the little creature gently. She towered over it. This kitten was far too young to be on her own! She looked as though she was only just old enough to eat food, rather than milk from her mother. Where was her mother? Fluff could smell that at least one other cat had been here. Maybe this was where the kitten had been born. Cats often chose odd places to have their kittens – she had been born in a stable, and the horse it belonged to hadn’t been happy at all.
But the mother cat’s scent was fading. This kitten had been alone for a while, Fluff thought. She had to be starving. She was nuzzling hopefully at Fluff, as though she thought Fluff might have brought her some food, but eventually she gave up, and collapsed down again. The cupboard was lined with rags, like the nest Fluff had made,
and the white kitten lay down, curling herself up tight. She looked cold. Fluff lay down gently, curling herself around the kitten, like her own mother used to snuggle up to Fluff and her brothers and sisters.
The kitten mewed again, an even smaller sound this time, but she sounded pleased. Fluff purred comfortingly. Go to sleep. Maybe we can find your mother, she thought. But she had a horrible feeling that the kitten’s mother was far away. Somehow they’d been separated.
Fluff rested her head gently next to the little white ears, watching anxiously as the kitten twitched her way to sleep. Fluff ’s tummy rumbled, but at least she’d had breakfast, which was more than she guessed the kitten had. She could feel the tiny body warming up, and her own eyes began to close.
Curled around each other, the two cats slept, alone in the snowy night.
Chapter Five
Ella got up at six the next morning. It was still practically dark, but she didn’t care. She felt as though she hadn’t slept at all, though she supposed she must have done. All her plans for a weekend of fun in the snow had gone – Fluff still wasn’t back. Ella went downstairs, put on her winter coat, hat and scarf, and unlocked the back door. The cat flap swung open as she went out, and she felt like kicking it. She should have locked it, no matter what Mum said. She would rather have a grumpy Fluff than no Fluff at all.
Out in the back garden the snow looked even deeper. There must have been another big fall in the night. Ella shivered. It was really freezing, even wrapped up as she was. She sighed. The garden looked so beautiful, all white with patches of green and icicles hanging from the branches. It was like a Christmas card – there was even a robin perched on the fence, looking at her hopefully to see if she was about to put crumbs out. Ella smiled a very small smile. If Fluff had been here, she would have been jumping up and down under the fence trying to get him. But all that proved was that Fluff definitely wasn’t anywhere in the garden. Tucking her hands under her arms to try and keep them warm, Ella walked down the path – or rather, where she thought the path ought to be, as she couldn’t see it at all.
