SHANNON AND THE LITTLE GREY CAT, STORY 2
It was a lovely summer’s day and Shannon, the cross-breed dog was relaxing in her garden. She had picked a shady spot under the cherry tree and was just dozing off, dreaming of chasing cats and other canine pursuits, when she heard an almighty commotion further down the garden.
She leaped to her feet and rushed to investigate and saw fur flying everywhere and much hissing and spitting going on. It was two cats fighting and Shannon noticed that one was tiny and only had three legs. The other was a huge black and white brute.
“What a bully!” she thought and started barking furiously.
Shannon had never seen a cat fight before and felt rather sorry for the three-legged cat, so she rushed forward very bravely, snarling and bearing her teeth. The cowardly black and white cat ran off straight away, but the three-legged cat stood rooted to the spot, back arched and spitting at Shannon, its green eyes wide with fear and mistrust.
“Well, that’s gratitude for you, I must say!” said Shannon. “I wasn’t going to hurt you”
“I’m sorry, thanks for saving me from Jasper” replied the bedraggled cat, who was still trembling like a jelly, from his ordeal. “But most dogs chase cats, don’t they?”
“Maybe” said Shannon. “But I’m not most dogs” she added, a little hypocritically, considering all the cats she had chased , in the not so distant past!
“I haven’t chased - I mean I haven’t seen you before, have I ?” asked Shannon.
“No, I only moved in next door to you a couple of days ago and my humans have only just let me out” explained the little grey cat, who was feeling much bolder now. “What’s your name?”
“Shannon” said the heroic dog, who was wagging her tail in a friendly fashion now. “I’m named after a river, you know” she added, knowledgeably.
“Yes, I know” replied the cat. “It’s in Ireland”
Shannon was amazed, as up till now she had thought that cats were rather stupid creatures and didn’t know much at all; she knew they could run of course and had to concede they were good at it!
“What are you called then?” she asked.
“Smokey” he replied.
“Not terribly original, is it?” said Shannon, with more than a hint of sarcasm.
“Well, it’s because I’m grey and smoke is grey, you know” replied Smokey, who had picked up on the sarcastic vibes and was quite amused by Shannon’s slightly superior tones. “I didn’t choose my name any more than you did”
“True” conceded Shannon. “Err, do you mind me asking why you’ve only got three legs?” She was certain most cats had four and thought it strange.
“Not at all” replied Smokey, cheerfully. “I was shot at by a horrible boy with an air rifle and my leg was too badly damaged to save, but I can manage very well on three” and he did a little pirouette to prove it!
“Very impressive” said Shannon. “I’m sorry you lost your leg though”
She was shocked at the cruelty of some humans and was glad of her kind ones, who had rescued her from a horrible place, some years earlier. She still remembered the man hitting her on the nose with a stick when she barked and shuddered at the memory.
Suddenly, they heard a human voice calling from the house next door.
“Come on Smokey, puss, puss, come and get your dinner, kitty, kitty!”
“Can you hear that?” said Smokey “It’s so embarrassing the way they talk to me, anyone would think I’m a baby”
“Know exactly what you mean” agreed Shannon, nodding her head. “My humans call me by so many names, I forget who I am sometimes, but I know they love me, so I don’t mind”
“Yes, they mean well, don’t they?” said Smokey.
As they were discussing the more noble aspects of the human race, a very loud male voice, bellowed down the garden. “ Come on in, Shanny-pan, dinner’s ready. Stop teasing that poor little pussy-cat, you naughty girl, come on in now, Shanny!”
“See what I mean!” said Shannon and they both started to laugh.
“We’d better go in” said Smokey. “Otherwise, they might sulk! It’s good though, that we’ve both got such good homes and that we’re neighbours. Shall I see you in your garden tomorrow?”
“Of course” said Shannon “and don’t forget to let me know if that big black and white cat, Jasper, ever bothers you again”
She hadn’t planned to give up chasing cats entirely!
