November Days

Once Upon A Time Part 19

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Once Upon A Time...many, many years ago... there was a cat village, deep in the forest. It was a village... like a normal human village you may have read about in our world in ages past...but in this world long ago there were no humans... instead the cats of that world had managed to grow and change and learn from the world around them. How to walk upright and build homes and roads and have carts for hauling loads of items from place to place and they had, over time, built a wondrous society of cats.

These cats looked a lot like our house pets that we have with us today. The tabby cats and calicoes and all of them were there in that village. Basically, the same size as well. All except one that was quite a bit larger than the rest of the cats in the village and his name was Brick. He was a lovely shade of red and such strong and thick fur and deep green eyes and oh, so smart and wise. He was the protector of the cat village. Now the cats did not call themselves cats... they had no idea of our word for them... they simply called themselves The People (in their language of course). I am translating, as we do not have the same language here of course.

Well, one day when Brick was out roaming the edge of the village, making his rounds and looking to see all was ok. You know the tall walls of the fence around the village that kept the more savage creatures out and protected the cats living in the village from harm, he was going around and making sure all was strong and solid and at one point after he had been just about to finish his patrol and break for a quick lunch in the tavern close by his location, he heard a soft...well, a soft and maybe a little frightened...meow. As though a small, very young cat child was in trouble. The sound was coming from not inside the village walls but out in the forest. And so Brick leaped down and sniffed and listened again for that small sound and after a few minutes he did hear it again. And so was able to carefully make his way in the direction of that little and so frightened sound. After just a few moments... he smelled something...yes, a young cat and wait... also the smell of a python. And yes, he did not think python... his word that came to Brick's mind was more along the lines of oh no here comes that awfully stinky and mean stretched out creature that I will kill if it gets too close. So yes, our word for a lot of that is python. That big squeezing snake you may have read about in school perhaps? Well, in this world of cat villages and no humans... in this world this stretched out creature... this python was even more scary because not only of his great strength and quickness, but he could talk and think like the cats to some degree... not nearly as well with language and building as the cats though and you needn't worry Brick is more than a match for this python yes indeed our friend Brick can make short work of that creature if he has to.  But, really, Brick hopes not to have to kill the creature. You see, for all of Bricks great strength and speed, he truly is a gentle, loving and caring being and wants to hurt no one or no thing. He just wants to help and offer aid to those in need.

     So, he is stomping and calling out "you better run away you stretchy stinky thing. Nothing for you here, no snacks or whatever you think you might find...this little one is under my protection and you had best be on your way, if you know what is good for you." And he made soothing sounds for the young one, he was sniffing and searching for. Well, in just a few short moments he was right there with the wee babe and also he could hear that the snake had taken his advice and gone the other direction.

Brick leaned down and there was the cutest little gray fluff of fur he had ever seen, with such bright, blue eyes too. A sweet lost little baby kitty that had somehow gotten out of the village, Brick guessed, though he did not recognize the kitty as one from the village. He thought he knew everyone in the village... most especially the young ones. Oh well, he would get this little fluff safe and back to his home in no time at all. He scooped the little tyke up and making soothing sounds to the babe he had the wee one calm and ...well, would you look at that! Why, that little kitty is already fast asleep, safe and secure in Bricks arms.

In but a few minutes Brick was back in the village... asking around after who are the parents of the little lost gray kitten that he had found in the forest. After about an hour, with the little tyke still fast asleep in his arms, it was clear that there were no parents in the entire village looking for a lost baby. So where had this little guy come from? There was another cat village, but it was many days travel away and no way had this little kitten come from there. It was just way too far away for him to have run off from there. The little babe would have been scooped up as somethings lunch long before he would have made it to this village where Brick found him. So, what to do now? No parents and no one to care for the baby except Brick it looked like and actually Brick was very ok to do that. Carrying the little guy around for over an hour now and Brick had grown quite attached to the little kitty. Well... there... he's waking up finally and looking around with such big eyes. He stretches and a little squeak comes out... oh, so cute thinks Brick and he says to the little guy

"Oh, you took such a long nap...are you hungry? Want some food?"

The baby looks up and opens his mouth as though looking for food right away.

Brick smiles and goes over to a little grocery store and buys some food for the babe. After checking with one of the workers there that he knows, as to what would be the best thing to get. He gets milk of course and some blankets and a small bed for the kitten.

And then, they headed home. Brick looked down, as he was still carrying the little guy, and said "do you have a name? What should I call you?" And the kitty just looked up and smiled at Brick and kept drinking his milk "well I guess you've not learned to talk yet huh? Ok, well I need to call you something... how about Blue? Because you have blue eyes? And the little guy shook his head like he was trying to let Brick know that he did not like that.

"oh, right... ok then... how about Losty? Cause your lost"

The kitty kinda giggled and shook his head no again.

"ok, well then" said brick "hhhmmmmmm... how about ....".and he thought for a few more minutes and said "How about Stone? Cause you are kinda the color of a stone here in the village... at our meeting place... the meeting Stone? Would you like for me to call you Stone?"

The kitty looked up and giggled and smiled and nodded yes... he seemed to like that name. So that was what Brick called him from then on. Stone. And after that, well, Stone was always with Brick. Brick still asked around if anyone knew Stone or had any idea where his parents were but after about a month of that Brick stopped asking and after about another month, well, Brick thought of Stone as being his son and loved him more than anything else in the village or all the world actually.

By this time Stone had grown a little and was learning to talk some and he was quick and stayed right with Brick when he went on his rounds of the village, checking to make sure all was ok with the defenses. It always was, but Brick always checked it twice a day anyways. Everyone in the village had grown so used to seeing Brick and Stone together all the time now that it was almost like it was just the one name... BrickandStone.... so cute yes, I know.

And there you have it, the story of how Brick found his adopted son Stone. And Brick no longer thought of Stone as being adopted... he was his son and Brick loved him and would give his life to protect Stone, if he had too.