The cat with the tophat

THE MICE!

I concluded I was suffocating, as my vision blurred, slowly everything became distorted, and the world seemed to have faded away, only then, the full monty turned inky and all I could see was tenebrosity, my head hit the floor and I blacked out.

When I came to, the bleary silhouette of a gentleman, and moreover, the configuration of a tophat came into eyeshot. I attempted to speak, yet the cat caught my tongue and I could do nothing but mumble unintelligible sounds like an oaf, as the words trembled from my quivering lips. My hands twitched berserkly, as I glanced at my unfamiliar surroundings, the clouded figure of a gent, standing over me, still.

As my eyes adjusted, so did my surroundings, I registered I was laying on a bed, with hefty satin sheets and a great deal of pillows. My forehead pounded with pain, as the memories of last night were murky in my mind.

A gentle gloved hand was placed on my shoulder, I squeaked like a mouse, and jumped out of my skin, apparently oblivious to anything the gentleman had been saying beforehand. "Sir? Sir? Can you hear me, dear sir?". He asked softly, almost whispering.

As I became acquainted with his appearance once again, withal, my sight partially hazy and blurred.
I stared vacantly up into his penetrating blue eyes, deliriously, all the while he patiently watched me. Asking over and over if all was well. Howbeit I did not respond, I observed my own bewildered crazed eyes, in the reflection of his. Taking note of my unsightly dishevelled appearance.
And lowered my head in shame.

My hair was dishevelled, and untamed, my face saturated in sticky sudor, my collar chewed at, and torn...by god knows what, my cravat hung loosely around my neck, as for my tophat..I wasn't even going to ponder it's whereabouts. I looked like a mad man. What a disgrace! "Y- Your excellency". I faltered, my voice quivering. "Allow me to apologise for my unsightly appeara-". Withal..he interrupted, hushing me.

"Oh! Don't you worry yourself about that, my dear sir, your welfare is far more important to me". he said, smiling..
As he did so..my mind adrifted, engrossing it's self vehemently on his eccentric smile..forthwith, it evoked a portrayal of a cat..

Come to think of it..his eyes were quite bizarre, they were unhumanly incisive and sharp-witted, superficially locking onto anything at all, as if they were on a hunt. I thought I saw his pupils dilate in the glimpse of the sunlight. Even so, I disregarded it, due to the fact I must be hallucinating.

He leaned over me, then took his handkerchief out of his overcoat pocket, in addition, he began to blot it on my head tenderly. I shrinked subsatitually at this enchanting endearment, I turned timorous. I forbeared facing his gaze, like the plague, for I perceived it would solely compel me to be further bashful in his caring companionship.

So I peered at the furbelowed walls, along with the shining skirting boards, moreover other trifling matters, they perplexing piqued my famished fascination.

At that moment, my heart leapt into my throat, as my ears fixated themselves studiously on the faint echoing of small squeaks. I clenched his overcoat lapel, harshly, as if it were the last thing on earth, I'd ever lastly lay my fingers on. "D- di- did you h- hear tha-t?". I murmured, looking around absurdly.

"Hear what my dear Sir?". He Inquired, reaching down to carefully clasp my shuddering hand. His gloved fingers folded around mine, interlacing them. His gracious graze was warm, beyond benign. "The-" I swallowed thickly, trying to keep my collaspsing composure, "the squeaking of mice, do you hear it not? Pray, do tell, tell me you hear them too!". He most likely thought I was as mad as a hatter.

"My! Your skin is terribly cold! You are astionishingly pale, too! Prehaps you are majorly malnourished? Allow me, to fetch an assortment of food for you, my dear Sir". I was tremendously reluctant to see my one and only companion withdrawing, therefore, leaving me all alone. Howbeit, he did have a point, perchance the squeaking was merited by myself, on behalf of not eating, hereby coming down with a frightful fever?

Notwithstanding..that was the most dreadful decision I could have confected! It commenced, oh, ever so slothful, it was wrenching, with piffling proceedings, forbye.

First as anticipated, nighed the squeaking, it transpired to turn rowdier and rowdier, presumaptively nearer, afore I swore, it MUST be beneath the bed I was resting on.
Thereafter, it was the brunette flashes of fur, canonballing ayond the carpet, consistently. Too terribly hasty for me to scuntinise sedulously, howbeit I would without fail perceive them in the cunning corner of my eye.

Until at last, I clocked one, it came to a standstill, staring straight at me, into my snatched soul, arousing a forthcoming tragedy. It's bodeful beady-black eyes, as dark as night, leering at me with monolithic malice, it's heinously hideous hairy tail twitching like a wiggly worm! It's terrible thinned-skin ears narrowing lattermost, it's fiendful face morphed to a scandalous scowl, thereafter it beared it's four foul golden teeth at me, by and by I screamed so sonorous! Like a little lady, if at all, a passerby heard, he would have forethought a monsterous murder was taking place!

That was my solitary straw! I couldn't take it anymore! I bolted off the bed, an ignorant idea truly! Therefore thereupon, the recoil of my fiendish fever including my injuries immeshed me! Bringing me to pause in my traversing tracks, my head turned tipsy, my vision shrouded by swart smudges, I had to refrain, furthermore I clutched my sweltering forehead.

Thereafter I started seeing more mice..therein five..subsequently seven in due course ten...ensuing eighteen, I lost count! They duplicated swifter by and by brisker, apparently at the speed of sound, I did not fritter a further moment! Galloping out of the room, hitherto I felt so to speak, on the brink of toppling terribly like a stack of crumbling cards.

I never stopped charging down the hallway like a boisterious bull, until I found that gracious gentleman again.
Despite my preposterous, bizzare behaviour he did not seem that suprised at my state. I ran towards him, as if I were a child running from a monster, well that wasn't entirely untrue..the mice..they were going to get me!

I flung myself onto him, I heard him gasp, as I felt him tense for a while, until he put his arms around me, and awkwardly lifted me up. "My good Sir-". He started, but I interrupted him, "THE MICE! THE MICE! THEY ARE NEARING!!". I yelled, gripping onto his shoulders stubbornly, as speckles of brown fur dappled the floorboards to and fro, all the while a forbidding shrieking of impending doom trumpeted around me, like a cacophonous circus crowd, during which constrained my head to swirl in whirls, as if I were on a mad merry-go-round!