The Neighborhood Animals

Chapter Two: The First Escape

Time spent with cats is never wasted.

- Sigmund Freud

Chapter Two: The First Escape

Until winter rolled around, Pippo had a very happy life. He would wake up early in the morning eat his breakfast and go straight back to sleep. He would wake up again when Mia woke up to eat her breakfast, before going off for her bath. While she ate buttered toast, an omlette and a cup of hot tea, he would wait till she fed him bits of the toast. If she forgot – he would meow at her to remind her about it.

When she was gone throughout the day, the day would be a bore. He would lounge around the house, be half asleep, eat his meals, at times blackmail Mummy (for that’s what he called Mia’s mother) to play with him. He looked forward to the evening because that meant Mia would be home and after giving him a welcome hug, they’d play their favorite game of kitty lock and key.

“I have to go study now,” Mia would say after an hour or so of playing, and pet him on the head, “Be good now, Pippo.”

“Mi,” he would say, and purr. She would scratch him behind the ears, set him down on all fours and disappear into her room.

From inside her room, Mia would often hear her mother sigh, “Did your sister lock you out of the room again, Mi? It’s okay…you come with me now.”

“I have Board exams to pass,” Mia would yell from her own room, “Pippo can manage to be by himself for a few hours, can’t he?”

“You should’ve thought about that before you brought him into this house,” her mother would call back to her.

Mia would groan.

When her sister came home during the holidays during Kali Pujo, she brought gifts for everyone. Including Pippo, or exclusively for Pippo – would be a better fitting word here.

“I got him a scratch post,” Tua, the elder sister announced, as she fixed the post up for him.

“Say, what now?” asked Mia, surprised, “You brought a scratch post for a desi billi?”

“Shut up, Mia,” Tua scolded, “I am sure he’ll like the gifts I got him.”

The only gift Pippo liked were the cat treats she’d gotten him, and the bowl where Mummy would pour them in everyday.

“Well at least she likes him now,” Zinnia had comforted her, when an upset Mia recounted how almost every present in Tua’s bag had been for Pippo, during lunch time the following day.

“Likes him? I think she’d have taken him away with her, if she could.” Mia replied, crossing her arms, in front of her chest, “Now she cannot stop going on and on about Mi. I mean, Pippo.”

“I guess now you know how we’ve been feeling these past few days,” said Jijo, quietly.

Mia glared at him, and he grinned back at her, “C’mon, Drama Queen. Things cannot be that bad. They always fall into place.”

“Yeah, even if it does blow up into pieces…we’ll be right here, helping you pick them up.” Zinnia said, giving her friend a quick hug, “For now, just enjoy the fact the kitten you love so much is being loved by everyone you truly care about.”

Kali Pujo is the noisiest, loudest, brightest and sparkling pujos of all the festivals celebrated in Bengal. And cats have thirty two muscles in each ear – which meant poor Pippo was nearly deafened during this amazing festival. He sought refuge under Mummy’s huge bed, and refused to come out, even when Mia, flying flat on her stomach, pleaded him with to show his furry face to him. He buried his face with his front paws, and wished that the music would stop. He hadn’t seen Brown and White Little for a long time now. He wondered where on Earth those two trouble makers were.

“Okay, Pippo, if you’re not coming out, I am going to go now. I’m leaving your bowl of water by the edge of the bed. Take care, see you in the morning.” Mini owner’s voice came from the far end of the bed.

“Mi,” he said, faintly. But he knew not possessing the sharp ears of a kitten; he wouldn’t be heard by her.

His wonderings were answered the next day, when he went to sit outside on the window ledge. Brown and White Little were back and as usual they were calling out to him.

“Hey House Cat, are you ever going to man up and come out?” Brown taunted.

“Oh shut up, your worthless piece of spiky fur,” snarled back Pippo.

“Or what would you do?” Brown continued teasing him, “Snarl me to death? Oooh, I’m scared.”

“Just you…” said Pippo, taking a swipe at midair.

“Don’t,” said White Little, quietly, “Don’t you see? He might fall…and he’s not trained.”

“Ooohh…he’s not trained. That’s his excuse for not answering the summons?” Brown just wouldn’t shut up, “Oh darling, house cat, you are one tough cookie.”

“MY NAME IS PIPPO!” yelled Pippo furiously, and then without quite knowing how, he lost his balance, and started a free fall.

“PIPPO!” yelled a vaguely familiar voice. His mini owner had come into the room in time to witness her beloved cat and brother falling off his perch on the ledge.

The last thing he saw were a pair of anxious brown eyes, before he landed on the window roof below, on his back. “Ow,” he sighed.

There was commotion going on right under the window roof Pippo had landed on, retreated to a corner. Although he had longed to be outside the house – he didn’t think he was ready for it. Hearing angry and raised voices, he peered downstairs and what he saw made his eyes almost bulge out.

There was his mini owner armed with a ladder and placing it up against the window roof. There was someone else standing right next to her, and they seemed to be arguing. Probably about who should climb up the ladder to rescue him, Pippo thought.

“Look, Neighbor,” Mia told the boy, who was two heads taller than her in a rude voice, “That’s my kitten who is stuck up there, so I am going to climb up and get him.”

“My name is Shekar, Mia,” he said, quietly, “And I don’t think you have the expertise to climb this ladder. I’m sorry – but I am not watching you fall and break an arm or something.”

“You’ve been so busy lately, that you’ve not had the time to even look at me. Why do you care now?” yelled Mia.

“That’s the ladder you just borrowed from my house, don’t you think I’ll not care?” Shekar asked, with utmost patience. “C’mon don’t risk your neck.”

“Just get my kitten to me,” said Mia, glumly, “Go!”

Pippo lay in wait for the head that would bob up any second, with his paw at the ready. When he saw the face, he was so disarmed by the good looking youth – he only stared at him.

“Here, kitty, kitty, kitty…” Shekar said, stretching out his hand scooping up Pippo. He placed him gently by his side and called out to Mia, “Here, catch your cat.”

Mia was already there, “Kitten!” she snarled as she caught him perfectly and he nuzzled closer to her, “What were you thinking, Pippo?”

She began walking back upstairs to their house, when an indignantly voice called after her, “Hey! A thank you would’ve been nice.”

“Mu?” said Pippo, curiously, wondering why his otherwise sweet owner was being so mean to the handsome boy who’d just rescued him.

But Mia ignored them both.