Cat Adventures Chapter 11: A Wrong Turn

 

 An avalanche of panic descended on me. The window had been torn down by the wolves, and two yellow eyes were staring at me maliciously. I tried to scream, but my throat suddenly grew dry and I could only let out a croak. Where was everyone? Then, my blood froze when I saw Crackers, curled up and snoring - right in front of the wolf. The wolf growled. I backed into a corner, hoping it would abandon Crackers. Then, I heard a chilling hiss. Pammy had come to my rescue, and was standing in front of the wolf, shielding Crackers. The wolf still lunged past Pammy and towards Crackers. Then, Pammy sprang on the wolf's back with a yelp. The wolf swung around, teeth barely touching Pammy's side. It kept on dealing Pammy blows, nearly pushing her off. I turned off to hide, but caught myself. I could not leave Pammy defenseless.

The wolf had almost overpowered her. As much as I was terrified of the wolf, I knew it was unjust to leave Pammy. I sprang on the wolf's neck, trying to hold it down from reaching Pammy. However, I felt her losing control, her grasp weakening. With a final jerk, the wolf sent Pammy sprawling. Then, I heard a sound. "Meaakw!" It was a distinctively feline sound, but I could not tell where it was coming from.  Then, a small head poked out of my sack and uttered the cry once more, even louder. It was Sunny, calling for help! Just as the echos began to ring, Crackers popped her head up and fled. She was safe, but I still had to battle the wolf. Still, there was no sign of the others. I flailed with paws and teeth in a desperate attempt to protect myself. "Oh, Felicia, where are you?" I moaned. I knew I would not be able to maintain control much longer.

I buried my teeth in the wolf's thick fur. The next thing, I was spinning in the air. Then, I heard a thud, stamp, stamp. If those were more wolves, I stood no chance. Then, a light was raised, casting a beam on the chaos and disorder caused by the wolf. "You need to get out of my territory now. You'll pay if you even think of harming these cats." I could faintly discern Felicia's stern face eying the wolf, illuminated by the lantern. She silently lifted her paw to eye level, and flexed her lethal, 2-inch long claws. At that one gesture, the wolf plodded out the door. I would never be able to do that. My claws would never grow back, but I was determined not to let that affect me. "Pounce, it was your little sister who attracted my attention. She saved your life and Pammy's life, and I am amazed by that. She will be a future Felini someday." I smiled, and gazed lovingly into Sunny's eyes until we fell asleep, closing our eyes simultaneously. I slept the whole morning, until I woke up to a loud honk in the afternoon. I glanced out the window, and was surprised to see a busy road, buzzing with cars and people.

 

Various smells drifted from shops along the side of the road. One smelled sweet and sugary, and another smelled pervasively of fresh fish. I hurried off to grab a fish from the wastebasket. I gobbled it down in relish, saving some bits to share. A group of children stared in fascination as the old, battered, wooden train rounded a corner. "Pounce!" called Felicia. "Ask someone how to get out of here." I popped my head out the window and asked the nearest person. However, she only glanced in surprise, shook her head, and walked off. I had several such reactions, until finally someone handed me a map. "Take this!" I threw the map to Felicia. After following the instructions, we came to a large building with a wide entryway, labeled 'MALL'. I had never heard the term, but apparently Felicia assumed it meant a passageway. However, we were very surprised by it. Stores crowded the hallways, and people milled around. Some even screamed at the carriage.

We bashed through the crowd, until we came to a large area full of smells, most of which were nauseating, but some delectable. The carriage jerked to a stop. I hopped out, and dragged Crackers with me, following the smell of meat. It led us to a fast food counter. Crackers looked at me, a mischievous glint in her eyes. We hid behind the counter, making sure our ears did not stick up. I mimicked a high nasal voice, saying "One colossal cheeseburger, please." A few stifled giggles emanated from Crackers. In a few minutes, a large burger appeared. Crackers took it, and I deposited a few of the green papers I found in my human's purse on the counter. Then, I took all the buy-1-get-1 free makeup from another store (isn't that what buy-1-get-1 free means?). This was a very odd passage! With paws and mouth full of my acquisitions, I, rather difficultly, hobbled back. After I gave Felicia some of the cheeseburger, we set off again in search of the exit. "Halt!" someone called. Felicia hopped out of the wagon, and snapped, "Who do you think you are to tell Felicia Felini to stop?" I watched as the person raised his eyebrows, and retreating, knowing Felicia would not back down.

Eventually we figured that the word 'mall' did not mean a passage, and found our way out, back onto the road. Felicia scratched an X on the map and said, "We're back on track!" I made an entry in my journal, and tried teaching an exasperated Sunny how to read. Hours passed of me trying to educate an uncooperative Sunny, until we reached a fork in the road. "Which way?" called Felicia. "Pounce has the map." Slowly she began heading right. "Wait, Felicia! It says to go left!" With great difficulty and tremors, the whole train was manipulated backwards, to the left. I glanced at the sun, slowly sinking in the horizon, casting a golden orange light. "When should we stop?" I asked Felicia. "When we reach open forest." Whenever that will be, I thought.