It was morning and after Miss M’lu changed and tidied up the bedroom she got me breakfast.

“Eat up, Nina,” she said. “This is the last packaged food you’ll ever eat. Tonight I’m going to see how you like real food.”

I didn’t know what she meant but these kibbles were all right.

She put a bowl of warm milk next to the food. It smelled different. I tasted it.

“Mewum-mm! Mewum-mm!” I slurped happily. “This is good!”

“Well I see you like that. It’s goat’s milk and better for you than the other cow milk you had last night.”

“Mewum-mm!” I agreed with milky whiskers.

The bedroom door was open now so with a full tummy I went to check things out.

“Well, you finally decided to come out little molly kit!” I heard someone saying to me. It was that huge cat.

“Mew-hi”, I said tentatively.

“Com’on,” he said in a friendly voice. “I don’t bite.”

“What’s your name?” I questioned.

“Ringo.”

“Oh. Hiya ‘Ingo”.

“It’s Ringo! Ringo!”

“That’s what I said, ‘Ingo.”

“Oh, brother!” he exclaimed.

“Wanna play?” I asked as I pounced on his swishing tail.

“No.”

I started chewing on it.

‘Swat’ I went rolling.

“I said no!”

“Okay, I can take a hint” and headed off to the kitchen.

There was a bowl with water there so I stopped and lapped some up. I walked, sniffing everything around. There was a big door but it was closed. I couldn’t go in so I turned around and went back into the living room where Ringo was lying.   As I walked by he got up.

“How’s about I show you around, molly kit?”

“That’d be great, but my name’s Nina”, I explained.

“I know, molly kit,” he snickered, “and it’s a right pretty name. Suits you fine.”

“Wow, look at all those books!” I exclaimed when we walked into the library.

“Here, let me show you something.”

On a bottom shelf he shoved some books aside and crawled behind them.

“It’s a good hiding place when you want to be alone.”

He barely fit and had to shove his way in but there was plenty of room for me. Miss M’lu was just passing by.

“What are you two doing!” she exclaimed. “Ringo, now I know why I’m always finding books on the floor! And now you’re teaching Nina! Really!” she chuckled with a smile.

“You both look so cute and guilty back there. Come out and go play someplace else while I put the books back.

We were walking around when we ran into Friendly. She hissed and growled at both of us.

“Friendly! Stop it!” Miss M’lu called from the library. Friendly walked away from us with a low growl following her.

“Why is she so grouchy?” I asked Ringo. “And why is her name ‘Friendly’ when she’s anything but?”

“Her name is “Friendly” because she really likes people a lot.   She’s a people cat. It’s us she doesn’t like,” he explained.

“I can’t figure her out, though,” he continued. “There used to be another cat here. His name was Tippy. He’s gone over the Rainbow Bridge. I think she loved him because they were always together. They slept side by side all the time and groomed each other. Even though I was just a kitten like you I could see they were very close. It’s funny because even back then she always hissed at me.”

“Oh, some months back she finally stopped being crabby and then just sort of tolerated me”

“That’s so sad. Maybe she misses Tippy. But, ‘Ingo, she was hissing at you today!”

“That’s ’cause you’re here and I’m with you.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. She’ll get back to tolerating us both and things will be fine.”

Ringo finally warmed to me and the rest of the day was spent playing and napping.

“Who’s hungry?” I heard Miss M’lu call out. “Dinnertime!”

Ringo bounded to the kitchen and Friendly sauntered in. I followed.

She put some food together and picking me up took me to my cat mat in the master bathroom, closing the door behind her. She put me down and placed the food next to me. I sniffed it. It was not something I recognized but it sure smelled tantalizing! I took a nibble.

“Mewum-mm, this is good! So much better than kibbles.”

“Well, Nina, I can see there won’t be any problem with you eating a raw diet, not the way you’re scarfing down that hamburger.” She left to feed the others.

“This is tastier than anything I’ve had before. And some more of that warm goat’s milk to top it off!” I  said satisfied.

I started to wash my face and felt a nap attack coming on. I went to my secret place under the bed to finish washing up before nodding off.

A long time later I heard Miss M’lu come into the room and get ready for bed. I crawled out and watched her. We played for a while with a string she had brought for me. When she got under the covers I still wanted to play but she started reading. I grabbed onto the blanket and started to pull myself up.

“I made it!” I said with a surprised mew.

“Good girl! Look at her, she climbed up with no help!”

I was beaming!

Ringo was laying on the Hope Chest and he gave me an encouraging look.

“You’re doing great, little molly kit,” he said.

Friendly looked down from the top of the bureau where she was spending the night.

“Kids!” she commented.

Miss M’lu threw the mouse on the floor and without thinking I jumped down after it.

“Oh no, I’m on the floor again!”

“Okay, Nina, let’s see if you can come up once more,” and she started to wiggle the string along the edge of the bed.

Without a thought I clawed up after the string and landed on the bed!

“Wow, that was easy!” I exclaimed surprised at myself.

“Oh you’re good, Nina, and so smart! I guess there’s no keeping you off the bed now,” she laughed.

We played until I got tired and she started reading again. I zonked out all stretched across the other side of the bed next to her.

The phone rang.