1 Kat Fish

Kat sat on the shed roof under the branches of the old oak tree where it was cooler. Green moss covered the roof, feeling soft under his paws. Kat sat there, watching and waiting. He’d been there most of the morning, after his usual stroll around the bins at the end of the back lane where the Big Folks left them for ‘Big Noise’ day.

As he watched and waited, he began to nod off again - cat napping as only cats know how to do properly. His left ear twitched, and he opened his eyes slowly. Nothing yet, so he watched and waited some more. Cat napping to pass the time.

After a while, when the sun was near the middle of the sky and it was beginning to get hot on the shed roof, even under the shade of the old oak tree, Kat’s ear twitched and he opened his eyes again. This time the back door of the house opened.

Out came Ratter, a young cat with grey fur and a white tip on his tail matching the white tips on each of his paws. Ratter meowed at his Big Folk Owner, who was carrying a feeding bowl.

“Yes, yes!” said Jane, the Big Folk owner of Ratter - who she called ‘Socks’.
‘Meow’ replied Ratter, now winding himself through the legs of Big Folk Jane.
“Here you go Socks, now it’s still warm so don’t scoff it all at once!”

As Kat watched, he knew he’d been right to wait. When Big Folk Jane put it down he could see that in the silver bowl was fish. Freshly cooked gleaming white fish. Kat caught a tantalising sniff of it on the breeze - most definitely fish.

Climbing down from the shed roof, quiet and slow, Kat carefully crept through the tall grass from the back of the garden. Big Folk Jane patted Ratter on the head, who had already started eating the still-hot, boiled white fish. Then she went back inside the house.

As Kat approached across the mown lawn, Ratter looked up eyeing him suspiciously. Ratter kept chomping on his mouthful of fish.

Padding onto the stone slabs of the back terrace, Kat lowered his head and let out a long low growl.
“Grroowhal,” he said which meant ‘I want that fish’.
Ratter chomped up another bite then with his mouth still full he said ‘Rroowahll”.
Which meant ‘It’s mine, just for me!’

‘Not today’ growled Kat. ‘I’m here’ he added as he slowly padded closer.
Ratter chomped quickly, trying to swallow another mouthful.
‘But it’s mine’ Ratter whined.
‘Not today’ Kat repeated. Then quick as a flash, he streaked out a paw and caught some of the fish. Patting it out of the bowl and onto the terrace beside him.
‘No fair’ hissed Ratter.
But Kat had already devoured the still-hot fish. It tasted good. The best thing he’d tasted in days.
Ratter whined ‘You’re bigger than me, but I’ll fight ya!’ he growled.
Kat whipped his tail back and forth and bristled his whiskers.
‘No you won’t’ he growled back ‘Not if you want to keep your ears’.

Ratter dropped his head like he was going to pounce. He’d met Kat before in the back alley. He’d seen Kat face off against ‘Towzer’ the biggest ginger tom in the whole neighbourhood. Ratter knew Kat was a fearsome cat and that he was a house cat who didn’t go outside much, so he backed off instead.

‘Scat’ hissed Kat.
Ratter turned and ran - back into the house through the cat flap as fast as he could.
‘Thought so’ growled Kat, who took another huge bite of the boiled white fish from Ratter’s bowl. It tasted so good, even better from a bowl. He chomped some more, letting out a contented purr.

“Socks,” exclaimed Big Folk Jane when Ratter sped past her in the kitchen.
“You finished that bowlful already?” she followed Ratter into the front room, where he went to hide next to the sofa.
“What’s the matter?” she said when she saw him, with his big round eyes.
“OH! I bet it’s that brute of a tabby cat!” Big Folk Jane turned on her heel and went back through the kitchen.
“I’ll get him,” she said as she snatched up a dishcloth and headed for the back door.

Kat was happily chomping his way through the boiled fish. He’d eaten more than half of it when he heard the rattle of the back door opening and Big Folk Jane came around the corner of the house.

“Oh you big brute!” she said when she saw Kat crouched at Ratter’s feeding bowl.
‘What?’ meowed Kat.
“Shoo …” Big Folk Jane waved the blue and red checked dishcloth at him.
Kat instinctively ducked and chomped up another mouthful of fish.
“Get away!” Big Folk Jane was waving the dishcloth like a matador as she stomped towards Kat.

Just when she was almost too close, Kat turned and fled back up the garden, onto the back wall. He stood there looking back past Big Folk Jane, at the half-eaten bowl of gleaming white fish.
“Go on! Get away with you!” Big Folk Jane shouted at him.

Kat liked his lips with his pink tongue. Another Cat’s Fish always tastes nicer he thought. Then he jumped down into the back alley to look for his next meal.