Misty the Scared Kitten
Read Misty the Scared Kitten Online
Authors: Ella Moonheart
‘Grandma! Grandma!’ shouted Kitty Kimura excitedly. ‘A postcard’s arrived from Mum and Dad!’
Kitty ran to the kitchen. Emails were nice, but she loved getting post! The card had a picture of a waving ceramic cat on it. In Japan, they were a sign of good luck. Her parents were in Japan again now.
Grandma was pouring tea into her
flowery cup. She smiled as Kitty read the short message aloud and then stuck the postcard on the fridge.
Kitty’s grandma had been born in Japan, but moved to England when Kitty’s dad was little. Kitty’s parents now owned a shop that sold special Japanese things, and Kitty loved all the silky kimonos, colourful fans and sparkly mobile phone charms. Three times a year, her parents went to Tokyo to look for new things for the shop.
Grandma lived with Kitty and her parents, so they spent lots of time together, especially when Mum and Dad were away. Kitty missed them, but she loved being with Grandma. They even looked alike, with the same
almond-shaped eyes. But Kitty’s hair was long and black, while Grandma’s bob had a streak of pure white on one side of her fringe.
‘What shall we do for the rest of the week, Kitty-cat?’ Grandma said.
Kitty’s real name was Koemi, but
she loved cats so much that she was given the nickname Kitty, and now everyone called her that!
Just as Kitty was about to answer, the phone rang.
‘I’ll get it,’ Kitty offered, running into the living room.
She picked up the phone. ‘Hello?’
‘Kitty!’ said an eager voice. ‘It’s me, Jenny!’
Kitty was surprised. Jenny was her best friend, but they hardly ever phoned each other, because Jenny only lived three houses away. ‘Hi!’ she replied.
‘Can you come to my house for a sleepover tonight?’ Jenny burst out. ‘I have something really exciting to show you!’
Kitty giggled. Jenny was always
cheerful, but today she sounded even happier than usual. ‘What is it?’ she asked.
Jenny paused for a second. ‘Well … I was going to keep it a surprise until you got here, but I can’t wait. I’ve got a kitten!’
Kitty gasped. ‘Jenny, you’re so lucky!’ she said, a smile spreading over her face. ‘Why didn’t you tell me before?’
‘I didn’t know until today!’ Jenny explained. Kitty could hear her friend bouncing up and down excitedly. ‘Mum kept it a surprise until I got home from school. My Auntie Megan is moving to America and she couldn’t take her kitten with her – so she’s given Misty to me! Wait till you see her, Kitty. She’s gorgeous. She’s pale grey with darker
grey stripes. Mum says she’s a silver tabby. And I think she likes me already. As soon as Auntie Megan brought her over, she ran straight up to me and rubbed herself all around my ankles!’
‘I can’t believe it,’ Kitty said wistfully. ‘I
love
cats.’
‘I know! That’s why I rang you straight away,’ Jenny replied. ‘It’ll be as if she’s your cat too! So can you come? We can play with Misty all evening!’
‘Let me ask Grandma,’ Kitty told her friend. ‘I’ll call you right back!’
She put down the phone and raced back into the kitchen. ‘Grandma!’ she called breathlessly. ‘Can I sleep over at Jenny’s house tonight? She’s just got a
kitten
!’
Grandma put down her teacup. ‘A kitten?’ she replied slowly. ‘Well, that’s lovely for Jenny … but, Kitty, you know you start to sneeze as soon as you’re anywhere near a cat.’
Kitty bit her lip. It was true. Ever since she was a baby she had been allergic to cats. It made her feel sad and a bit cross, because cats were her favourite animals in the whole world. She loved their bright eyes, their silky fur, and the soft rumble of their purring.
Most of all, she liked imagining what the cats in her village got up to at night, when people were fast asleep! What made it even harder was that cats seemed to really like
her
, too. They always followed her down the street,
rubbing their soft heads against her ankles and miaowing eagerly. Kitty couldn’t resist bending down to stroke them, but she always ended up with sore eyes and a runny nose.
‘Oh, please, Grandma,’ she begged. ‘I’ll take lots of tissues, and if I start to get itchy eyes or a tickly nose, I’ll stop playing with Misty straight away, I promise.’
Grandma gazed thoughtfully at Kitty. ‘Well, maybe you are old enough now,’ she murmured softly, with the hint of a smile on her lips.
‘What do you mean, Grandma?’ asked Kitty, frowning.
Old enough that my allergy will be gone?
she thought, confused.
‘Never mind,’ Grandma told her, shaking her head. ‘Wait here, sweetheart. I have something for you.’
Kitty bit her lip, curious. Grandma sometimes acted a bit strangely. She often took long naps at funny times, and she would stay up late, saying she was watching her favourite TV programmes. But now she was behaving even more oddly than normal.
When Grandma came back, she placed something carefully into Kitty’s hands. It was a slim silver chain with a small charm hanging from it. At first Kitty thought there were Japanese symbols on it. But as she looked more closely, she saw it was a tiny picture of a cat.
‘Wow,’ breathed Kitty, slipping the necklace over her head. ‘It’s beautiful.’
Grandma smiled and reached under her blue silk scarf to show Kitty a matching necklace. ‘I have one too,’ she explained. ‘They have been in our family for a long time. Yours belonged to your great-grandmother. I’ve been
keeping it safe until the right moment. It’s very precious, and I know you will take good care of it. Make sure you wear it at Jenny’s house. I think it will help with your allergies.’
‘You mean … I’m allowed to go?’ cried Kitty. ‘Thank you, Grandma!’
Kitty flung her arms around Grandma, though she was puzzled about what she’d said about the necklace. How could a piece of jewellery stop her from sneezing? But she was too excited to ask questions. She was going for a sleepover at her best friend’s house, and she was going to play with a sweet little kitten!
Half an hour later, Kitty and Grandma set off for Jenny’s house, swinging Kitty’s overnight bag between them. As soon as Kitty pressed the doorbell, the door burst open. Jenny’s freckled face was flushed pink with excitement. ‘I couldn’t wait for you to get here!’ she said with a grin. ‘Quick – come and meet Misty!’