L.L. Diamond

 

Hi everyone! Since JustJane1813 is still down, I thought I’d share the post I wrote for Claudine here. I hope everyone enjoys it! If you haven’t read Unwrapping Mr. Darcy, then run to Amazon and pick up your copy!

 

I’ve never written anything from a cat’s point of view, so I hope it’s at least a little funny!

 

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The evening wasn’t quite normal, if you ask me. First, my human usually took her favorite place on the sofa and read after I ate my dinner. She’d lounge across the sofa with a blanket over her legs, and I’d settle in that cozy nook between her thigh and the side of the sofa, stretched out so she could scratch behind my ears back. I’d nap until it was time for her to go to bed, I’d play with my mousie, then I’d curl up next to her and fall asleep.

The first hint tonight was different was while I waited for her to dish out my food. Normally, she fixed herself something and hold out bits for me to sniff. I love the different smells—except that one thing she held out! It made me want to hack up a hairball!

The oddity didn’t stop then. When I finished eating, she wasn’t sitting on the sofa. Instead, I found her laying out her clothes on the bed. Was she going somewhere? Well, I could put a stop to that! I jumped up to the bed and dropped onto the nearest dress, but she moved me and wagged her finger in my face. Of all the nerve! I only wanted to spend a cozy evening with her, and if she had to leave, she could’ve left me where I was. That spot would’ve made a perfect place for my after-dinner bath.

While she changed into one of the dresses, I sat and stared. She had been acting so strangely lately. She also smelled different when she came home, so she was going somewhere different than she used to. I just didn’t know where. Then, she began bringing home those boxes. That was when things really changed.

I still have no clue what hid inside those boxes, though I’d like to hide inside them. Every day she came home with one, and every day, she’d put them in the room with those huge bookshelves I liked to climb. That room was now always closed. My human had never closed off rooms to me before. Okay, sure, maybe if I knocked something off a table, but that never lasted long. But how was I supposed to know what was inside them if I never got to sniff or bite on them to see what they smelled and tasted like. She always lets me smell things. What was so special about those boxes?

“Don’t sulk. You’re a cat. You aren’t supposed to give me the stink eye if I leave. Besides, I know that once the door closes behind me, you’ll drink the water from the Christmas tree, play with the ornaments, and fall asleep on top of your kitty tower. You won’t miss me yelling at you to stop misbehaving.”

Misbehave? Me?

I yawned and my human laughed, turned to face me, and held out her arms. “Do you approve?”

Approve? What was there to approve of? The dress would be much nicer on the bed where I could roll all over it, but if she wanted to wear it, who was I to stop her?

Back to that closed room and the boxes! Why was I so worried about those?  All the stressing over it was exhausting! I hadn’t taken my after-dinner bath either. I took a long lick down my foot and dragged it over my ear.

“You could’ve said something. A hiss would’ve at least been a little helpful. A chirp even? Perhaps a meow?”

I glanced up to see my human staring at me with her arms at her sides. What did I do? I was just laying here taking my bath.

At that ringing sound from the door to the outside, I made a chirp and looked up as my human hurried out the door. Normally, I’d follow behind, but I had a long overdue bath to finish. Not long after, the front door closed loudly, and I sighed and lay my head on the bed. It might not be the sofa, but it was the best spot for a nap when she wasn’t home.

 

~ * ~

 

When my eyes slowly blinked open, the room was darker and no light came from the hallway. She still wasn’t home. I stood and stretched out. That delicious pull in my back and legs felt like heaven after waking up! I hopped down from the bed and wandered around the house. She definitely hadn’t come home, so what was I supposed to do? I scanned the living room before I remembered that my favorite mousie was under the sofa. I dug him out and batted him around until it landed near the sofa. That was when I saw it. When I caught a glimpse of something out of the corner of my eye.

I looked in that direction and a tiny glimmer came from one of those balls on the tree my human brought home a couple of weeks ago. I crept closer and stood on my hind legs, lightly putting my front legs on the lower branches for balance, but I couldn’t reach. What was it? Could I play with it? Would it roll or move so I could chase it?

Maybe if I climbed up from the inside, I could reach? Carefully, I crept under the lowest hanging branches and between gifts. When I reached the middle, I reached up, digging my claws into the trunk. Climbing the bottom half was easy, but I couldn’t see the flash of light I saw from the floor. Where had it gone? Maybe if I went to the top, I could find it?

I scurried up further until something brushed my face. When I looked up, the dress on the angel at the top was in my way so I pushed the rest of the way. The angel fell as I cleared the needles at the top bouncing off the coffee table and landing somewhere off where I couldn’t see.

The tree shifted under me and I moved to the opposite side. It swayed in that direction, and I frantically grasped at the tip so I didn’t fall. I stayed on top but the tree fell out from underneath me and landed across the coffee table with a thump. A few small tinkling sounds came from below while I scrambled off and ran into the bedroom as fast as I could, my hair standing on end.

I hid under the bed until I was sure nothing chased me, creeping out and taking one step at a time as I made my way back out to the tree. When I approached, I saw that little glimmer on a red ball on the floor. I got it! I crouched low, watched it intently, and wiggled my butt as I honed in on my prey. When I pounced, it rolled across the floor and the chase was on!

I don’t remember how long I played, but I heard the jingle that always comes right before my human opens the door. I couldn’t wait to show her my new toy! I hurried through the hall and when I jumped on the table she put there just for me, I slid to a stop, poking my head around to greet her as the door opened. She picked me up and cuddled me, which I always love when she comes home. She carried me into the living room, but I hurdled from her arms to the back of the sofa when she yelled.

I found a new toy. What possibly could be wrong with that?