From: Snowcat To: TLK-L Subject: The Windy Day (was: Re: The Savanna Steak House (off topic)) Date: Wednesday, February 04, 1998 6:47 PM From: Rindimo >Hello, all! After reading snowcat's hillarious little furry stories, I * the little cat purrs and preens a bit at the kind words. It inspires him to write somethting else... The page just wouldn't behave. As quickly as Snowy could clamp down a big paw on one corner, the brisk savannah breeze would catch another corner and set it whipping noisily. So intent was the cat on trying to pin down the errant page, he didn't see the other approaching until a little furry body landed in the middle of the paper, startling the snow leopard to near heart failure. "Whatcha doin' unkie Snowy?" asked the little black cub. "Reading a story," said Snowcat. "What story?" asked the cub brightly. "The one you're standing on," replied the other patiently. The cub giggled. "Oops," he said, stepping back off the paper, which sprang free the moment his weight was removed. Snowcat pounced, nearly bowling the little cub over as he sprang after the sheet. Wembly shook his head and then bound after the larger cat. "So what's the story about?" he queried. "Will you read it to me?" "Well, okay," said Snowcat hesitantly. "I'll read it to you, but you have to help me hold down the corners. It's a story about a Savannah steak house." The two cats wrestled the page down, and between the two of them, managed to hold it down flat against the gusts. Snowcat cleared his throat and was just preparing to read, when another voice called out. "Hihi! What're are you guys up to?" "Hi Tam!" called Wembly chipperly. "Snowy is just reading me a story." "Oh?" said Tamarik, "Mind if I sit in?" "Um," began the snow leopard, but if he had been contemplating any kind of objection, Wembly enthusiastically overrode it. "Sure," he agreed. "You just gotta help hold down the corners." The leopard nosed Wembly aside and planted a golden paw firmly on the corner of the page. The poor snow leopard didn't even get to the throat-clearing stage this time when a voice rumbled out from behind him. "What's this, a feline convention?" asked Ahadi, with an inflection of his usual good-natured amusement. "What have you got there?" "Snowy's reading us a story," said Tamarik and Wembly together. Ahadi nodded somberly. "Ah, a story," he said. "I like a good story. I hope you don't mind if I lie down within earshot." "Within earshot of what?" called out Logozo, pulling his massive shelled form through the tall grass. "Alright," said Ahadi, pointing with a paw. "Kublia, if you'll just slide your rump over a bit and make room for Elfasi to sit, I think we've got the whole Pride Lands assembled here." He turned back to Snowcat. "Okay, Snowy, I think you can start reading now." The little snow leopard glanced around at all the assembled sea of faces, muzzles and beaks. He swallowed back on a nervous hairball and turned his attention to the printed page before him. A look of concentration molded itself across his furry visage as he peered closely at the page. "Urm," he said, scrunching up the bridge of his nose and twisting around his head to examine the page from another angle. In part, he was trying to turn himself a bit so that he wouldn't see all the eyes. They lay on him like a physical force, boring into his soul with their piercing gazes of judgement. The shy little cat found it hard to breathe under the weight of their combined attention. "Snowy, what's wrong?" asked Mano gently. The snow leopard jumped. "I'm just nervous with everybody staring at me," he answered, not looking up from the sheet. With a sigh, he sidled around the page to look at it from a different angle, pushing Tamarik aside in the process. After another moment of silence, he emitted another, "Urm..." "Do you actually know how to read?" said Tamarik on a whim. "Yes! No! Well, sort of..." blurted Snowcat. "I mean, I thought I'd just figure it out as I went along." A groan ran through the assembled group. "Sorry," said the snow leopard sheepishly. With many a grunt, and whuff, and shuffle of feet, the creatures of the Pride Lands turned to leave. "I think I'll go rustle up a wildebeest." "If anyfur want's me, I'll be down at the waterhole." "I'm gonna go stir things up at the elephant graveyard." One by one, the Pride Land denizens moved away, leaving only silence in their wake - except for the gentle snoring of Wembly, who had fallen asleep curled up on his corner of the page. Even the wind had died down. "Wem, wake up!" said Snowcat, gently nudging the cub. "Mrowr?" said Wembly, shaking himself awake and blinking blearily. "Oh no! Everyone's gone! Did I miss the story?" Snowy chuckled warmly. "Of course not," he said, "I was just about to start. Now hold down your corner of the sheet and sit up straight." He cleared his throat and begin to read in his soft, melodic snow leopard voice. "It was a day of tension. Anxiety. Butterflies. First day of working a real job...." The End Snowcat