Alfie in the Snow. Rachel Wells

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СКАЧАТЬ he was going as well, although to be fair he didn’t always seem to know. Sometimes he said he was going to the park, sometimes to see if any of the other cats were around. So far I had resisted the urge to follow him, but only just. Instead I would pace up and down or watch out of an upstairs window for his return. And thankfully he always came home and never stayed out too long. Otherwise the worry would probably have turned my fur even greyer than it already was.

      So, this afternoon I thought I would catch up on some of my personal cat business. I enjoyed time alone to have a thorough grooming session – after all, when you’re a parent you always seem to be having to rush your ablutions, and then I would enjoy some thinking time. It’s hard to think when you’ve got youngsters always wanting your attention. So, as much as I worried about George, now he was more independent I was beginning to enjoy some ‘me time’ as well. I settled on Claire and Jonathan’s bed – Jonathan didn’t like me being on there, Claire didn’t mind – because it was incredibly comfortable and one of my favourite places to muse.

      The front door opened, and the rush of voices and children interrupted my thinking time. I stretched, yawned and then headed downstairs where to my joy I found my families all together in the kitchen. George was hopping among them.

      ‘Oh hi, Alfie,’ Tommy said, coming over to pet me. I saw a number of fat pumpkins on the kitchen table. Ah, of course, it was the weird thing that humans celebrated called Halloween.

      ‘I want to carve my pumpkin all on my own,’ Summer said. Claire looked terrified and I agreed. The idea of Summer with a knife was not good.

      ‘Sum, let me help you and Martha,’ Tommy suggested kindly. ‘It’ll be better than letting the adults take over.’ She considered his offer and agreed.

      ‘And Aleksy, maybe you can help Toby and Henry?’ Franceska suggested.

      ‘Do I have to?’ Aleksy answered, sounding surly which wasn’t like him, although it was lately. ‘I’m too old for all this.’

      ‘Yes you do,’ Franceska snapped and she, Polly and Claire exchanged glances.

      ‘We’d be very grateful if you would,’ Polly said, trying to calm the situation.

      ‘Fine.’ Aleksy made it sound as if it was anything but.

      Claire made drinks for the grown-ups as the children sat at the table in the kitchen and began carving their pumpkins.

      ‘Hey,’ Henry said. ‘Let’s have a competition to see which one is the scariest.’ They all seemed to like this idea, although I knew from experience the only one who would end up liking it was the child who won.

      ‘What costumes are everyone wearing this year?’ Franceska asked. ‘I miss my boys dressing up.’

      ‘We’re too old to dress up,’ both Tommy and Aleksy said at the same time.

      ‘Summer wants to be a witch, and Toby is insisting on being a superhero,’ Claire said.

      ‘And I’m going to be a superhero too,’ Henry said. Toby and Henry were quite close and often copied each other.

      ‘I’m going to be a cat,’ Martha announced.

      This news surprised me; after all, there were two cats here.

      ‘Oh, you can be Summer’s cat,’ Franceska said.

      ‘And George,’ Summer piped up.

      ‘Sum wants me to dye George black,’ Claire explained.

      My whiskers twitched and George looked terrified. Imagine, my lovely kitten being dyed black!

      ‘Don’t worry George, it won’t happen. But I had to promise to make you a little witch’s hat to compensate.’

      ‘So, Summer, Martha and George will all share a broomstick,’ Henry explained. I wasn’t sure about George and a broomstick but we’d have to see.

      ‘Where are we getting a broomstick from?’ Claire asked, worriedly. ‘I’ve only got a kitchen broom.’

      ‘We need a proper broomstick,’ Summer shouted.

      ‘Don’t worry, I’ve ordered one from the internet,’ Polly said. Halloween was a lot of work, it seemed.

      George was on the kitchen table and I could barely watch as he dodged the knives, seemingly unaware of the danger he faced. I heard him make a funny sound, which worried me.

      ‘Ahh,’ Toby cried. ‘George spat pumpkin over me.’ We all looked and Toby had a splat of pumpkin on his face. George glanced over to me as if to say, ‘I didn’t know it wouldn’t taste good.’ I raised my whiskers again. My curious son would never learn, it seemed, as he tried to lick Toby’s face.

      The rest of the carving passed without incident. As the four children proudly presented their finished pumpkins, it was up to the adults to choose a winner. As Aleksy and Tommy had done most of the work it didn’t seem fair but then the older boys didn’t seem to mind as Aleksy wandered off to do something on his phone and Tommy went to the fridge to find a snack.

      ‘It’s a draw,’ Polly announced diplomatically.

      ‘Absolutely,’ Claire agreed, ‘they are all far too good.’

      Thankfully the children all seemed to accept this. Summer and Toby’s pumpkins were placed on the front doorstep, with a lit candle in each – I warned George to stay away – so that Jonathan would be able to admire them when he got home.

      As everyone said their goodbyes, Henry and Martha proudly clutching their pumpkins to their chests, they arranged to go ‘trick or treating’ the following day after school.

      ‘I can’t wait to go trick or treating,’ George said to me when we were alone.

      ‘Well, you know Claire said you had to wear a hat,’ I pointed out.

      ‘Yeah, I’m not pleased about that but at least they’re not going to dye me black,’ he replied. And I had to agree.

      ‘Oh, and George, no more eating the pumpkin.’

      ‘No Dad, it tasted really weird.’

       Chapter Three

      Even I had to admit to being excited. George had been unbearable today; he was so keen to go trick or treating, that from the morning he was badgering me about the time. It was a very long day until I bundled him off to find Tiger, telling him how much she would love to hear about the pumpkin carving and the evening ahead. It did buy me a little bit of peace and quiet and I would apologise to Tiger later.

      What I was most excited about was the fact that when trick or treating we would definitely go to the new next-door neighbour’s house and hopefully meet them. Despite not having a costume or being given a specific role I would join them, as the other parents did.

      While the children got ready upstairs, I groomed myself СКАЧАТЬ