A Friend in Need

So there I was, having a nap on the bottom of the kitty gym, when the mewing of a distinctly distraught roommate called me back from sleep. I was not entirely surprised. Benny had just come back from the vet, which is enough to tweak anyone’s whiskers. Yet the degree of distress seemed to indicate a difficulty beyond annoyance. Besides, he was muttering.


“Lost! Alone! Oh no. Oh dear.”


“Benny, what’s wrong?”


“Freddie! Oh let me look at you one last time. I don’t know if I can stand it!”


“What? Stand what?”


“The vet said I have a skin condition and I need to go stay with some humans for a week or so while it’s treated!”


“Well that’s not so bad. I did the same when I had that cold. They were lovely. Not that I didn’t miss you,” I added quickly.


“But Freddie, I’m not brave with people like you are. And I don’t think they have other cats!”


“Do you want me to come with you?”


“You’d do that for me. Really?”


“Really. Just let me talk to the director.”


I snuck into the back room at the adoption center and sat down on Josie’s keyboard so she would notice I had something on my mind.


“Freddie,” she said, “how’d you get back here?”


“Paws. Listen, you can’t just ship Benny out. He’s not as intrepid as some of us. He can’t go alone. Send me too.”


“That’s sweet of you, but you’d have to have baths and medication so you didn’t contract his condition.”


I gulped. “I can do baths.”


“You’re a brave cat, Freddie. Let me just e-mail Ashton and make sure she has room for two.”


“Ashton? The JMU student? This is going to work out just fine.”