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The fact that Rusty seems to have grown a grey smudge on his forehead, puts one in mind of another cat, long gone, in Canada. The other cat's name was Ash, after the grey smudge on his otherwise completely ginger coat. |
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Ash was a friendly cat, with a great deal of personal charm and intelligence; this was according to all accounts, not just family and close associates. Neighbours from blocks away would recognise him as the cat who had materialised in their home, spent a few sociable hours with the householders, and left without overstaying his welcome.
The story goes that he even spent the night with a young couple down the road. The couple rented a modest and inaccessible fourth floor walk-up, so how he'd gained entrance was a complete mystery. He certainly gave them a start very late one night by jumping into bed with them. It's a testimony to the cat's winning ways that he didn't leave until the next morning. |
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The last time Ash returned from one of his trips he announced himself with his characteristic call, so that his front door was already open by the time he arrived. He was badly injured and wore a cast on his back leg for six weeks. Anyway, that was the last time he returned. |
| Lucy was a small and pretty cat, who ended up living with her young man and his girlfriend in the place they'd rented together. She'd been with him for about five months before that, since she was a kitten. Apparently she was supposed to teach him responsibility and make him settle down, that's what he'd told her anyway. Shortly after the three of them moved in together, Lucy...well, Lucy made it clear she was in urgent need of a tom cat. She needed the back door opened, and after much firm insistence, she got her way. Of course unwed teenage pregnancy ensued. | |
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Lucy got bigger and, for unrelated reasons, the new household broke up. Her young man left and she threw in her lot with the girlfriend, who turned out to be a help when the kittens came along. After giving birth to four living kittens over four exhausting hours, the new mother became a model of bravery and endurance to her flatmate, who told everyone who would listen that Lucy was her hero. |
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The thing about being female, is that it often involves a fairly serious operation to remove reproductive capacity. This can weaken a cat's resistance and expose her to incurable viruses. Not too long after most of her kittens had grown up and moved away, Lucy succumbed.
Spike is lucy's second born kitten and only son. He came twisting out of her, head first and screaming, but he stayed to keep her company after the others left. Spike is beautiful and huge for a cat, more the size of a largish cocker spaniel. |
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He only enjoys watching television when there are other animals on, but he's good natured enough to act as a head-rest for less discerning viewers. When he was young and skinny he was timid, and excellent at dashing up trees to escape dangers real and imagined. As he got older and heavier, tufts of the fur of enemies could be spotted around his yard.
As winter approached one year, his housemate fucked off to Singapore. He stayed with his sister at her place for awhile until they both relocated to the South of France. When last heard from, Spike was getting bigger still, and living with a bunch of academics on the Cote d'Azur. |
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Rusty has a ginger coat which is either stained, or legitimately growing a grey spot. Like most cats in Singapore, his tail is crooked at the end, although it isn't as obvious as his sister's. Both kittens are survivors of a virulent white-cell-style virus. The rest of their litter didn't make it. Rusty's sister originally joined him for a temporary visit in order to recuperate in peace, away from her housemates the dogs. But her presece is not urgently required elsewhere, and she's become accustomed to where she is.
©1996 Raquel Rivera. More illustrations by Raquel or... |