Amidala speaking. Munchkin wrote a story last week, so this week is my turn. I don’t understand why MaMA’s late cat, Katya, refused to write MaMA’s Caturday StoryADayMay stories; it’s fun! I’m following in the footsteps of aristocrats of the past and writing a fairy tale.
The Ninth Life
by Amidala Allen
Once upon a time, there was a cat. His name was Johnny Macadoo, and he was as wicked as the summer day is long.
When he was a kitten, he pushed his brothers and sisters aside and took as much milk as he could hold. By this, he grew to be twice their size, and continued to take the greater share of whatever food was on offer. When he tried to help himself from the bowl of Tiger, the neighbor’s dog, the other cats were pleased to be rid of him.
“Oh, well,” said Johnny. “One life down. There’s plenty more where that came from.”
In his second life, he lived in the alleys and on the rooftops. He retained his large size, and reveled in picking fights, leaving his mark on the ears, noses, and rumps of strays and housecats alike. Tuxie of Apartment F was one too many for him, though, and he turned tail and ran – off the roof and into another life.
“I’ve still plenty,” said Johnny.
His third and fourth lives went very quickly when he robbed a bird’s nest that overhung a river and discovered, on his way down to the turbulent stream, that he was allergic to bee stings.
“Time for some caution,” Johnny admitted.
For his fifth life, a mature Johnny settled down in a feral community looked after by a generous woman. He made himself king of the clowder, bullied the toms and queens and kittens, and wouldn’t let anyone else eat until he’d taken the best and the most. When feline leukemia took him, the woman mourned but was thankful he was the only one she lost.
“This is getting serious,” said Johnny.
His sixth life was a good, long one. He lived in a barn, feasting on mice, rats, rabbits, and other toms’ kittens. He was still strong in his old age, though a lack of dental hygiene cost him most of his teeth. One day, he got too close to the rear end of the milk cow, and that was life number six, gone.
[Rasheed Hooda told MaMA that I left out two of Johnny’s lives, so I went back to the laptop and added the words in blue.]
Thinking the suburbs might be safer, he skulked through back yards and undeveloped lots, preying on baby rabbits. One day, he had a disagreement with a snake over whose rabbit was whose, and there went life number seven.
“I’ll have to watch my step,” said Johnny.
His eighth life was as a cafe cat, beloved of the patrons of Gino’s Pastaria. Alas, he did not watch his step; in chasing a runaway meatball, he stepped out into traffic, and that was the end of life eight.
He woke between lives, with The Blue Fairy gazing sternly at him.
“This is your last life, Johnny Macadoo,” she said. “Considering what you’ve made of the last eight, I wonder you want to bother with another one.”
“I do, though,” he said. “I want my last one. I want it to be peaceful and serene, uneventful and calm.”
“After all the grief you’ve spread, do you really think you deserve it?”
“Oh, yes,” said Johnny. “I do.”
“Well,” said The Blue Fairy, “maybe you do. So be it.”
In his old age, Johnny went to live with a dear little old lady who doted on him. She took him to the doctor every time he sneezed, kept him in the best possible health, and fed him a balanced diet of food from her own table based on recipes she got from the internet.
And she was vegetarian.
The Blue Fairy was nothing if not fair.
~*~
A WRITING PROMPT FOR ANIMALS: If you could choose how to spend your nine lives, how might you choose to spend each one?
AA
Jane
May 9, 2015 at 10:20amSuperb!!!
The Cautionary Tale of Johny Macadoo.
Awesome!
Humans live such long lives (hope, hope) that they, too, get to be a number of people before they live out their last. It IS something of a chore indeed to make each one worth mentioning.
Marian Allen
May 9, 2015 at 12:09pmAnd worth remembering. Correctly, that is.
Rasheed Hooda
May 9, 2015 at 3:24pmSix plus one is seven, did I miss something? Or did they they teach me the wrong math?
Marian Allen
May 9, 2015 at 4:22pmYou’re right, Rasheed! I’m glad Amidala wrote this and not me — everybody knows cats can’t count! I’ll tell her, and she’ll add more to the story. 🙂
Marian Allen
May 9, 2015 at 5:11pmOkay, Rasheed — I think she fixed it! I want you to proof ALL my posts. 😀
Holly Jahangiri
May 9, 2015 at 8:13pmBelieve it or not, *I* caught yet another math error! LOL – ME?!
Marian Allen
May 9, 2015 at 8:26pmThat darned cat can’t count fer snakes!
Holly Jahangiri
May 9, 2015 at 8:33pmNeither can I (at least not when it’s in math class or crochet!)
Rasheed Hooda
May 9, 2015 at 7:27pm@Marian Allen –
Awww, such a nice kitty. Thank you, so much. Now I can sleep peacefully, not having to wonder.
Kiril Kundurazieff
May 11, 2015 at 12:08pmLOL!
Love it!
Marian Allen
May 11, 2015 at 9:37pmI sure miss Mr. Nikita’s stories during Story A Day May. When are those girls gonna get into the act? Next year? If I ask them nicely?
Kiril Kundurazieff
May 11, 2015 at 9:54pmLOL!
That series was possibly the best thing “Nikita” ever wrote…and with a decade of material to choose from that is saying a lot.
It was 1 story done as 30 100 word stories & 1 200 word story.
There has to be a way for me to publish it beyond the blog as my first published book.
As for Elvira & Sneakers…we shall see for next year.
I’ve got something shorter in mind for myself, on my blog, if I can find the time.
Marian Allen
May 12, 2015 at 8:38amKiril, you ABSOLUTELY CAN publish Mr. Nikita’s story! Amazon KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing) has a thorough how-to, and you can do a print version through CreateSpace. And I think Sneakers is working on a Texian Tuxedo collection. 😀
I hear you about finding time. Where does it all go?
Kiril Kundurazieff
May 12, 2015 at 9:38pmMarian, I’ve heard of both, the past couple years.
The past 2 years have not been easy, despite continued creativity, and any thought of trying to publish always stayed in the back of my mind.
This evening I read the series for the first time in at least a year, that I can remember, and even though I wrote the damn thing I found myself in tears over the last few entries.
Maybe it’s time, at last, I look into Amazon & CreateSpace and learn more about them.
Then, as now, I have no clue how many people read the series, or shared it.
21 comments, across 14 entries, most by you, my friend. Your support and encouragement meant a lot to me hen, and still does.
Marian Allen
May 13, 2015 at 8:34amKiril, I think Nikita’s book would be very popular! Whatever you do, don’t pay for services. The only cost in producing a book these days is 1) your own ISBN (using Amazon’s or CreateSpace’s free ISBN/ASIN will make THEM the publisher) and 2) printing cost for paper copies. If you have trouble with the instructions, Miss Elvira will help. Or ask me. 🙂
Kiril Kundurazieff
May 14, 2015 at 9:55amI see…OK. 😀
I had plan to do some writing, last night, but found myself exhausted after a busy work day, and so I laid down for a bit, finding myself thinking about this latest train of thought and wondering what I should do….
I ended up sleeping 10 hours. 😀
Your comment to get this train of thought in my head started, on the 11th, seems another bit of “serencatity” in light of something I did earlier in the day.
OK, I’m freakin’ myself out here.
Best I head to work, bee, hee!
Will e-mail you…
Marian Allen
May 14, 2015 at 1:33pmYou must have needed that sleep to rest and refresh. Hope it made you feel better. I imagine the kitty-girls looked after you while you slept. 🙂
Kiril Kundurazieff
May 16, 2015 at 11:58amSlept another 9 hours last night…
my creative juices are flowing again such that, over a month late, I am able to at last join in celebrating the 3rd anniversary of Wordsmith Studio.
When I joined so many others in Robert Lee Brewer’s month long challenge, I’d reached a fork in the road of my personal and creative life…a lot has happened since then.
Yes, the girls have been watching out for me. 😀
Marian Allen
May 16, 2015 at 9:31pmCongratulations on getting those creative juices going again! Feels great, doesn’t it?
Kiril Kundurazieff
May 17, 2015 at 9:11amJust so long as it’s not Prune Juice. 😀
Marian Allen
May 17, 2015 at 6:09pmCongratulations on your handsome new bike! You be careful out there, y’hear?
Kiril Kundurazieff
May 17, 2015 at 9:38pmThanks and I will.
Houston is not the bike-friendliest of cities though it’s making an effort in ways I grew up with in SoCal….such as bike/hike trails along rivers/bayous, and a new 3 feet please law.