Short story: Night Star’s tale

By Bhavina Sharma

Emily looked outside the window. The storm had ended. She quickly put on her boots and went out of the door. She loved the earthy smell of soil right after the heavy rains. While she ran around jumping in puddles, splashing mud all over, she saw a tree which had fallen due to the recent gale.

All of a sudden, a cat came from under the tree. Its coat was pitch black and its eyes twinkled. It looked only a few months old and was as tiny as Emily’s boot! Emily picked up the cat gently and patted her. It purred loudly, stretching itself in her hands.

Just then, Emily’s mother called her for the evening tea. She enquired about the cat but before Emily could explain, clouds appeared and the gale started again. In a hurry, both mother and daughter rushed back home.

After warming themselves up, Emily’s mother sipped tea while the cat leisured on some warm milk and cookies. Emily suggested that the cat stay with them until they find its family. It had nowhere to go and the storm might just make things worse. Her mother nodded and said, “Well, if we’re going to keep her, we might as well name her”. Emily was delighted and she immediately hugged her mother. Emily kept thinking about the little cat, its fur, paws and dreamy eyes.

The first thing she noticed about the cat were the eyes. They twinkled like the stars at night. Suddenly, within a flash she told her mother that she wanted to name the cat ‘Night Star’. And so, the cat got its name.

Within a week, Emily and Night Star became inseparable. Emily enjoyed cuddling and playing around the neighbourhood with the cat. Later next week, Emily’s mother got a call from her sister. She informed her that they were planning a visit over the weekend. Emily was not thrilled to hear this news. She found her cousins extremely annoying and disturbing.

As Emily was thinking about ways to engage her cousins, Night Star hopped on her lap. A thought struck her. Her cousins owned a pet dog! The thought of Night Star trying to fight off their dog Timmy made her shake like a leaf.

Timmy was a hairy dog, definitely bigger and stronger than her delicate boot-sized Night Star. Moreover, Timmy was an aggressive breed. Well, at least Emily had three days before her cousins were to arrive. She thought of ways to hide Night Star during the day and planned to cuddle her at night.

As the day arrived, Emily was anxious. Fear took over her. As soon as she got the first glimpse of her cousins, she squeezed Night Star in her arms. Timmy as usual came running forward, leaving the family behind. He would normally jump on Emily but this time, he didn’t. He just stared at Night Star, trying to figure out who or what it was. Timmy was startled when Night Star jumped from Emily’s arms. Both stared at each other.

Emily’s mother got busy welcoming the guests. She ushered them to their rooms. Her aunt called for Emily’s help in taking the bags inside. She walked to the small car with her aunt. While Emily bent to pick-up the two bags, Night Star jumped onto the car seat. Her aunt was scared and she tried to shoo her away. Emily dropped the bags and took Night Star in her arms, patting the frightened Night Star.

She then explained to her aunt that Night Star was a new addition to their family. For the rest of the day, nothing much happened. The family was tired after their long trip and everyone retired to their rooms until dinner.

The cousins and Timmy were full of energy after their long peaceful nap. They were ready to create some havoc, Emily felt. Timmy ventured out to find Night Star. To his surprise, she was nowhere to be seen! He got tired trying to find her, so he sat down by the fireplace. Minutes later, Night Star came out of nowhere and jumped on him. That night, Timmy didn’t retaliate.

But, the next day, when he found Night Star sitting close to the kitchen counter, he slowly crept behind it. But, before he could put his plan into action, Night Star pounced on him. This time Timmy was better prepared. He jumped towards her with his open paws. This went on till Night Star got tired and Timmy caught her. He felt on top of the world. At that very moment, Emily’s uncle walked into the kitchen to grab a snack.

He was an angry and fat man who couldn’t tolerate nuisance. But, more importantly, he was not a big fan of Timmy. The moment he saw him pulling Night Star, he yelled at him. Frightened, Timmy let go of Night Star and sat obediently, whining. Night Star seemed to have noticed how lonely Timmy felt at that moment. She slowly walked up to him and lovingly sat beside him. Nothing went as I expected thereafter.

Night Star’s got another admirer. Now, the duo played around. Their friendship grew stronger. Emily almost started to envy Timmy as her best friend had found a new friend. When Timmy was leaving, she felt relieved that she would get her friend back.

One month passed. One evening, while playing in the garden near the swings, Emily saw a cat approaching her. Shortly, she started licking Emily’s feet. Night Star started jumping around the new visitor and they began to curl up together. It appeared as if they knew each other. Emily thought, “Its coat is as black and eyes as sparkly. Could she be Night Star’s mother?”

And it was true. Night Star finally met her mother. It was a sad moment for Emily to see her friend go. With a heavy heart, she let go of Night Star. But every night, her little friend came home to drink milk and sleep beside her bed with her mother.