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Fup. Store Cat.
The Trip to Kahani
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Bear
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Zooey
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To be safe, they slip out of the pet store a full hour before the morning managers will arrive. In the early, ochre light the three of them tramp past the medical offices and knickknack shops east of the mall, past the gas stations, the fast food joints, and the auto parts store, and beyond, into the woods.
Off the sidewalks at last, Zooey races ahead to blaze trail, sniffing and peeing on trees. Now and then the cats lose sight of him and pause to listen for his jingling tags. Which is exactly what happens as they're approaching the cul-de-sac: the big yellow dog disappears over a hill, but this time they can't hear his tags — not because he's run off, but because he's stopped. Before they see the animal control officer, they're practically on top of him: the uniformed man stands in front of Zooey, interrogating him, fifteen feet from the trees. Fup and Bear scramble for cover.
"What are they talking about?" Bear asks. "I can't hear."
The officer (his stitched-on nametag reads "Hal") starts toward his van. Zooey follows. Wagging, slightly.
"He's got it under control," Fup murmurs.
Officer Hal pauses beside the van, but soon enough Zooey leads him toward a house across the street. He lumbers up the front porch stairs and drinks from a large bowl situated alongside the welcome mat. He stops drinking, starts again, then pauses a moment, chin-over-bowl, as if to gauge whether some part of his thirst might remain unquenched. Satisfied, he climbs into an armchair overlooking the street and settles into its cushions.
Hal rings the doorbell, but no one answers. No dog barks. Zooey feigns sleep.
"We should nap here," Zooey will suggest later, after the officer has gone and it's just he and two cats now on somebody's covered porch. "I hardly slept last night, what with all those mewling puppies." Zooey still in the armchair, the plush, comfortable chair. But of course they can't stay. The dog that lives here could return any minute. Besides, they've still miles to go before they reach Wiggums's farm.
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