Keen

        Awakened by hunger, Shadow regretfully uncurled herself from her favorite sleeping position at Elizabeth’s feet. The sleek black cat slowly stretched herself across the foot of the bed, taking great care not to accidentally prick her friend’s toes with her needle sharp claws. With her muscles sufficiently loosened up, she slipped silently to the floor. Shadow always tried to stay as serene and graceful as possible, even when nobody was watching her. It was not befitting of a queen to make an unnecessary amount of noise at any time. Satisfied that she could only hear the steady ticking of the clock sitting on the wooden nightstand, Shadow strolled into the kitchen to fulfill her midnight craving.

        Shadow patrolled each room of the house thoroughly, jade colored eyes and slowly swiveling ears on high alert, before she reached the kitchen. As always, Shadow preferred to ensure that those pesky mice and cockroaches had not dared to invade her kingdom before rewarding herself with a snack. As she padded across the kitchen’s tile floor, taking the time to admire the intricate pattern of curving lines that repeated itself throughout the kitchen, Shadow spotted a tiny shape skittering across the floor. She paused and turned her ears towards the invader. Thanks to her acute hearing, Shadow could hear the spider’s legs tapping against the floor despite the fact that the sound was quieter than a feather landing on the ground.

        Shadow crouched down, observing the arachnid’s movements as it skittered around. She licked her lips in anticipation: it was always satisfying to eat something that she had killed herself. After tensing up her muscles, Shadow pounced. Her paws slammed onto the unsuspecting spider, killing it instantly. Shadow licked her paws clean before resuming her journey to her aquamarine food bowl. Although the spider had been a tasty treat, Shadow still needed a little more in her stomach before it would quit rumbling. After swallowing a few mouthfuls of the nearly tasteless brown kernels that she ate every day, Shadow pricked her ears. Something was happening outside. 

        Shadow stalked over to the front door and strained her ears, restraining the urge to flatten them against her head. Over the usual night noises of the wind whispering secrets through the leaves of the tree in the yard and the faint footfalls of rodents scurrying through the grass, Shadow could hear two men outside. They smelled odd; their revolting odor made Shadow crinkle her nose in disgust. A few minutes passed, but they showed absolutely no indication of leaving. Instead, they began to mess with the lock. Shadow fled to Elizabeth’s bedroom. Being graceful and elegant could wait. She had to warn Elizabeth!

        Shadow sprung onto the queen sized bed, denting the sheets. She mewed frantically before giving a soft hiss of frustration. Why must humans always be so difficult to awaken when you needed them most? Just the thought about the desperate action she was about to take made Shadow crave some catnip to take her memories of this shameful course of action away for a while. She walked over to the one foot that was protruding out from beneath the covers and nipped its smallest toe. Elizabeth grunted in her sleep and kicked out at the unwelcome pain, sending Shadow tumbling off the bed. 

        Shadow furiously licked her fur back into place before hopping back onto the bed. She had better get some of that special fish flavored canned food for her efforts after all of this was over; this was beginning to test her patience. Resorting to a tactic she hadn’t used since she had been tiny enough to have nearly harmless claws, Shadow nipped Elizabeth’s nose. She hoped it didn’t hurt to much even though the stubborn second grade teacher did deserve it to some extent for kicking her so rudely. Elizabeth groaned, opening her eyes just a crack. “What is it, Shadow? The kids are learning about multiplication tomorrow ,and I need to have enough energy so they don’t get too bored with the new material.”

        That took way too long for Shadow’s liking: even the lethargic turtles in the pet store she had come from were easier to get moving than this woman. Shadow meowed pointedly, jumped off the bed, walked to the door, and meowed again. Muttering something about crazy cats, Elizabeth put on her pink slippers before following the agitated cat. Shadow twitched her whiskers nervously as she led her sleepy friend over to the front door. The two voices were slightly louder now, but what really make Shadow’s hackles rise in fear was the persistent slamming against the door. Were the neighbors deaf or were they just stupid? Elizabeth gave her cat a quick rub along her spine before running off to call the police. Shadow puffed her chest out and strutted back to the bedroom.

        As Elizabeth dialed the phone, Shadow flopped down onto the bed. Humans could be a bit dense sometimes. They rarely ever seemed to notice problems that glared out like flashlights waving their luminous beams through a pitch black night to Shadow. At least the bizarre two legged creatures had enough sense to solve any problems they actually managed to notice as promptly as possible. Elizabeth would handle the situation from here. All Shadow could do now was curl into a tight ball, wrap her tail around herself, and drift back to sleep. Satisfied that both her and Elizabeth were safe and more than a little proud of what she had accomplished, she dreampt of a brave and beautiful cat with fur the color of a starless night who saved her best and only friend from horrible men who wanted to invade their home.