"What's the matter?"
"Nothing the matter."
"What you looking so cross about?"
"Nothing; ain't looking cross."
Fluffy climbed over the fence and came and sat down by Jazbury. He
looked at him once or twice, but he did not say anything. He was rather
afraid of Jazbury when Jazbury was in one of his tempers.
"Can't you come over in my yard to play?" he asked at last.
"Don't want to."
At this moment there was a scratching sound on the fence between the
yard and the lot, and a third kitten, a large yellow one, scrambled to
the top of one of the fence posts and seated himself on it. It was
Yowler.
"Hello, Jaz!" he called down, in the yowling voice that had given him
his name.
"Hello!" answered Jazbury, still very sulky.
The newcomer took no notice of Fluffy.
"I got sumpin' to tell you."
"What?"
"Can't tell you here. Come on over in the lot and I'll tell you."
"Can't."
"Why not?"
"'Cause!"
"Oh, come on!"
"I tell you I can't. I got to sit here for awhile."
"Why?"
"_Because_, I tell you."
Yowler jumped down into the yard and came over and seated himself
beside Jazbury. Fluffy drew away. The newcomer was very dirty.
"You gwan home, kit," said Yowler to Fluffy. "Me and Jaz want to talk."
"I shan't go home unless I want to," answered Fluffy, bristling up. "I
don't have to go; do I, Jazbury?"
"No. If you have anything to say, Yowler, say it."
"I'm afraid this kit'll tell."
"Oh, go ahead!" cried Jazbury impatiently. "He won't tell; will you,
Fluffy?"
"Of course not."
"Well--" Yowler paused and looked carefully round to see that no one
was listening. "I'm going to run away."
Jazbury started violently. "Run away!" How strange for Yowler to say
that. It was exactly the thing he had been thinking about.
"Yeh! Run away. I'm tired of sticking around in the baker's shop and
catching his mice for him. Let him catch his own mice if he wants 'em.
I'm tired of it, I tell you."
"Where are you going to run to?"
"Somewhere. I think maybe I'll go and live in the woods for awhile.
Want to come along? It's going to be fine."
"The woods!" broke in Fluffy. "You couldn't live there. You'd be rained
on. You'd get _wet_."
"Oh, you keep quiet," mewed Yowler roughly. "I ain't talking to you.
Don't you want to come, Jaz? There's lots of places to live,--hollow
trees and things; and birds, and field mice, and fish; we'd just have a
great time."
"But you don't know how to get there," said Jazbury.
"Sure I do. Some man brought me in from the country when I was a
kitten; a _little_ kitten, I mean; we came past a wood, and I could
find my way back there just as easy as not if I tried. Come on, Jaz.
It's going to be fine, I tell you."
"I'd just as lief as not," said Jazbury slowly. "When are you going?"
"Tomorrow morning, I guess; just as soon as the baker opens his shop
and I can get you."
"You come, too, Fluffy," cried Jazbury suddenly. "I'll go if you will."
"Oh, no!" mewed Fluffy, and Yowler chimed in, "Oh, he can't go. He's
too much of a mamma's pet. We don't want him."
"Yes, we do, too. And I won't go unless he will. Come on, Fluffy. We'll
have lots of fun. And we needn't stay unless we want to. Come on!"
It took a great deal of persuasion before Fluffy would agree to the
plan, but at last he said he would go if Yowler would promise to let
him come home any time he wanted to. He also made Yowler promise that
they would come straight back again that very day if they could not
find a cave or a hollow tree for shelter before nightfall.
[Illustration:
_He dreamed he was trying to run down a road toward a wood
and a dog was after him--two dogs_
]
It was arranged that they should all three meet in the lot the next
morning as soon after breakfast as possible. Yowler wanted them to
start before breakfast, but to this Fluffy would not consent. Jazbury,
too, thought it would be well to have a last saucer of milk before they
set out. They would not be apt to find much milk in the wood.
That night Jazbury was very restless. He was too excited to sleep well.
When he did doze off at last he dreamed he was trying to run down a
road toward a wood and a dog was after him--two dogs--three dogs. He
dug his nails into the ground and tried to pull himself along, but his
paws seemed to have grown fast to the ground. Then the first dog was
upon him, had caught him--was crying in his ear, "Jazbury, Jazbury,
wake up. You must be having a nightmare, you are mewing so."
He opened his eyes and there he was, safe in the warm, snug home
cellar, and Aunt Tabby was patting him, and telling him to wake up.
Jazbury was still trembling and panting from the terror of his dream.
"What were you dreaming, dear?" asked his mother.
"Oh, nothing," said Jazbury. "Just something about dogs"; and then he
snuggled up against his mother and went to sleep again, and this time
he slept quietly and undisturbed by dreams.