Zara shuffled her bottom further in, and reached inside the box of toys to grab something for Amina to lean against. Then she blinked and moved her fingers again, very slowly.
There was soft fur under her hand– not toy fur, but real.
Kitten fur. Warm, silky,real kitten fur.
“Pixie,” Zara whispered, screwing up her eyes and trying to see in the dim light from the hallway. “Pixie, is that you?”
There was a faint, hesitant purr and Pixie butted her head against Zara’s hand.
“Pixie’s there?” Amina breathed, her voice shaking with relief.
“Yes! Oh, Pixie! You’re here! You never went outside at all. I bet you’ve been in this cupboard the whole time.” Zara half-laughed. There was a strange, wonderful feeling of lightness inside her as all the worry and panic lifted away. She reached out to grab Amina’s hand so she could touch Pixie too. “There – that’s not one of the toys, it’s her!”
[Êàðòèíêà: img_39]
Amina was now laughing with her.“We’ve been looking everywhere for you, Pixie.”
“I suppose we should go and tell Mum and Dad,” Zara said slowly. She didn’t want to, though. She wanted to stay here with a sleepy, purry kitten and just breathe for a while. Her and Pixie and Amina.
There was a little thud and Zara looked down as tiny paws padded on to her lap. Her eyes were starting to adjust to the dim light now and she could see Pixie slowly turning round and round. The kitten kneaded at Zara’s sparkly skirt with her paws, making herself a comfortable nest. Then she lay down with a thump as though to say she was going back to sleep and she wasn’t arguing with anyone about it. So now they had to stay where they were.
“I was so scared when we were out on the street looking for her,” Amina said quietly. “I really thought she might have been run over.”
“Me too.”
“Can I stroke her?” Amina asked.
“She’s your kitten too!”
“I know, but … I’m sorry, OK?” Amina rubbed Pixie’s ears gently. Then she added, “It’s just – I’m not used to you having different friends to me. And you’re not even sitting with me in class now! Everything feels weird.”
Zara looked at her sister in surprise. Amina was the confident one– she shouldn’t care that Zara had moved tables. “It’ll be OK,” she whispered.
“I suppose. And I suppose Billie’s all right. But I thoughtI was your best friend,” Amina added, her voice very small.
“You are! But I can still have Billie as a friend too,” Zara said.
“I know.” Amina was silent for a moment. “I was jealous,” she admitted. “But I’ll try not to be. And I’m sorry about Mia as well,” she added, her voice suddenly going high and surprised. “I knew she could be a bit catty – sorry, Pixie – but she was horrible! And – and I didn’t tell her to shut up when she said that stuff about you. I should have done.”
Zara was silent. That was what had hurt so much, that Amina hadn’t stuck up for her. “Ireally don’t like Mia,” she said, gently stroking Pixie’s paws.
“I don’t think I do either,” Amina said, her voice very small. “But I wanted everyone to like me. And they all seem to listen to her…”
“Yeah, because otherwise she’ll say mean things about them.”
Amina nodded her head sadly.“But Lucy’s nice and some of the others. I just won’t hang around with Mia so much.” Then she laughed, sounding surprised, and Zara saw that Pixie had poked Amina with her paws.
The kitten stretched one front paw, and then the other, and then both, and then she stuck her bottom up in the air and wriggled it. At last she yawned, a huge yawn that showed tiny teeth, glinting white in the dim light. Then she went into her padding round and round routine again– this time wobbling between Zara’s lap and Amina’s, the way she had done the first day they’d brought her home. She slumped down again across both their laps, stretched out as far as she could, as though she was trying to link them together.
[Êàðòèíêà: img_4]
Pixie could hear the change in Zara’s voice and even more in Amina’s. That sharp angry sound had gone. They were sitting close to each other too. She felt the fear that had been sitting deep down inside her ease away and she yawned. She liked this comfortable space with the boxes and the soft things to lie on, but it was even better when Zara and Amina were there too.
She stretched deliciously, feeling all her muscles tense and relax. Then she stood up, pacing over both girls’ laps and pounding her paws until everything was just right.
Pixie settled down comfortably, rolling on to her back and showing Zara and Amina the soft whiteness of her tummy. She purred wheezily– half a purr and half a snore – and went back to sleep.
Safe and warm and loved.