In my mind, I could see the big black cat sitting in the middle of a clearing in the woods. The night was dark with only the light of the moon which shown down between the tree branches. The cats were all lying or sitting around the circle as Cassie told them the purpose of the clearing.
SPRING
The Clearing
The moon cast its bright light on the clearing. It was a warm balmy spring night and the stillness was intensified by the moonlight as well as the tree frogs. The clearing was fairly large surrounded by a lot of brush and bushes and a few trees had heavy vines growing up the side of them making a thicket at the bottom, providing hiding places.
Cassie was asleep under the bush she had made into her den, away from the clearing but with a good view. Suddenly she heard a noise, she perked up her ears and peered out onto the clearing. She remained still waiting for whatever was out there to come into view. She listened, twitching her ears and kept her eyes on the clearing. Something was approaching. She crouched down with eyes and ears on the alert. She began to sniff the air to try to catch a scent of whatever was out there.
Then she saw it, a shape which she recognized as being like her, but unknown to her. The shape moved slowly into the clearing, stopping to look around and Cassie saw that it was a cat and then she saw two smaller shapes behind the cat and realized that it was a mother cat and her kittens. She heard the soft mew of the mother coaxing the kittens to hurry along.
At first, Cassie thought if she was very still the strange cat and her kittens would keep on going. She watched as the cat began moving into the clearing, mewing to the kittens to stay by her side. Her pace began to pick up and Cassie thought, good, she will keep going with those kittens.
Cassie was getting to old to mess with kittens, they cried a lot and wanted to run all over and play and bother the other cats and especially her. Not that she didn't like kittens, she had eight of her own through the years but now she wanted the peace and quiet she had found here in the clearing.
But it was to late, the strange cat with her kittens had awakened the rest of the cats in the clearing.....
As Bear, Cassie's brother, and the other cats woke up to see what was going on, the strange cat was frightened and told her kittens to run for cover. She apologized for disturbing them and asked if she and her kittens could sleep by a log near the clearing.
The First Day
As Marcy, the strange female who had come into the clearing, was preparing to leave with her kittens the next morning, she was accosted by Cassie.....
Cassie wanted to know why Marcy and her two young kittens were wandering around and asked if she was by herself. When told why they were running away from the farm they had left and were scared, Cassie agrees to let them stay long enough to rest up.
She explained the clearing was for those who sought shelter but that they all worked together and got along without fighting or bothering one another. The clearing was a safe haven for those who needed a place to live in peace and harmony.
The Story
As the story progresses, Marcy and her kittens are allowed to stay and soon learn the rules that Cassie has made and makes friends with the other cats who also live in the clearing. This story shows how the cats work together to protect each other from the elements, the dangers of the prey that seeks them out and how they become a family.
The cats have their own celebration, called Social. The Social was a special time when all the cats gathered together in the clearing to visit and enjoy the company of each other. Often they would have visitors from outside the clearing so they met up with old friends and family. It was a joyous time.
They also learned how to defend themselves and to look out for each other. And it was Cassie who made sure it all happened.
If you would like to learn more about Cassie's Clearing, please visit my website: www.writer43.webs.com
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