Sparky was on the prowl. The night was pleasant, not cold, not hot. A slight breeze ruffled his long, silky black fur. Something unusual was in the breeze, not food or strays. It gave him an eerie feeling. He pulled his whiskers close to his face and crouched down to wait. Sparky was good at waiting. He wasn't supposed to be outside at night. He timed his exits so perfect that it'd be hours before he was missed at home. Again he had that feeling, something was definitely amiss. Just can't quite put his paw on it. What was that! Sparky caught something out of the corner of his eye. It was there and then it wasn't. It didn't really touch the ground either. Chills went through his sturdy frame and street lights sparkled in his eyes. Still he crouched and waited. Trembling with excitement and tension...

...he thought, "Maybe it was a ghost. My Meowmie had told me about ghosts and goblins and scarey creatures in the night who roamed around Halloween time. I hid behind a bush to observe this funny appearing vision when all at once I heard...

...what sounded like human laughter- no cackling-from high in the sky. I looked up- and could not believe my eyes-but up in the clouds, flying past the highest tree tops was, what looked like an old lady riding on a broomstick! Could I be correct? I rubbed my eyes and took a second look- but the old lady was gone. Could my older eyes be playing tricks on me? I took a deep breath and came out from behind the bush and to resume my walk when all of a sudden...

...I heard noises in back of me. They sounded like footsteps. I did not turn around but quickened my pace of walking a little bit more. The footsteps behind me started to keep up with me. I broke into a run and ran into the next driveway which was lit by a light pole at the edge of it. I quickly turned around to confront the bearer of those footsteps and...

...there was the biggest, the meanest, monster I had ever layed eyes on. And it's eyes looked like burning embers buried in it's face. Fangs protruded from that evil mouth. It's breath was worse than my d*gs. I felt the fur on my back raise and my back arched. I let loose the loudest hiss of my life. The monster raised it's...

...right arm straight into the air. And I could tell he was about to take a gigantic swing at me - when from out of nowhere came the loud cackling again. We both looked up into the sky- and sure enough- the old lady on the broomstick appeared gliding over the trees into the moonlight. The monster paused and retreated. The next thing I knew...

...wild lights appeared, filling the sky with brilliant colors and loud bangs. What was happening. I ran as fast as I could and cowered under a bush. Was the old lady on a broom hurling missiles down from the sky? I wasn't sure and I had never seen anything like this before. Panting hard and trying to remain calm, I waited 'till the explosions stopped and slowly and carefully crept out from under the bush. I was creeping along down the road keeping to the shadows when all of a sudden I saw Buddah and these strange looking figures walking down the street! What to do? What to do? Who were they? What were they? Oh, blessed Bastet... do protect me...They're white and orange and black and Oh, no! there's one that's glowing! and they have flashing sticks! Oh, they're coming closer and closer...Oh, silly me... they're just human neighborhood kittens... But, what's that? What's that loud rumble? Those loud shouts?...

...Sparky decided he had never been more scared in his entire life. He wanted nothing more than to go home and sit close to his human and have his fur stroked. All the noise, shouts old ladies riding broomsticks, creatures with huge fangs, he just didn't know what to do. Nothing looked familiar to him. The scents didn't smell anything close to his home. What was he going to do?

From among all of the shouts he could hear his name. "Sparky, Sparky. Here Kitty, Kitty, Kitty." That was his human! He let out a yowl and ran out from hiding and there holding a bright light was his Meowmie. She was standing among groups of children dressed in funny clothes and holding bulging sacks. But it was his Meowmie. She picked him up. Sparky snuggled close into her protective arms. He had had a night to remember. Never would he forget all that he had seen. That was the stuff of nightmares. Were the stories true about witches and ghosts? Next year maybe he would go out and investigate further. But for now he was going to be a home kitty. PURRRR.

This story of Sparky was written from October 22, 2000 until November 13, 2000 and is dedicated to Bonnie Le 'Purr who went to the Rainbow Bridge on December 24, 1999. She was the authoress of a poem titled "A Halloween Purr."

        
 

 

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