“Phew,” said Tom to Hattie and Jo, “You both smell of …”
“Piglets!” said Jo.
“Piglets?” asked Tom. ‘You mean Poppy’s had her …”
“Piglets!” Hattie and Jo squealed like a couple of big piglets themselves. They rushed out of the bedroom and slammed the door behind them.
Tom sighed and snuggled back down in bed. Sometimes his sisters were so noisy he wished he had earplugs, or a soundproof bedroom, or even better, a sisterproof bedroom.
When he was sure that Hattie and Jo had gone away, Tom got out of bed. He wanted to see if the piglets were all right. He was a bit worried that the piglets had arrived so early and hoped that it wasn’t Nell’s fault.
Tom got dressed, gave Eric some fish food and left Nell fast asleep on his pillow. He was soon outside in the morning sunshine.
“Morning, Tom.” Mrs Morgan popped her head up over the wall of the pigpen.
“Morning, Mum!” said Tom. “Is Poppy OK?” he asked anxiously. “I mean, the piglets … well, they were early and I wondered if it was because of Nell …”
Tom’s mum opened the gate to the pigpen for Tom to come in and look. She was smiling broadly. “They’re all just fine, Tom. I don’t think Nell did any harm. Poppy probably had them early because it is such a big litter. She’s never had so many piglets before and she’s looking after them very well. Isn’t she clever?”
Mrs Morgan bent down and stroked Poppy’s head. Poppy snuffled and snorted while she lay on the straw feeding a long line of tiny, wriggling, pink piglets.
“Wow!” said Tom. “I’ve neverseen so many piglets!”
“I’m really pleased,” said Mrs Morgan proudly. “And how is Nell? Was she good last night?”
“Really good,” said Tom. “I think she’s going to behave from now on,” he added hopefully. He looked at the wriggling piglets lying close to their mum. They reminded him of when he had first seen Nell with all her brothers and sisters. They’d been gathered round their mum, a big tabby cat that lived on another farm.
Tom decided he’d better get back to his room to see if she was still behaving herself. “I’ll go and give Nell some breakfast, Mum,” he said.
“OK, Tom,” Mrs Morgan said. “But I think we need to keep Nell indoors today, until Poppy has got used to her new litter. Nell can come back out tomorrow.”
“Great,” said Tom, smiling happily. All he had to do was make sure Nell stayed out of trouble from now on.
Easy! Tom thought as he walked back to the kitchen to get Nell’s breakfast.
Impossible! he thought a few minutes later, when he opened his bedroom door. There was Nell, perched on the edge of a shelf just above the fish tank, staring at Eric.
Oh, no! Tom realised he must have left the lid off Eric’s tank again.
Inside the fish tank was one very scared goldfish.
Nell was just dipping a paw into the water when she glanced up and saw Tom.“Hello,” she miaowed. “Just doing a spot of fishing!”
“Nell!” yelled Tom. As soon as he said it he knew he shouldn’t have.
Suddenly Nell forgot where her front paws were and they slipped and slid– then fell – straight into the fish tank. The rest of Nell followed.Splash!
Chapter Three
“Youuwwll!” Nell cried. The wet stuff washorrible.
Inside his underwater castle, Eric the goldfish had decided to play dead. For a goldfish, Eric was quite bright.
Tom ran over to the tank and scooped Nell out. Holding the dripping kitten under one arm, Tom used his other hand to touch Eric gently.
Eric flicked his tail and shot out from his castle.
Tom breathed a sigh of relief, but was cross with himself. His mum was always telling him not to leave the lid off Eric’s tank. He put the lid back on firmly, then went to the airing cupboard for an old towel to rub Nell dry.
“Thanks for rescuing me, Tom,” Nell mewed weakly. She looked up at him, but Tom didn’t smile. Nell felt miserable.
Tom wrapped Nell in a rather rough, threadbare towel then carried her down to the kitchen where it was warmer.“Cats are meant to be afraid of water, not jump into it!” he said sternly as he rubbed her dry. Nell looked very small and skinny with her wet fur.
Tom did smile then.“You look like a little rat,” he said, “except I’ve never seen a tabby rat before.”
Nell began to feel better. Her fur felt warmer and less heavy. She yawned. All the excitement had made her tired, so she curled up in her towel and went to sleep.
Tom put Nell down by the radiator and was about to go and top up Eric’s tank with water when Hattie and Jo came in, carrying two almost full trays of eggs from the hens.
“Look at all the eggs we got this morning. Forty-four!” said Hattie.
“Mum was really happy,” said Jo.
They stacked them carefully on the table.“We’re going out to see Poppy and her piglets now,” they told Tom.
“OK,” said Tom. He left Nell fast asleep by the radiator and shot off upstairs to sort out Eric.
Eric was fine. He was happily swimming around in about 10 centimetres of water, wondering what had happened to the rest of it. Eric had already forgotten about Nell falling in. Although Eric had a good memory for a goldfish, he still forgoteverything after about five minutes.
Tom filled up the fish tank, gave Eric some more fish food and made sure he put the lid on. Then he heard the crash.
Tom bounded down the stairs, expecting the worst. And he was right. Nell was on the kitchen table. On the kitchen floor were one upturned tray and a couple of dozen smashed eggs.
“Oh, Nell, look what you’ve done!” gasped Tom, staring in horror at the oozing, slimy mess.
Nell looked at Tom’s face and thought she’d better get off the table. As she sprang down, Hattie burst into the kitchen.
“Mum wants her coat – aagh!” Hattie skidded on the eggs and banged right into the draining board. A glass and two cereal bowls toppled to the floor with a clatter as Hattie came to a halt.
“Oh no,” groaned Tom.
“What a mess!” shouted Mrs Morgan when she ran in to see what was happening. “What has been going on?”
“Wow!” breathed Jo as she rushed in too, not wanting to be left out.
Nell sat crouched in the corner on her threadbare towel and looked at Tom’s mum.
Tom’s mum looked at Nell. “Did Nell do this?” she demanded.
“Not all of it,” miaowed Nell, beginning to lick her paws, which were sticky with egg. All this noise and fuss – she wished more than anything that she was still safely asleep in her basket up in Tom’s room.
“Well, Tom? Did she?” asked Mrs Morgan sternly.
“Sort of … I suppose …” Tom said reluctantly.
“I thought so,” said his mum. “That kitten is nothing but trouble! I don’t think she’ll ever make a good farm cat. We won’t have a farm left if she carries on like this!” Mrs Morgan sighed. “I really think Nell may have to go and live somewhere else,” she said quietly.
“No, Mum!” cried Tom.
Nell looked down at her eggy paws, feeling very miserable.
“But Mum, Nell didn’t break the crockery,” said Hattie. “I knocked it all on the floor when I slipped on the eggs.”
“And I’m sure Nell didn’tmean to break the eggs, Mum,” said Tom. “Please give her another chance.Please!”
“Please!” said Hattie and Jo.
Mrs Morgan looked at the three pleading faces.“All right,” she said, sighing again. “One more chance. Just one! But that’s it, OK?”
“OK, Mum,” said Tom, smiling in relief.
While Hattie and Jo helped Tom clear up the broken eggs and smashed crockery, Mrs Morgan went out to feed the pigs.
Nell sat quietly under the radiator and carried on cleaning her paws.
The kitchen was soon clean and tidy again. Hattie and Jo ran off outside to play.
Tom decided he ought to try and get back in his mum’s good books. He’d go and help her with the pigs. “Back soon, Nell,” he said. “Be good.”
Nell stopped licking her paws and watched the door close behind Tom. Then she watched it swing open again as it came off the latch.