Speaker 1: Hello, and welcome to a special taster of our new
premium only story. We hope you like it. He yo, Hello,
I'm Josephine and this is the Animal Tales podcast. There
are over one hundred extra stories on our premium service,
with a new one released every Friday, and this is
another one. J J is a premium member from the USA,
and she would like a story with a cat and
a mouse. Don't forget to listen to the animal facts
after the story to learn more about these creatures. For now,
it's time to sit back and get comfy, because it's
time to begin Cat and Mouse Cottage. The cottage was
finally filled with boxes and furniture, leaving the moving van empty.
JJ placed the cat carrier on the hardwood floor and
swung open its door. Here you go, Judy, said JJ,
our new home. Two yellow eyes peered out at the
strange new house. Judy was not keen, so shuffled further
back into her carrier. Come on, you, silly kitty, you
can't stay in there forever, said JJ, gently tipping out
the stubborn black cat. Judy slid to the floor ear
as flat as she surveyed the room. Nobody had asked
her if she wanted to move house. She was perfectly
happy with the old one. Sure it was small and
next to a loud and busy road, but it had
been the only home she had ever known. Go and explore,
JJ encouraged, giving the cat a gentle purseh Reluctantly, Judy
stepped forward. The cottage was pretty, she supposed, but she
was already missing the cats that lived near the old
house and the pigeons that would land on the window
sill and tell her the latest gossip through the glass.
She didn't know any one here except Ja Jay and
her family. With a sigh, the cat decided she may
as well explore. She peered into the kitchen, peeked into
the living room, and went up and down the stairs.
Arriving back at the point where she'd started, Judy noticed
a door open, just a crack. Being ever curious, Judy
nudged it open to see what was within. It was
a flight of stairs leading down into a basement. Light
was streaming in through a narrow, high window, so Judy
sprang down the stairs to see what she could find. Disappointingly,
the basement was all but empty, just an old table
and three water damaged boxes hardly worth the bother. She
was about to return up the steps when she caught
a flicker of movement by the boxes. On soft, silent paws,
she crept over, only to find herself looking down into
a long, whiskered face. It was a mouse, small, gray
and surprised. Where did you come from? The mouse squeaked. Oh,
said Judy, startled by the mouse's response. I'm Judy. My
family and I just moved here. It's our new home.
The cottage has new owners, the mouse said, perking up.
How wonderful it has been empty for so long. I'd
grown quite lonely. I'm Sparkle. By the way. For the
first time since she had been placed in the cat
carrier that morning, Judy felt a smile tug at her lips.
She liked this mouse. It's nice to meet you, Sparkle,
Judy said, Hey, why don't I show you around? Sparkle suggested,
running for the stairs, last one up as fleas, Judy
gave chase, giggling. Suddenly things didn't seem quite so bad.
As the days passed, Judy and Sparkle spent almost all
their time together. When JJ went to school and her
family were out at work. They had the house to themselves.
They would play games, watch TV, and share snacks, all
while swapping stories as they got to know one another.
Tell me another story about the city, Sparkle would ask, fascinated,
And while Judy was very pleased to have made a
friend and Sparkle was the most grateful of the two,
the little mouse had grown terribly lonely in the cottage,
to the point where she rarely even left the basement.
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