Travels with George: Paris

Travels with George: Paris, an illustrated book told by a cat about smuggle his way to Paris and touring the sites. This is one chapter.

Author: David Stone
Illustrations: Deborah Julian

“This is funny,” he says, flipping the pages of a book he has open in his lap.

Travels with George: Paris

Both of them have calmed down considerably.

“What’s funny?” she asks.

She is going from place to place in our little room, taking things out of bags, familiar things
that remind us all of home. She stopped to tickle Billy and me without looking at us and paused to scratch her head. She could use a stretch, I sense.

I am sitting on the bed behind the man, somewhat confident that he will not forget and lean back on me, but not confident enough to sleep, and Billy is wandering around, building a scent map– a big, big task in such a new place. I made a general one earlier, then decided I was not quite up to it yet. 

Those tasks could wait until things settled a little more.

After the shock wore off and they stopped saying, “I can’t believe it,” all the time, they got organized and, realizing we needed attention, went right at it.

“First of all, we’ll need to get some litter,” he announced. “That’s got to be pretty urgent.

“I think they’ll use it as soon as we can get some in here.”

“Well, really, the first thing they need is fresh water, poor babies,” she corrects him.

“You must be so thirsty,” she adds in that special, musical voice we hear sometimes before we get special treats. “I can’t even find anything for them to drink out of.”

“Mow?” Billy says, agreeing with me, I believe, that water is an even better idea.

“We’ll get both for you, guys,” the man promises. “You’re so brave. And we’d better do it right now.”

“Okay,” she agrees. “Where’s the nearest pet store?”

“Very funny.”

He shakes his head and smiles.

“I’ll tell you what, let’s not ask for directions at the front desk. The question might make them a little curious. We’re also going to have to figure out how to hide these guys for a week. We’ve got quite a little dilemma.”
He looks back at us from the door.

A Grand Idea: Travels With George: Paris

“Bye, little guys, we’ll be right back! Probably.”

“No ‘probably,’” she corrects him. “We’ll be right back with some stuff for you. Don’t scare
the boys.”

Hide them? Hide who? I glance at Billy, already beginning to panic as the door starts to close.

He could not mean us. Hide cats?

Back home, when certain people came to see us, the visitors got hidden away behind closed doors where a cat was not permitted to visit, but I had never heard of hiding cats. Yet, who else could they have been talking about?

Too much mystery for me. Eventually, in my experience, these people things either explain themselves or they just go away. Everything does not have to have a reason with them. I decide to wait and see and not worry too much about it.

“Bye, sweeties!” she sings. “Don’t look so worried. We’ll be right back!”

David Stone
Find all my books on my Amazon Author Page
Deborah Julian’s artwork can be found in her Amazon shop.