it took a while for my heart to stop racing, though i was still and under cover.  and then a strange thought came to me.  i went in and was able to get out.  the human in the house saw me and didn’t yell or chase me.  and, even better, the basement had corners, which means i could use it to my advantage in hunting; cornered prey are easier to dispatch than free-ranging prey.  hmmmm.

the next day i slipped through the grate to explore the basement.  i didn’t make a sound, and i didn’t hear any sounds from upstairs.  i crept around the perimeter, checking for other ways to come and go and was delighted to discover a second broken grate on the other side of the basement.  enter on one side and exit on the other; very promising indeed.

then i noticed a smell.  it wasn’t something i’d smelled before, but it had a foodish scent.  of course i’d left half a mouse the day before, but this was different.  i crept like fog from the walls to the center of the basement floor, and discovered a small bowl filled with pellets.  they looked like rabbit poop, but they smelled……interesting.  i crept closer, all senses on high alert for a trap.  closer and closer until my nose was at the edge of the dish and nothing happened.  sniff sniff sniff.  nothing happened.  wait, sniff, look around.  nothing.  so i ignored everything i’d been taught and eased one pellet into my mouth.  i crunched it.  the taste was savory, with squirrel notes and a pleasant bird finish.  yum.  oh my yes, yum!  i looked around again.  i could see both exits clearly.  no humans appeared. i was not trapped, and the pellets fairly begged me to eat them.  so i did.

to be continued yet again….