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Caturday Pootie Diary: Naughty and Nice [1]
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Date: 2022-12-24
He made it to the living room in time to see a large man dressed in red emerging from the fireplace. “You’re back!” he cried.
Santa Claus looked up and his twinkling eyes met Freddie’s. “Ho ho ho,” he chuckled quietly. “I come every year, my furry friend.”
“Do you have treats?”
The big man’s beard twitched as he nodded. “I didn’t forget,” he assured the cat.
Freddie slowly approached, suddenly feeling a little shy. “I really liked them the last time you were here.”
Santa dropped his big red bag to the ground and crouched to open it. “Let me do a few things and then you and I will have our treats together.”
Freddie sat on the couch watching intently as Santa pulled package after package from his sack and placed them carefully under the tree. Once satisfied, he snapped his fingers and the lights on the tree came to life. “I’ve never seen the human do it that way,” he observed.
“I have a few tricks up my sleeve,” Santa responded with a grin.
Freddie’s stared at the sleeves in question. “That is a pretty big coat,” he agreed.
“Some parts of the world are very cold tonight. It’s helpful to have a big, warm coat. Mrs. Claus always makes sure my coat is mended and ready for me.”
“My human tries to put clothes on me sometimes,” Freddie shared. “I don’t really like it.”
Santa turned to the stockings on the fireplace mantel. “She loves you,” he said as he worked. “Her attention is a good thing.”
“Attention is fine,” Freddie said. “But I have a perfectly good fur coat.”
Santa stood back and clapped his hands once, softly. “That’s a job well done,” he said, turning his head to meet Freddie’s eyes. “If I do say so myself.”
“You did put the stuff in the things,” Freddie agreed.
“It’s time for a break,” the jolly man announced.
“And treats!”
Freddie jumped down from the couch as the big man sat on the floor, crossing his legs. “Ah, it feels good to sit,” he said. “I only do this work one night a year but it is a very long night.”
“You deserve some treats,” Freddie said, nodding sagely.
“And so do you!” Santa said, reaching into the pocket of his big coat. “You are a very nice cat, even when you are naughty.” He thought about it for a second. “All cats are, really. Nice, even when they are naughty.” He pulled out a small drawstring bag made of soft red and white fur.
Freddie rubbed his body along Santa’s knee. The man pulled off one white glove and used his bare hand to stroke Freddie’s fur. “Thank you,” he said, sincerely. “I don’t feel properly dressed without some animal fur clinging to my pants.”
“Now, let’s see what we have here,” Santa said, carefully opening the soft bag. “Ah! Here we are.” He reached in and grabbed a handful of the bags contents, then laid a small pile of tuna scented treats on the floor in front of the cat. “You have your cat treats,” he said, reaching for the plate of homemade baked goods on the coffee table, “and I’ll have my Santa treats.”
They sat side by side and crunched on their snacks in companionable silence. Both made small noises of appreciation, clearly enjoying their treats.
“Your human is a pretty good baker,” Santa said, finishing a cookie cut in the shape of an angel. “I do enjoy my visits here.”
“You should wake her up and have her feed you more,” Freddie said. “It sometimes takes her a while to realize what you want, but she’ll figure it out eventually.”
Santa shook his head, raising a glass of milk to his lips. “She needs her sleep. And it’s better if she doesn’t know I was here until the morning.”
Freddie stood. “I can wake her!” he announced.
“No, no, don’t do that. Humans must sleep through my visits. That’s how it works. They don’t handle real magic as well as cats and dogs and birds do.”
Freddie sat again and twisted to quickly groom the fur along his spine. Finished, he straightened up to face Santa. “They are good creatures,” he said, “but sometimes they can’t see what’s right in front of them.”
“They are who they are,” Santa said, wiping his mouth with a crisp, white handkerchief. “And you are who you are,” he added, pulling a few more treats from the bag with a chuckle.
Freddie stood and shook his tail in excitement. “You bring the best treats,” he gushed.
“Thank you, my friend,” Santa said, seriously.
Santa rose gracefully to his feet with a tired sigh. “It’s time I moved on,” he told the cat cheerfully eating treats on the floor.
Freddie looked up from his treats and walked to the big man. He threw the full weight of his body against Santa’s boots, making sure they would smell of him.
“Ho ho ho,” Santa laughed. “Thank you for giving me something to remember you by. But don't worry — I will see you this time next year.”
“I’ll be waiting for more treats,” Freddie said.
“Good boy,” Santa said, picking up his sack and swinging it over his shoulder. “Love your human and keep being nice, even when you are naughty.” With that, he snapped his fingers again and disappeared back up the chimney.
Freddie turned back to his small pile of treats with a happy sigh.
Happy Caturday, Peeps! And Merry Christmas, if you celebrate! Freddie and I are very grateful for all of you, our wonderful online family.
[END]
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