The Mice and a Cat

The Mice and a Cat

By: Rodrigo P. de Vera, Jr.

Once upon a time, there lived five mice near at the foot of the mountain.  These mice were not family members, but they treated each other more than friends. Friendship bound them together and there was no room for hatred among them. They shared similarities. They were all loving, caring, and friendly.

One day a stray cat came into there place. She was tired and hungry. When she came nearer to the abode of the mice, she heard them laughing and dancing in front of their happy house. Suddenly, she appeared in front of them and the mice ran in different directions for fear of being killed by this big stranger.

The cat said in her loud voice, “Don’t be afraid. I came here to be your friend as I found no friend along the way. Besides, I am lost and I don’t know where to go”. With these assuring words from the cat, the mice ran toward her and welcomed her with their open arms. Then, the cat joined them in their merriment.

Few days had passed and the cat noticed the closeness of the mice. In her heart, she was still a stranger and felt jealous about it.

One day, one of the mice went to the nearby pond to pitch some water and the cat volunteered to accompany her without the knowledge of the other mice. While walking together, the cat said, “I heard your friends calling you coward that you can’t even hunt alone”. The mouse replied, “That’s not true! I will prove to them that I can hunt alone”.  The cat answered, “I believe you,  my friend. Tonight, you prove to them that they are all wrong about you”. The mouse said, “ Yes, I will.” But the cat cautiously told the mouse, “Don’t tell them of what I told you now for I don’t want to destroy your friendship with them. I am still here as you friend. And tonight, go alone and hunt so that by tomorrow they will be surprised to see a breakfast in our table”. When they returned home, the mouse pretended as if she heard nothing about the rumor and as usual she still did play with them.

Nigh time came when everybody was sound asleep, except for one. “Now is the right time to hunt alone and prove to my friends that I am not coward at all.”, said the mouse. She slowly went out from their house and proceeded to the mountain.

Dawn came and the mice were surprised. One of them was not around. The cat informed them that she saw their friend went out last night to hunt. One mouse reacted and said, “Why did she do it alone? We usually hunt in a group.” The cat said, “ She might be on her way now. Don’t you worry. She is brave and she will come home soon”. 

They waited all day long and waited for nothing. The remaining mice were already crying for fear that their friend might have been dead or hurt alone in the mountain. The cat said, “Tears can’t find our friend. We have to look for her, instead of crying. Perhaps, she is still alive and waiting for our help”. The elder mouse replied, “Our friend, cat, is right. Let us find our friend in the mountain”.  “In that case, I will lead the group” said the cat. But one mouse suggested that two mice will have to stay at home to guard the house and wait for their friend just in case she will come home ahead of them.

At night, the mountain was in total darkness. The only signs of life were the sounds of cicadas and some night birds. The mountain became alive again when echoes sounded back and forth calling the name of the missing mouse. Three voices were heard at the beginning of the hunt.  Then, only two voices remained calling in the middle of the night. Suddenly, a sharp cry was heard. “Somebody, help me!”, said the cat. And the remaining mouse followed the voice of the cat until the mouse found her. Day break came and the only one who went home  was the cat.

The cat was badly hurt and could hardly walk. She had broken leg and her fur was filled with blood. “What happened to you and to our friends?” said the two mice in chorus. The cat replied, “We have been attacked by a wild boar and I was the only one who survived it. I fought the boar but she was so big and strong. If only I didn’t climb at the last minute of our fight I might have gone as well”. Then, the remaining mice cried bitterly when they heard the bad news.

Only three friends remained in that once happy home, the two mice and the cat.

One of the mice left the house to fetch water from a nearby pond. The cat said to the remaining mouse in the house, “My friend, don’t feel bad of what I will be telling you. Our friend mouse talked to me the other day and she told me that you are less caring among our former friends and you didn’t even care for her feelings nowadays”. “Is that what she told you? asked the mouse. “Yes, I do”, said the cat.

When the cat left the house for a while, the remaining mice confronted each other. At first, they had a heated argument over what the cat said to the other mouse. soon after, they realized that it was all lies. They realized how dangerous it was to live with their new found friend as they suspected the latter to be cause of the death and disappearance of their old-time friends. Both mice decided to watch over each other secretly. They both knew that their life will always be in danger while they live with their friend cat. 

When one of the mouse went to fetch water in the nearby pond,  the cat followed her. Suddenly, a cry of help was heard and the other mouse nearby appeared before the cat and told the cat of her true nature. The mouse challenged the cat to chase her and would be willing to be her food instead of the injured mouse. Without a doubt, the cat chased the mouse. The mouse ran toward a newly built tent with covered grass around it and the cat followed her. The cat almost caught the mouse with just an inch of a distance when suddenly the tent fell on the hole made by the mice secretly. They finally trapped the cat in that deep hole. The cat pleaded for help but the mice played deaf ears. Instead, the mice covered the top of the hole with soil and offered flowers for their friends who became the easy prey of this evil cat.

At the end, the remaining mice promised to look for each other and love each other more.