A Flutter of Paws

Your excited whisper that Pibby might like me too made my heart take the softest little leap. I hurried back inside on quiet, eager paws and climbed straight onto the sofa cushions where he was sitting. My breath felt very light. Beside him on the linen fabric, a single pale satin ribbon lay curled loosely. With trembling, deliberate care, I took the silken tip between my paws and smoothed it outward, easing every gentle wave until it pointed straight toward his fluffy white knee. When my sleeve brushed his shoulder, he didn't pull away at all. Sitting so close beside him in the warm afternoon glow, everything felt wonderfully sweet and still.