Casper is a small, black and white cat, the sort of common moggie to be seen in any suburban garden.   His character is a mixture of independence, charm and sheer perversity.   Each member of his family sees him differently.

The children, David and Lyn, accept him as a fact of life and do not question the occasional unusual occurrence.  Julia, their mother (“Herself” to Casper), has been his devoted slave, ever since he arrived as an appealing kitten, the runt of the litter.  Instinctively, she feels he is special and not always what he seems.  Stephen, the children’s father, is scornful of such fantasy.  He prefers the dogs.  The four dogs are all under Casper’s paw. 

Casper’s kingdom covers his own garden and those adjacent, the allotments between the gardens and the railway and the wild country beyond.   Some of his adventures take him even further afield.  A particular friend is the old man who lives in a stone cottage hidden behind the suburban houses three streets away. 

With Casper, the reader eavesdrops on the lives played out around him.  Casper is in all senses a real cat and like all cats, what he does and where he goes once out of sight is his own affair.  Boundaries of time and space have no meaning for him. 

Chapter 1

The family are out for the day and Casper sets out to walk the northern boundary of his kingdom, reinforcing his sovereignty over the territories of neighbouring dogs and cats.  He visits his friend, the old man who lives in the stone cottage.  The old man has no doubt that Casper is an exceptional cat.

Chapter 2

The children and their father clear out the summerhouse, a glory hole of old toys and bric-a-brac.  Casper gets underfoot.   Later he is spotted playing with a glass ball with numbers on its faceted sides. It is the fortune telling ball that belonged to Julia and her friend Linda when they were children in Wales.  Julia and Linda have lost touch, but   Julia’s children, Lyn and David, are fascinated to learn of fortune telling ball’s prophecies, some of which have come true. 

Chapter 3

A family holiday is planned and Casper is booked into a cattery, but first he must pay a visit to the vet for his injections.   He is eventually caught and taken sulkily to the surgery where he stages a dramatic escape.  Taking refuge in a nearby park, he evades all search parties.

Chapter 4

Casper returns home to find the family gone and the unsympathetic Mavis in charge of the dogs and the house.  He does not show himself.   He is greeted at the stone cottage with relief by the old man and his visiting daughter, Linda, who have seen the “lost cat” posters all over the high street.

Chapter 5

Casper sets up his headquarters in an old truck in a disused railway siding.  On fine nights he goes to the park for adventure.  When the weather is inclement, he spends his time at the stone cottage.  He keeps a close eye on the house at the top of the hill where the dogs are in the imperfect care of Mavis.  Meanwhile, Linda is trying to sort out a future for herself and her father.  She makes a new acquaintance in the high street, a red-haired young man. Her fortune seems to be linked to red-haired men. 

Chapter 6

Casper is spotted by two wardens carrying out routine checks prior to closing the park for the night.  They are in no doubt that they have seen a zoo escapee.   The following day the RSPCA and police are out in force, their search operation directed by a helicopter.  The park and high street are closed, but Casper spends the day, which is rainy, dozing at the stone cottage.   Nothing is found and the two park wardens become something of a laughing stock. 

Chapter 7

Casper’s family flying home from their Spanish holiday read in the newspaper about the excitement in their suburb.  Her husband scoffs when Julia wonders tentatively if it could have anything to do with Casper.  After a fraught journey, they arrive home to be greeted ecstatically by the dogs, but to find that Casper has still not turned up.   Julia is in despair when Casper comes trotting up the path. 

Chapter 8

Casper gets a prodigal’s welcome, but clearly has not been starving for the past weeks.   When, after a few days of staying close to the house, the wanderlust overcomes him again, Julia and the children try to find out where he goes.    It is not that easy.  In the end, chance leads them to the stone cottage and an acrimonious encounter with the old man.  Casper is carried home imprisoned in a shopping bag.  

Chapter 9

An effort is made to keep Casper in the house and break his habit of wandering.  It is not a great success and after a few days, even Julia is glad to see the back of him.  Perversely, Casper is disinclined to leave.  He knows a storm is in the offing.  Evicted from the house, he sets out for the stone cottage.  Lightening flickers on the horizon and he arrives just as the first drops of rain are falling. The cottage is in darkness.  With difficulty, Casper finds a way in, but the old man stretched out on the kitchen floor is unable to provide him with more than comfort and company.

Chapter 10

When the storm is over, it is quite dark and voices are heard outside.  Julia and Stephen have left the children with Mavis and come in search of Casper, albeit Stephen reluctantly.  Casper’s face at the window gives them a fright.  Using the key hanging by the backdoor they enter the cottage and find the old man, who has fallen off a chair whilst trying to mend the fuse and been unable to get up.  Stephen goes back to the children while Julia stays to keep the old man company.  When his daughter returns home, Julia finds herself face to face with her childhood friend, Linda.  They have much to catch up on and wonder if the fortune telling ball’s exciting prophecies are yet complete.  Julia hurries home to share her good news.  Casper, travelling alone, is waiting for her on the doorstep.

  

Pamela Pheasant

E-mail pampheasant@aol.com