Once through the door of the ice shack, Tabs was struck by the vastness of the night sky and the frozen lake. He was running on the ice, his little legs churning like propeller blades, his claws scraping for purchase.
Fear drove him faster, forward, deeper into the night. There were dots of light far ahead on the other side of the lake, but they seemed miles away. Nothing to his right but the expanse of the frozen lake, and to his left, the shadowy outline of an outcropping of land — another shore, or an island perhaps, much closer than the far shore but with no signs of life. Only a line of tall trees behind a rocky beach.
Where was the creature now? Tabs wondered. Had it pulled itself out from under the crates in the shack? Was it in pursuit of him now, chasing him down on the lake with its longer canine legs? Tabs couldn’t bring himself to look.
His lungs started to burn, and he realized that his pace was slowing. The lights on the far shore of the lake beckoned him. Tabs knew there was shelter there, people, but there was no way he would be able to run all the way across the lake. It was too far.
He scanned the closer shore to his left again for any signs of help or danger. Just then, the werewolf howled behind him.
It was close! Tabs shuddered, and his muscles briefly convulsed. He lost his footing and spun sideways and end over end on the ice. He slid 20 feet on his side before coming to a stop.
Stunned…Tabs lay there panting, hearing nothing but his own breathing, a ringing in his ears and the pounding of his tiny tabby heart.
He was still alive… That much he could tell, but he had lost his bearings in the fall.
Then, a second howl ripped him awake, immediately restoring his focus. Gingerly, Tabs climbed to his feet on unsteady legs.
The second howl came from his left, along the near shore but down a ways behind him.
A second werewolf? As if in reply, the first one howled again, this time closer.
“Mrow,” Tabs mewled, overcome with despair. Is this it? Is this how my story ends?
“Mrraw!” came a grizzled shout from the near shore. Over here!
Where? Tabs searched for the owner of the raspy voice.
“Mrraaw!” the voice called again. Get up, kid! They’re comin’!
And then Tabs saw a pair of wide feline eyes glowing green on the edge of the dark shore. They belonged to a big gray cat waving a huge paw in his direction.
“Mrow!” the gray cat yelled. You can make it!
I can make it, Tabs repeated to himself, drawing strength from the words. I can make it. He took one step toward the gray cat, and then another. And then he sprung and sprinted toward the shore as fast as he could.
To follow our story from the beginning…
If you enjoyed this little tale and would like to see Tabs continue the story, let him know in the comments. 🙂 And now, here are some pics from Tabs’ every-growing kitty modeling portfolio.
Who is Tabs the Cat? About five years ago I befriended a stray, flea-bitten tabby cat with a bad case of worms. I could see he’d fallen on hard times, but his profound knowledge of high fashion and department store cosmetics led me to believe that he was more than meets the eye. We became fast friends, and now he’s actually my boss (and a successful kitty model). 🙂
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
P.S. To see what else acclaimed kitty supermodel Tabs the Cat has been up to over the years, check out Sundays With Tabs, the Archives: From Anastasia to Zoya.
Tracy@Beauty Reflections says
HAHA man I love those ads Tabs. What was it like working with Ryan?
MB says
Aah, the Guerlain ad is so great. 🙂
Bing says
Keep the stories coming! Very Hunger Games plus James Bond-esque
Michelle says
The Guerlain ad is perfection. Salmon Gravy and FF Ocean Whitefish and Cheddar are faves around here.
Sunny says
OMG I love the Guerlain one and the NARS one!!! I think the only way for me to be even more obsessed with Ryan Gosling is seeing him walk a cat 😉
Marla says
I want to spend a Sunday with Tabs. His life is so exciting.
Carrie says
Yes – more Tabs!!!
Susan says
Love reading about the escapades of Tabs!
Kim says
I’m getting very concerned for Tabs! He really knows how to build suspense in his story-telling!! 🙂
Monica P says
This weekend I was at Cost Plus World Market and saw, at the check out, these lip balm tins with a cat dressed up as a gypsy on the front of the tin and I so thought of you!
Monica.
Jane says
I’m cracking up over the Nars ad. . .
Steph says
Be safe, Tabs! You need to do more ads with Gosling!
Lorraine ER says
I’m loving the story, please keep it going?
musical says
Mwahahaha! Tabs’s eyes in the Guerlain ad-priceless! I’m lovin’ all of these! Git the Gosling dude outta’ that picture-that frame belongz to Tabster ;).
PS: Tabs just gave a certain Mr. Renner a run for his money with this story :).
Erin says
I love Tabs work with Mr. gosling, stunning! And I can’t wait to find out who the big gray cat is! Keep the stories coming!
Tiffany says
I call my cat, Maxwell, gray cat, so that fits into your story! 🙂