untamed and uncut

if you've ever had cable, then you have likely caught a glimpse of animals gone wild 'untamed and uncut', battling in the wilderness. i see such rage and i can't help but stop and stare.

well, animal planet's got nothing on what i witnessed tonight.



leo is my outdoor cat. i don't know that he's been introduced to the blogosphere yet. here he is:


leo adopted me several months ago and i instantly fell in love. we had a few rough days at first. some blood was shed. (mine, not his.) just until i learned that even though he rolls over and teases like he wants you to scratch his belly - he does NOT in fact enjoy that and he WILL attack your hand.

leo is a free spirit. sometimes he sticks around the yard for days, sometimes he only comes by every couple days to eat. this time though...well, he's been absent for a month. so when kevin said that there was a sweet orange cat hanging around the north side of campus, i invited him to bring it over to my place in hopes of keeping it fed and, maybe more importantly, keeping it out of the residence halls when students return next week.


this is where the real story begins...



part one:
tonight, as i was finishing up my last batch of lemon blueberry biscuits, kevin called. he had the cat and wondered if it would be a good time to bring it over to the house. "come on over..."

when i walked outside to greet kevin and my new feline friend, i saw a cat that looked so much like my childhood cat - buddy. it was an orange tabby and so very lovable. she let me hold her (we're pretty sure it's a girl though i didn't get a good look, since it was so dark outside..) and came over to join leo for dinner.

leo wasn't having it. he chased the orange cat away, growling and hissing the whole way. the two cats disappeared into the dark night. part of me was proud, knowing that this meant that leo claimed this place as his home. the other part of me was fearful that i'd find a wounded cat on my doorstep in the morning.

part two:
it isn't long before both cats return. leo is eating from his food bowl at the end of the sidewalk again. the orange cat is underneath my car. clearly, the issue before was the food. so i bring out another dish of food and put it near the car before walking over to pet leo and check him over for any damage. he's happy as can be without a cut or a scratch.

the orange cat appears but bypasses the food and waltzes straight up to the house door. i leave leo to check out this new cat and make sure that she's okay. i feel something wet by her ear, but it turns out to be nothing. she is sweet as can be, even curling up in my lap purring.

suddenly there's a third cat in my yard. it's grey. i've seen it maybe once before, but this is the first time he's really approached the house. he's big. and strong. i can see that from yards away on my porch. my new friend, the orange cat, isn't really interested in this new development at first, but leo perks up almost immediately. after a long staring competition leo and the orange cat chase the grey cat into the woods. they've apparently joined forces.

leo goes back to eating. orange cat returns to me. i get up to go in the house, and she follows me without hesitation.

part four:
i open the door and let this new cat come inside. mr darcy is on his usual perch right inside staring down at the new cat, but not making a move or a sound. things seem to be going well until pete comes barreling through the kitchen to meet his new friend.

the cat freaks out. it was like something out of a cartoon. arched back. fur spiked. eyes huge. before i can get pete restrained the cat literally scales the corner of the room with his claws, bouncing from wall to wall and nearly hitting the ceiling before dropping to the ground again.

by this point pete is almost peeing himself. what happened next though, is the stunning part. mr. darcy quickly came to pete's rescue. he got between pete and i and this new cat, making noises that i could never imagine coming from any living being. the pitch and volume of his growl were unearthly. clearly, i don't speak 'cat', but mr. darcy must have threatened that cat something fierce because as soon as i got that door open even a crack she was out like lightning.

they say the easiest way to bring people together is to give them a common enemy. i've never seen such a vivid reminder of that fact like i did tonight. leo and the orange cat joining forces to rid their home of the stranger grey cat. mr. darcy defending pete and quite possibly sparing him the loss of an eye to belligerent claws.

i will never forget the sound mr. darcy made. i swallowed the sound and heard it in my soul. it was the sound of power and it was the sound of fear. it was the sound of love and hate intertwined together.