The Old Uncle

I think Neville has been holding out on me. A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about how he climbed Minuet’s cat-tree in the bedroom. Now, I think he was playing with Valkyrie.

Sometimes, the Nevsky goes down to the basement and spends time in the library. I think he may want to get away from the others. Whatever the reason, he is not always alone down there. Sunday afternoon, I walked to the library. Peering into the room, I saw Nev and Valkyrie on the couch. Neville was slapping the couch’s surface in front of him with a paw, alternating this with Valk reaching out with one of her paws. I didn’t understand what they were doing.

Afterward, I observed two fuzzy mice between Neville’s outstretched front feet. Valkyrie had been trying to snatch them from her old uncle, and he was smacking at her paws in refusal.

I have seen and heard Neville when he is grumpy. He makes derisive sounds and usually turns away, or even walks off, if he is truly annoyed. If he wanted simply to let the youngster have the mice, he would have moved back. And if Valkyrie had wanted the mice, she would have dug them out with a concentrated effort. They were playing the feline version of Hungry Hippo.

Has Neville been a playful uncle all along? I doubt it, since I probably would have seen it long before now. But perhaps, every now and then, one of the youngsters catches him in the right mood. Or perhaps it’s Valkyrie, and he has a soft spot for her. In any case, that afternoon, for a few minutes, my old grey lion was playing with a kitten.