"Mercedes Lackey - A Tail Of Two Skittys" - читать интересную книгу автора (Lackey Mercedes)

inside.

A pair of big green eyes in a pointed gray face looked out at him from the
shadows. "Meowrrrr?" said a tentative voice.

Tell her it's all right, SKitty, he thought, extending a hand for Astra to
sniff. It was too bad that his telepathic connection with SKitty did not
extend to these other cats, but she seemed to be able to relay everything he
needed to tell them.

Astra sniffed his fingers daintily, and oozed out of the crate, belly to the
floor. After a moment though, a moment during which SKitty stared at her so
hard that Dick was fairly certain his little friend was communicating any
number of things to the newcomer, Astra stood up and looked around, her ears
coming up and her muscles relaxing. Finally she looked up at Dick and blinked.

"Prrow," she said. He didn't need SKitty's translation to read that. He held
out his arms and the young cat leapt into them, to be carried in regal dignity
out of the Quarantine area.
As he turned away from the crate, he thought he caught a hint of movement in
the shadows at the back. But when he turned to look, there was nothing there,
and he dismissed it as nothing more than his imagination. If there had been
anything else in Astra's crate, the manifest would have listed itтАФand Astra
was definitely sterile, so it could not have been an unlicensed kitten.

Erica Makumba and Vena were waiting for him in the corridor outside. Vena
offered her fingers to the newcomer; much more secure now, Astra sniffed them
and purred. "She's lovely," Vena said in admiration. Dick had to agree; Astra
was a velvety blue-gray from head to tail, and her slim, clean lines clearly
showed her descent from Russian Blue ancestors.

:She for Furrball,: SKitty insisted, gently nipping at his neck.

Is this your idea or hers? Dick retorted.

:Sees Furrball in head; likes Furrball.: That seemed to finish it as far as
SKitty was concerned. :Good hunter, too.: Dick gave in to the inevitable.

"Didn't we promise one of these new cats to the Lacu'teveras?" Dick asked.
"This one seems very gentle; she'd probably do very well as a companion for
Furrball." SKitty's kittens all had names as fancy as Astra'sтАФor as SKitty's
official name, for that matter. Furrball was "Andreas Widefarer of Lacu'un,"
Nuisance was "Misty Snowspirit of Lacu'un," Rags was "Lady Flamebringer of
Lacu'un" and Trey was "Garrison Starshadow of Lacu'un." But they had, as cats
always do, acquired their own nicknames that had nothing to do with the
registered names. Astra would without a doubt do the same.

Each of the most prominent families of the Lacu'un had been granted one cat,
but the Royal Family had three. Two of SKitty's original kittens, and one of
the newcomers. Astra would bring that number up to four, a sacred number to