Scarlett is excited to be moving to the countryside, especially as it means she will finally get a pet. She chooses Bootle, a ginger kitten with four white socks, and the two of them become inseparable. Then Scarlett has to start at her new school...Bootle tries following Scarlett to school each day. But when there's a downpour, he gets lost. How will Scarlett ever be able to find him when she has no idea where he could be?
For Emily and the gorgeous Rosie Bumble
Scarlett looked around her new bedroom with delight. It was huge! And as it was up in the roof of the cottage, it was a really interesting shape, all ups and downs. There was a gorgeous window as well, with a curly handle to open it, and a big, wide windowsill she could sit on. Her old bedroom had been tiny, and a very boring squarish sort of shape.
“Good, isn’t it?” Jackson, her big brother, put his head round the door. He had the bedroom next to hers, which was basically the other half of the roof space. Mum and Dad had said that their bedrooms used to be the attic.
“I love it,” Scarlett said happily. “The window’s the best thing! I love seeing all the fields and trees, and look! Cows! Out of my bedroom window!”
Jackson chuckled. “Cows not cars. Now
Scarlett nodded slowly. “There
Jackson made a face. “Yeah, one shop! And a blacksmith. How weird is that?”
“And the school’s in the village too,” Scarlett added, very quietly. “I wish we didn’t have to change schools.” That was the thing she was least happy about with their move to the countryside. She was really going to miss her old school, and her friends. Lucy and Ella had said they’d come and stay in the next holidays, but that was a long time away. And meanwhile, she was going to start at a school where she didn’t know anyone, and she certainly didn’t have any friends.
“It’ll be all right,” Jackson told her cheerfully, and Scarlett sighed. He wasn’t worried. He never was. Jackson was really sporty, and he found it very easy to make friends. And yet he didn’t show off, so people just wanted to hang out with him. Scarlett wished she knew how he did it.
“Did you hear that rustling noise?” Jackson pointed up at the ceiling. “I bet there are mice in all that thatch. Remember to tell Mum and Dad about that, Scarlett. You need to start working on them again about a kitten, now that we’re here. They said maybe after we’d moved, didn’t they?”
Scarlett grinned at him. “I know! I thought I’d maybe give them a day though, before I started asking. Let them get some boxes unpacked first…” She looked up too. “Do you really think there are mice?”
Jackson gazed thoughtfully at the ceiling. “Probably. It sounds like it to me. Unless it’s a rat, of course.”
“Uuurgh! OK, I’ll ask Mum now. No way am I living in a house with a rat!” Scarlett shuddered.
“I’m with you on that,” Jackson grinned. “Rats can be pretty big, you know. Bigger than a kitten, anyway.” He made a ratty face, pulling his lips back to show big ratty teeth.
“Stop it!” Scarlett cried. “Maybe we can get a grown-up cat then. I don’t mind if it isn’t a little kitten. I’d just love to have any sort of cat, and they did say maybe we could. You’ll help, won’t you? You’ll ask too?”
Jackson nodded. “Yeah. Although I don’t fancy coming down in the morning to find a row of dead mice on the doormat. That’s what Sam says his cat does.”
Scarlett looked worried. “I think I’d rather have a cat that just scares the mice away…”
Scarlett started her kitten campaign while everyone was sitting down eating lunch. It felt really odd seeing their old kitchen table in a completely different kitchen.
“It’s so quiet,” Mum said happily, looking out of the open window. “I don’t think I’ve heard a single car since we got here. I love it that we’re down at the end of the lane.”
“I keep thinking there’s something missing,” Dad admitted. “But it’ll be great once we’re used to it. And the air smells amazing.”
Jackson sniffed loudly. “That’s cowpat, Dad.”
Scarlett made a face at him. She didn’t want him distracting Mum and Dad – this was a great opportunity to mention a kitten. She took a deep breath. “It’s not a bit like Laurence Road, is it?” she said, thinking about their old home. “With all the busy traffic…” She swallowed, and glanced hopefully from Mum to Dad and back again. “You wouldn’t worry about a cat getting run over here, would you?”
Dad snorted with laughter and turned to Mum. “You win, Laura. She lasted more than an hour.”
Scarlett blinked. “What do you mean?”
Mum reached out an arm and hugged her round the shoulder. “Dad and I were talking about it last night, Scarlett. We wondered how long you’d be able to wait before you asked about a cat. I said that I thought it would be once we’d settled in a bit, and Dad said you’d ask the moment we got here. So I won, and now he has to cook dinner tonight!”
“Simple. Fish and chips,” Dad said, taking a huge bite of sandwich.
Mum smiled at him. “You do realize it’s a twenty-minute drive to the nearest fish and chip shop now, don’t you?”
“You mean you were just waiting for me to ask? So can we have one?” Scarlett said hopefully, eager to get back to talking about kittens.
