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“I’ve finished,” said Maddy, pushing away her half-eaten dinner. Mum had made her favourite pasta, but she just wasn’t hungry.

Her dad leaned over and put an arm round her shoulders.“Do you think we could tell her the news? To cheer her up?” he suggested to Maddy’s mum, and she nodded.

“What news?” Maddy sniffed sadly.

“Do you remember me telling you that my friend Donna’s cat had kittens a couple of months ago?” Mum asked.

“Oh, yes. You showed me a photo on your phone. They’re gorgeous. There were some tortoiseshell ones – my favourite kind!”

“Good. Because one of them is going to be yours!”

Maddy blinked.“I’m getting a kitten?”

“You can choose which of the litter you’d like. Donna needs to find homes for them all, and we thought it would be nice for you to have a cat, as you’ve wanted one for so long. Especially as you’re bound to miss Kate – getting to know a kitten might make the Easter holidays a bit less sad.” Her mum looked at her anxiously. “We’re not trying to take your mind off missing her, Maddy. It’s a really sad thing for a friend to move away.”

“It just seemed like a good time,” her dad added.

Maddy nodded.“It is a good time,” she whispered. She couldn’t help still feeling sad about Kate, of course, but at the same time, inside she was jumping about and squeaking.A kitten! A kitten! I’m getting a kitten!

Chapter Two

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Maddy’s mum showed her some more photos of the kittens, but it was hard to see them in the pictures on her phone. Three of them were ginger and the other two were tortoiseshells, beautiful black, white and orange cats. They were all coiled and snuggled around each other and their mother, who was blacklike Ben. Maddy was pretty sure she would like a tortoiseshell kitten – Tiger and Tom had put her off ginger cats.

“When can I see them?” Maddy asked the next morning at breakfast.

Mum smiled.“I’ve arranged for us to visit them this afternoon. And if you’re sure which kitten you’d like, you can even bring it home today! We can go to the pet shop on the way to Donna’s house to get everything we’ll need.”

As it turned out, they needed an awful lot of things. A basket, Maddy had thought of that. And a food bowl. But she hadn’t realized there was so much else. A collar. Grooming brush. Food. Special treats that were good for cleaning kitten teeth. Toys…

They were just about to go and pay for everything when Mum stopped.“Oh, I’m so stupid! I forgot that Donna said to bring a cat carrier to take the kitten home in.”

Maddy smiled.Home! She loved the idea of their house being a home for a kitten.

“If you get anything else, we won’t have room for the kitten in the car,” Dad muttered, but Maddy knew he was only joking.

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“Can we go to Donna’s now?” she said hopefully, as they stowed all the things in the boot a few minutes later.

Mum nodded, and hugged her.“I’m really excited.”

Maddy threw her arms round her mum’s neck. “I bet I’m more excited than you.”

Dad got in the car and tooted the horn at them.“Come on. I’m so excited I actually want to go and see these kittens some time today!”

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“Oh, look at them!” Maddy breathed, stopping in the kitchen doorway and staring. The kittens were all asleep in a large basket in the corner of the room. It was by the radiator, and the floor had been covered with newspaper.

“They’re doing pretty well with their house-training; the newspaper’s just in case they miss the litter tray,” Donna explained. “We’ve been keeping them in the kitchen up till now, but this last week they keep on escaping!”

“How old are they?” Maddy asked. They looked so little. She couldn’t believe they were ready to leave their mum.

“Ten weeks yesterday. I bought a book about raising kittens when we found out that Dilly was pregnant, and it recommended keeping them with their mum until then, so she can teach them what they need to know. Also, that way they get to spend more time with their brothers and sisters, and learn howto get on with each other.”

“So did you mean for her to have kittens then?” Maddy’s dad asked.

Donna sighed.“No, it was a total surprise. We were planning to have Dilly spayed, but we left it too late. As soon as she’s recovered from having these, we’ll take her to the vet. I love the kittens, but I don’t want any more!”

“Are you going to keep any of them?” Maddy asked, as she knelt down by the basket. “I can’t imagine how you’re going to let them go, they’re so gorgeous.”

Donna nodded.“I know. I’d love to keep a couple, and it will be sad for Dilly to lose them all, but we only ever meant to have one cat! We’ll have to see. Quite a few people seem interested in adopting one.” She smiled at Maddy. “But you’ve got first choice. Your mum booked you a kitten weeks ago!”

Maddy looked up at her mum gratefully.“Thanks, Mum!”

“Well, it seemed like a perfect opportunity – you’re old enough to help look after a pet now.”