I opened the barn door and smiled at the loud rumbles of happy caterflies purring.
When I got to the desk, Sassafras hopped out of my backpack. The loud thump he made as he landed startled the caterflies.
Their eyes got huge and they fluttered over with their six furry legs stretched out to hug Sassafras.
“Ohhhhhhhh, what is this?!” both caterflies asked as they hovered around him.
“This is my cat, Sassafras,” I replied proudly.
Sassafras looked from me to the caterflies and back again and took a small step backward.
I ruffled Sassafras’ fur. “It’s OK. These are the caterflies I was telling you about. They won’t hurt you.”
One of the caterflies landed by Sassafras’ front paw and leaned its little cheek against his fur and sighed. “You have brought us a cat!”
The second caterfly lovingly bopped its head against Sassafras’ other front paw. “He is so warm. Oh, thank you!”
Sassafras’ ears went sideways, and he looked up at me questioningly.
“Pleeeeease, Sass? We’ve got to hurry!”
He let out another big sigh and bent down. The caterflies hopped on and nestled into his fur. They immediately started purring.
I clapped my hands in victory. This was so cute! It would make a great photo, but we were in too big of a hurry. I’d have to wait until later.
Gently, I placed the fluffy heap of cat plus two caterflies into my backpack.
How much time did I have left? I glanced at my watch. Only fifteen minutes before Sassafras and I needed to be back home. I walked as fast as I could straight toward the caterflies’ cave.
