The Great Downtown Heist

One bright morning, Chad and his sister Agaricus Bisporus were bored.

Dangerously bored.

“We should go downtown,” said Chad.

“We absolutely should,” agreed Agaricus.

From above the RV came a booming voice.

“I LOVE BAD IDEAS!”

Dragon Claw landed beside the RV.

Soon, the giant dragon was carrying the RV through the sky toward the city.

Echo was excited.

Che-Ni-Mon was terrified.

And Lily already looked disappointed.

When they landed outside downtown, Lily pointed her tail firmly.

“I am staying with the RV.”

She looked directly at Chad.

“No trouble.”

Then at Agaricus.

“No helping Chad cause trouble.”

Then at Echo.

“No disappearing.”

Then at Che-Ni-Mon.

“Try not to panic.”

Che-Ni-Mon immediately panicked.

The four cats entered downtown.

The city was incredible.

Food carts.

Restaurants.

Bakeries.

Pizza shops.

Fish markets.

Taco stands.

The smells drifted through every street.

Chad’s stomach growled.

Agaricus’s stomach growled.

Echo’s stomach growled.

Even Che-Ni-Mon’s stomach growled.

The adventure had begun.

At first, they only accepted dropped food.

A tiny piece of chicken.

A bit of fish.

Half a french fry.

A piece of croissant.

But Chad had an idea.

A terrible idea.

An amazing idea.

“What if we collect food from EVERY restaurant?”

Agaricus tilted her head.

“For research purposes?”

“For science.”

“Excellent.”

Before long, the kittens had assembled an enormous wagon.

Nobody knew where the wagon came from.

Not even the kittens.

They simply found it.

Now they rolled through downtown collecting food.

One taco.

Two pizzas.

Three fish fillets.

Twenty-seven shrimp.

A mountain of croissants.

A suspicious amount of cheese.

A truly unreasonable quantity of tuna.

The wagon grew larger and larger.

People began noticing.

A police officer pointed.

“Hey!”

Another officer looked.

“Why is that wagon moving by itself?”

A third officer squinted.

“Are those cats?”

The kittens froze.

Che-Ni-Mon screamed.

“I KNEW THIS CITY WAS DANGEROUS!”

The officers approached.

The kittens ran.

And thus began…

THE GREAT DOWNTOWN CHASE.

🚨🚨🚨

The police cars followed.

The wagon bounced behind them.

Croissants flew everywhere.

Fish launched through the air.

A taco landed on a statue.

A pizza somehow landed on a bus stop sign.

Nobody understood how.

Chad led the charge.

“THIS WAY!”

Agaricus steered the wagon.

“LEFT TURN!”

Echo leaped over benches.

Che-Ni-Mon screamed continuously.

Not once.

Continuously.

For the entire chase.

The police followed through downtown.

The kittens raced through markets.

Across plazas.

Under outdoor tables.

Past fountains.

Through an art festival.

Nobody knew what was happening anymore.

Not even the police.

Finally the kittens reached the RV.

Lily was waiting.

She looked at the mountain of food.

Then at the police cars.

Then at the kittens.

Then back at the police cars.

Then back at the kittens.

“…What did you do?”

“Research,” said Agaricus.

“Science,” added Chad.

Che-Ni-Mon fainted.

Dragon Claw looked toward the approaching police.

“Oh.”

The dragon smiled.

“Oh, this is fun.”

He grabbed the RV.

Spread his enormous wings.

And launched into the sky.

The officers skidded to a stop.

The RV rose higher.

And higher.

And higher.

The officers could only stare.

One removed his sunglasses.

“Did a dragon just steal an RV?”

Another nodded.

“I think so.”

A third officer looked at his report.

“I’m not writing that.”

Everything would have been perfect…

Except Echo was missing.

Again.

Back downtown, Echo had wandered into a secret late-night cat club.

Jazz music played.

Fancy city cats lounged on rooftops.

Someone was reciting poetry about salmon.

Echo was having the time of his life.

Then he looked outside.

The RV was flying away.

“Oh no.”

Echo exploded from the club.

“NOT AGAIN!”

He sprinted through downtown.

Across rooftops.

Over alleyways.

Past confused pigeons.

Past confused humans.

Past very confused police officers.

Meanwhile, the RV was climbing higher and higher.

Mom would be waiting at home.

Lily paced.

“Where’s Echo?”

Chad looked worried.

Agaricus looked worried.

Even Dragon Claw looked worried.

Then, far below, a tiny voice shouted:

“WAAAAAAAIT!”

Everyone looked down.

Echo was running at full speed.

Behind him, dozens of city cats cheered.

“GO ECHO!”

“RUN!”

“YOU OWE ME FIVE TUNA TOKENS!”

Echo leapt from a rooftop.

Dragon Claw swooped lower.

The RV ladder swung through the air.

Echo stretched every paw.

The city disappeared below him.

The gap widened.

Closer.

Closer.

Closer.

GRAB!

Echo caught the ladder.

Everyone cheered.

Even Lily.

Though she pretended she didn’t.

As the RV flew home beneath the stars, the kittens shared their enormous pile of food.

Tacos.

Pizza.

Fish.

Croissants.

Shrimp.

And enough tuna to feed a small army.

Che-Ni-Mon finally stopped shaking.

“That was the most terrifying day of my life.”

Chad smiled.

“Best day ever.”

Agaricus nodded.

“Excellent science.”

Lily sighed.

“I am never letting you out of my sight again.”

Echo grinned.

“See you next downtown trip.”

Lily groaned.

Dragon Claw laughed.

And together they flew home to their mother, carrying memories, food, and one very confusing police report.

🌙🐱 Chad
🌙🐱 Agaricus Bisporus
🌙🐱 Echo
🌙🐱 Che-Ni-Mon
🌙🐱 Lily
🌙🐉 Dragon Claw

The End. 🚐✨🌃🐾🍕🌮🐟