"Good job, Mushroom." Tevildo purred in admiration and began kneading his front paws against the thick sheepskin mat that stood in front of the hearth. He had to admit that Mushroom had done an excellent job getting back at the annoying Innkeeper who had earlier chased him away from the table. The woman obviously had poor taste and no appreciation of cats!
He continued his kneading motion for several minutes and then stopped abruptly, cautiously surveying the perimeter of the room. Aman was still deep in conversation with various two-leggeds who apparently belonged to Mushroom's family. Since there were a great many of these hobbits in varying sizes, it appeared that the Innkeeper would be kept busy for some time.
Mushroom slunk up to Tevildo's shoulder and whispered in his ear, "That was a really lovely table!"
Tevildo stood his tail upright and puffed out with pride. "I think the path is clear again," he added, gesturing with his head in the direction of the table.
"This time, let's try the back legs. We can scratch there, and no one will notice."
Tevildo nodded in agreement, and the two cats slunk off in tandem. Within a few moments they were again scratching, this time at the rear legs of the table.
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Now Tevildo was a mighty cat--the mightiest of all--and possessed of an evil spirit,...and he was in Melko's constant following; and that cat had all cats subject to him, and he and his subjects were the chasers and getters of meat for Melko's table.
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