He was ours, and we loved him. It was really my grandma who saw him, sitting there on our doorstep. It had been nearly three months since our dog died in September, and my mom was suffering severe “pet withdrawals.”

We opened the door and exiled a can of tuna into a bowl. We poured milk onto it and set the bowl in front of the animal. He took two sips and ran into the next room to dive under the couch as if it were 1965 and the sirens were going off. That’s where we got the idea for the name Dusty.

The next day we put a “found” notice in the paper and a few up around town. After three weeks of debating names, no one claimed him, so we decided to name our black and white spotted pet Magic, as he came to our house like magic. We had many great times, although I do remember tormenting him when I was young.

Epilogue

That cat is in a bright, green field filled with fluffy, white bunnies now. He left one night and didn’t come back. We suspect wolves. Another three or four months after that, we got a new cat whom we named Dewey Dude; Dewey because he looked like the the library cat, Dude in respect to his previous owner. He is ours, and we love him.