Nine Cats Catch the Dawn

NINE CATS CATCH THE DAWN A Cat Sea Color Story

On the morning the dawn went missing, Ash knew first. His breakfast bowl was gray. His window was gray. Even his sneeze felt gray. “That is too much gray,” said Ash.

Ash rang the little harbor bell. Ember came red-fast. Marmalade came orange-round. Sunny came yellow-bright. Moss came green-quiet. Tide came blue-splashy. Iris came purple-proud. Rose came pink-soft. Pearl came white as foam. Nine cats looked east. No dawn looked back.

Below the tide steps, they found the Loomwheel. Its gold rim was still. Its nine paths were empty. One small tag hung from the middle: PLEASE RETURN ALL BORROWED COLOR. “Borrowed by whom?” asked Rose. The gray gulls looked extremely busy elsewhere.

“We will bring the colors back,” said Ash. Ember found red warming a rooftop poppy. Marmalade found orange in a round shop lantern. Sunny found yellow hiding in a bakery window. Each cat borrowed one glimmer. Nothing lost its color. It simply shone twice. Refrain: One thread can shimmer. Nine threads can turn the morning.

Moss found green along a wet leaf vein. Tide found blue inside a rain-barrel sky. Iris found purple under a listening shell. They carried the glimmers carefully: on whiskers, on tails, and once, by accident, on Marmalade’s bottom. “I meant to do that,” said Marmalade.

Rose found pink in the cheek of a cloud. Pearl found white in the edge of a wave. Eight glimmers curled around the gold rim. But Ash found no black glimmer anywhere. The black boats were gray. The black stones were gray. Night itself had slipped away.

“Perhaps the wheel needs only bright colors,” Ash said. He stepped back. The eight cats pushed. The wheel clicked once. Then it stopped. From inside the rain barrel came a tiny voice. “You forgot the place where light begins.” MOTE climbed over the rim, dripping.

MOTE pointed into the water. Ash saw the dark shape beneath his own reflection. It was not empty. It held the roof, the bell, his eight friends, and one small cat deciding whether to step forward. Ash touched the water. A black-silver thread wound gently around his paw.

Ash tied the first thread. Ember tied red. Marmalade tied orange. Sunny tied yellow. Moss tied green. Tide tied blue. Iris tied purple. Rose tied pink. Pearl tied white. Nine cats pulled together. The Loomwheel turned.

Color ran up the tide steps. Red warmed the roofs. Orange rolled through the lanterns. Yellow buttered the windows. Green climbed the leaves. Blue filled the harbor. Purple tucked itself beneath the waves. Pink opened the clouds. White tipped the foam. And black held every shining color in place. Refrain, changed: One thread can shimmer. Nine threads brought back the morning.

The dawn rose late, but it rose beautifully. The nine cats went home for breakfast. Marmalade sat down very carefully. Can you find all nine threads? - black-silver - red - orange - yellow - green - blue - purple - pink - white Which color would you carry to the Loomwheel?