🐾 The Adventures of PadFoots & ToeBeans - Official Household Record #004 - Part III 🐾

…The Mad Dash

🐾 THE CALL OF THE WILD 🐾

Part III: Mission Accomplished

How long must one wait for a carefully constructed plan to come to fruition?

It had been ages since I first undertook this mission.

And by ages...

I mean at least an hour and a half.

My efforts had already been thwarted countless times.

And by countless...

I mean twice.

It was becoming ludicrous.

The Wild was right there.

Sunshine.

Grass.

Birds.

Wind.

Freedom.

All of it waiting just beyond one flimsy screen door.

And yet I remained trapped inside like some common house cat.

My inner tiger was growing impatient.

Still...

A proper plan cannot be rushed.

I had already identified the vulnerability.

Lil Human.

Now I simply needed opportunity.

I assumed my position at Command Post.

The dining room table.

From there, I had an unobstructed view of the entire operation.

Big Human was in the kitchen, standing at the sink.

Excellent.

Lil Human was sitting outside on the patio, just beyond the screen door.

Even better.

I was positioned inside.

She was positioned outside.

Big Human was several strides away.

The pieces were nearly in place.

There remained only one problem.

The door was closed.

I needed Lil Human to come inside.

More specifically, I needed her to open that screen door just a few inches.

That was all.

A few inches.

I could handle the rest.

But how does one convince a three-year-old to open a door without alerting the Big Human?

I watched.

I waited.

I considered my options.

Then...

Lil Human spoke.

"Mommy, I'm thirsty."

My ears perked.

Thirsty?

Oh.

OH.

This was it.

Of course.

She would have to come inside to quench her thirst.

The door was about to open.

I lowered myself into position.

Every muscle prepared.

My inner tiger awakened.

My moment had arrived.

Then Big Human immediately filled a cup and walked toward the patio.

...

Excuse me?

Why must she be so prompt?

She approached the screen door.

My hopes briefly rose.

Then she opened it herself, handed the cup directly to Lil Human...

and closed it again.

I stared at her.

Big Human returned to the kitchen.

Lil Human drank happily.

The screen remained firmly shut.

Thwarted.

Again.

This woman was becoming a serious impediment to progress.

I remained at Command Post.

There would be another opportunity.

There had to be.

And then...

KNOCK. KNOCK. KNOCK.

A sound came from the front of the Estate.

Big Human looked toward the front door.

So did I.

Interesting.

She walked back to the patio, opened the screen door, said something to Lil Human, and turned toward the front of the house.

The screen closed behind her.

Big Human walked away.

Farther.

Farther...

Farther.

I looked at Lil Human.

Lil Human looked toward Big Human.

Then...

she stood.

My entire body went still.

Lil Human reached for the screen door.

She wanted to follow Big Human.

Of course she did.

Her little hand wrapped around the handle.

I crouched.

The screen moved.

One inch.

Two inches.

Three—

NOW.

I launched from Command Post.

Across the table.

Down to the floor.

Across the dining room.

Lil Human opened the door just wide enough to squeeze through—

Unfortunately for Estate Security...

she had failed to account for one highly motivated tiger traveling at full speed.

I shot through the opening.

Past Lil Human.

Across the threshold.

And suddenly—

I WAS OUTSIDE.

Not on Big Human's lap.

Not being held.

Not under supervision.

OUTSIDE.

On my own four paws.

The breeze rushed through my whiskers.

The sun warmed my back.

Leaves moved overhead.

The smells—

Good heavens, the smells.

Grass.

Dirt.

Trees.

Birds.

Things I had never smelled before.

Things that absolutely required immediate investigation.

Behind me, I heard Lil Human.

Then Big Human.

Something about—

"MARLOWE!"

I did not have time to address administrative concerns.

My inner tiger had waited long enough.

The Wild was mine for the taking.

So I did the only reasonable thing.

I ran.

Marlowe's Journal

Patience had served me well.

The vulnerability had been correctly identified.

The opportunity had presented itself.

And the operation had been executed flawlessly.

There is, however, one minor detail regarding successful escape plans that I may have neglected to consider.

One should perhaps formulate a plan for what happens after the escape…

Hmm.

A matter for the next entry.

— Marlowe 🐾
ToeBean-in-Charge
Explorer of the Wild
Currently Beyond the Perimeter

To be continued... 🐾