Illustration by Betty J. Carson

 A Happily Ever After Kind of Day

It was a lazy Saturday morning and sunshine showered through the lace-curtained windows of the cozy little cottage on Maple Avenue bathing the wire cage of the young rat named Rudy.  He poked his tiny nut brown face out of the shredded paper bedding, blinked open his eyes, twitched his whiskers several times, and stretched tall on his hind legs pushing his pointy little snout through the bars of his cage, rattling it’s doors with his forepaws.  He then pulled his head back once more and poked at the little bell hanging from a piece of pink ribbon inside the cage, in hopes of attracting the attention of his pudgy gray-haired mistress, Miss Prudence.  His thoughts drifted toward the sweetness of maplebutter syrup and pancakes.  Miss Prudence always made pancakes on Saturday mornings. “Today isn’t a school day, because Miss Prudence is still asleep, so it must be a Saturday”, thought the young rat. “Perhaps today my mistress will put some of those wonderful blueberries in our pancakes,” he pondered with a dreamy look in his eyes.  Rudy’s nose began to twitch, and his teeth began to chatter with anticipated delight.  Rudy lunged at the bell one more time.
“Let me out!  Pancake day!” he squeaked.
Just then Miss Prudence came walking into the room.  She wore the fuzzy pink slipper on her feet that Rudy loved to chase as Miss Prudence padded about the cozy little cottage on lazy days such as today.  She also had her flannel nightgown on that almost touched the floor, which Rudy delighted in climbing like a jungle gym so that he might ride on the slightly stooped shoulder for a bird’s eye view of breakfast preparations.
“Goodness sakes Rudy!” chided Miss Prudence, as she bent over and unlocked the door to the cage that sat next to the fireplace.  “You certainly are a busy boy this morning.  Come here young man.”
The little rat scurried out the door of the cage and grabbed onto the nightgown like a mountain climber, gripping his way to the top, dangling a bit here and there in the process.
“That’s a good boy!” said Miss Prudence.  Once Rudy reached the rounded perch of a shoulder, Miss Prudence gave a gentle nuzzle of her cheek against the little rat’s whiskers.  “Now let’s see about breakfast,” she smiled.  Rudy’s little head bobbed up and down in agreement with an enthusiastic squeak of approval.
 Miss Prudence began blending the creamy pancake batter in her mixing bowl with a large wooden spoon, and had no sooner poured in the anticipated blueberries, when the doorbell rang.
“My word Rudy,” exclaimed Miss Prudence.  “Whoever do you suppose that could be,” she stated with a glance toward the front door.
Rudy looked up at his mistress, his whiskers brushing against her cheek from his perch.  His little brow furrowed up with concern and disappointment rolled into one.  "Squeak”, he responded. “Squeak squeak.”  He looked down at the big red mixing bowl of pancake batter.
Miss Prudence reached up and scratched Rudy reassuringly on the ears, “Don’t worry Love,” she chided.  “I won’t let you go hungry”.
Rudy began cleaning his whiskers, embarrassed, as his mistress peaked through the little window on the front door to see who was calling.
“Oh my,” she almost gasped.  “It is Miss Dawn from the Animal Rescue Services.”  Miss Dawn had recently visited Miss Prudence’s first grade class at The Little Red Schoolhouse where she taught first grade.  Miss Dawn had told the boys and girls stories about dogs and cats and even a rabbit that the Rescue Services had helped find new homes for when they had been abandoned.  She also told the children how important it was to take good care of pets.  Miss Dawn had brought a cockatiel named Tillie to class that day, and Alex’s grandmother, who happened to be helping out in class, fell in love with the cheerful bird, and ended up taking her home as a new pet.  All the children were excited, and drew pictures of their favorite pets.  Miss Prudence had passed out new boxes of crayons to celebrate the event.  “It is a happy day, indeed,” she had said, “when a homeless pet has a new family.”
Gathering her thoughts, Miss Prudence put on her best smile and opened the door.  “Why hello Dawn!” she exclaimed.  “My goodness!  This is an honor!  Do come in!  Rudy and I are having a lazy morning.  Please excuse my bedclothes.”
Miss Dawn smiled and stepped inside the cozy cottage.
“Miss Prudence, what a lovely home you have here.  And might this be young Rudy on your shoulder?”  Dawn smiled and extended her hand toward the young rat.  Rudy jumped on Dawn’s arm and ran up to her shoulder and nuzzled under her long brown hair.  His little paws began playing with the tresses, and he gave a squeak of delight.
“Why, he certainly knows a friend when he sees one!” said Miss Prudence, a bit surprised at Rudy’s behavior.  “Yes, this is my Rudy.  He is as smart as a penny too.  Rats are quite clever, you know!”
“What a lovely rat boy he is,” Dawn said with her splendid English accent.  Dawn had come across the seas from the land of Kings and Queens.  “Actually, Miss Prudence, it is because of your story you shared with me about young Rudy that I have come.  We have a bit of an emergency on our hands down at the Animal Rescue Services.”
“Do sit down Dawn, and tell me more.”  Miss Prudence beckoned toward the overstuffed green couch across the room.  “And how does Rudy fit into this picture, may I ask.”
As Dawn sat down, Rudy jumped off her shoulder, ran across the back of the couch and darted for his cage.
“Well, there is the matter of a rat that was left behind in a tiny cage at Rockville Park.  He is a young rat, and was quite hungry and a bit chesty with a cold when we got him.  Our volunteer veterinary medicated him and he is well, but now in need of a good home.  It is very hard to place a rat, you know.  Not everyone realizes how clever they are and what fun they can be.  And…er…as rats are social animals and need to be with their own kind…not that Rudy isn’t the luckiest rat ever to have you Miss Prudence…but, uh, it would be splendid if he had a brother of sorts…don’t you think?”
Miss Prudence looked very deep in thought and glanced Rudy’s way.  Rudy burrowed deep into the paper bedding out of sight of his mistress.  “Well…another rat?  Hmmmmmm?  I must have a cup of tea on this matter.  Will you join me Dear?” the kindly old schoolteacher asked.
“That is a splendid thought,” Dawn responded, then added, “Miss Prudence, we are quite desperate.  Will you have a look at him.  I’ve brought him along.  He’s in my car.”
“Very well Dear.  I know your heart is in the right place, but I am not sure our home is the right place for your little friend.  Rudy is quite spoiled, you know, and may resent another rat, but do go bring him in from the chill of that car.”
When Dawn returned, Miss Prudence was pouring hot lavender tea into two delicate china cups on the round oak kitchen table.
“Miss Prudence, I would like you to meet a friend of mine.”  Dawn lifted the towel off the square object in her hands, and a little black whiskered face peaked out of a small purple birdcage.
“Why he’s such a little fellow.  How could anyone abandon him like that!” exclaimed Miss Prudence.
“It is sometimes a very difficult world for pets Miss Prudence,” Dawn said sadly.  “People adopt them and then don’t want to care for them when they realize being a pet owner involves work and responsibility. And this one is really such a darling.  If it weren’t for the fact I have two rats I have rescued already, my Job and Saul, I would take this one in a minute.  As you can imagine, I have other pets from the Rescue Center as well, and my poor mum has been very good about letting me keep them, but there is just no more room.”
Miss Prudence looked toward Rudy’s cage and called out, “Rudy, come here please.  Rudyard!  Do as you are told!  Come here.  We have something important to discuss!”
The paper in the cage rustled slightly and Rudy peaked out at his mistress and gave a protesting squeak of “No thank you Mam…later maybe!”
Miss Prudence pushed her pudgy body out of the big wooden straight back chair and the slippers sloshed toward the little rat’s cage.  “Rudyard, we won’t have any disobedience here.  Now come this way right now!”
The gentle hand reached inside the cage and Rudy swished through his paper bedding toward it with compliant resignation.
Miss Prudence walked back to the table and asked Dawn to take the little whiskered guest out of his cage so that he and Rudy might meet…snout to snout.
Dawn took the wiggling black rat out of the tiny birdcage carrier.  He thrashed about in her hand…his eyes two ebony bee bees about to pop out with worry.  “Miss Prudence, he is naturally frightened after what he’s been through,” she explained.  “He’s still quite young and just needs more handling and reassurance.”
Rudy stretched himself out toward the wiggling creature from the clutches of his mistress, his whiskers spread out like a whirring fan.  “Squeak squeak squeak!” he exclaimed in amazement.  “This kid has more jump in him than a pan of poppingcorn,” he thought!  By this time Rudy was quite hungry and everything reminded him of food.
“Goodness!”  I don’t think Rudyard realizes what another rat even looks like,” sighed the despairing old school teacher.  “Rudy, what do you think?  Shall we take him in?” queried Miss Prudence.
“Dawn.  Please put him in my hands and lets get Rudy up on my shoulder here for a better inspection!”
When Miss Prudence took the rat, he thrashed about once more.  “Strong little fellow, isn’t he?  Now now little man…calm down!  We are your friends here, Rudy and I.  Just settle in.”
The young rat’s tiny head turned first to Miss Prudence then to Rudy.  Three little squeaks came out.  Taken off guard, Rudy slid down the back of the flannel nightgown and ran to his cage.
At that point Miss Prudence placed the little creature on her narrow shoulder.  He twitted about sniffing first right, then left…but settled in to his new station.
“Yes Dawn…we’ll take him!  We’ve room in our hearts and our home for him.”  Then calling out a bit louder added, “….haven’t we Rudy.  You’d like a little brother now, wouldn’t you?”
Dawn smiled.
Rudy climbed back out of his cage and ran across the room under the fringed bottom of the green overstuffed couch and began munching on some paper he had stashed away for times such as these.  His little jaws began to chatter once more.
“Well…that’s a happy ending,” said Dawn getting up from the table, having sipped the last of her Lavender tea.  “Now for the very difficult part Miss Prudence…tell me…what are you going to name him.  Such an extraordinary rat deserves a special name!”
Miss Prudence thought aloud…”Well…he is black…save for that white tummy…perhaps Hershy like the chocolate topping on ice cream would do, but that is too common…much too common, in fact.  Hmmmmm….well…he does jump about like a jumping bean….maybe Beanie would be cute…no….that won’t do either…too silly.  Rudy has such a proper name…Rudyard being his given name…this one deserves something very noble and proper too.  Hmmmm…well…he bucks about like one of those rodeo horses…those bucking horses….how does rodeo sound…..no no no…much too much like a horse or dog name.”
“Excuse me Miss Prudence,” Dawn interjected.  “You’ve given me a splendid idea for a name…a very proper one indeed.  You mentioned that he is like a bucking horse…well how would Buckingham be for a proper name?  After all, it is the name of the queen’s palace in England!”
“Oh my dear girl!” exclaimed Miss Prudence.  “That is positively brilliant!  Yes, yes yes!  Buckingham it is.”
As Dawn walked down the leaf strewn walk in front of the cozy little cottage on Maple Avenue, she waved a cheery good-bye and somehow, the morning seemed a bit warmer and brighter because of it.
Miss Prudence sighed as she shut the door.  She walked over to the little cage by the fireplace and carefully placed Buckingham into his new home.
“Rudy!  Oh Rudy!  Safe to come out now!  Come on Love.  Nothing to worry about!  The more the merrier…come along now!”
Rudy crept out from under the couch and slithered somewhat reluctantly toward his mistress.
“Come here Sweetiepie,” she said in her most reassuring voice.  “We’ve got pancakes to make.  You must be hungry!  And your new little brother must be hungry too.  Let’s get to work!”
From the shoulder of his mistress, Rudy watched the pancakes bubble on the griddle.  Miss Prudence gingerly handed Rudy a fresh blueberry to munch on while they cooked.  The little rat made happy chattering noises with his teeth as he drank the nectar and ate the pulp of his succulent tidbit.
Miss Prudence got two doll size dishes from her child’s size china tea set for the occasion.  “Let’s see here…a plate for Buckingham and one for my Rudy.  Now that will do just fine.  And a bit of blue berry pancake with lots of maplebutter syrup on each.
Miss Prudence walked over to the cage and carefully set the two dishes inside.  Buckingham timidly approached the offering, then snatched a piece of pancake and ran to the corner of the cage to enjoy his meal.
Miss Prudence placed Rudy inside his cage near his dish.  The little rat looked up and gave a grateful squeak toward the direction of his mistress.  At the same time, he looked a bit worried.  Cautiously, he ate the wonderful bounty his mistress had provided.
“Don’t worry Rudy.  Everything will work out just grand.  It is always a little uncomfortable for a new child when he comes into a classroom of strangers, but soon everyone is best friends.  I suppose it is the same for this little fellow and for you too.  Here it started out to be just a pancake day, but now it has turned into a new brother day as well.  We have so much to share, so we mustn’t be selfish and keep it all to ourselves…don’t you agree?”
Rudy looked up from the doll size dish.  Maplebutter syrup glistened on his whiskers.  He glanced toward the little stranger who rustled shyly about in the paper bedding.  “Squeak….squeak squeak,”  Rudy called out.
“That’s my boy,” Miss Prudence stated proudly.  “I’m sure adventure awaits you two. I can hardly wait to tell the children at school about your new little brother.  This is such a happily ever after type of day Rudyard.  I think I will make some chocolate chip cookies to share with the children when I tell them the story.
Rudy looked adoringly at his mistress.  “Squeak Squeak!” he called out.  Yes, this was a happily ever after kind of day!

By Jennifer Grant