Ruby and the Kitten Shortcut

A free kitten bedtime story, written for ages 7-9 and ready to read aloud in about 3 minutes. Tonight's hero is Ruby.

Ruby reached the shelter just as Ms. Inez carried three kittens into the playroom. It was Kitten Town Day. Visitors would soon come to see the kittens play. Ruby and another child, Niko, had built a town from big cardboard boxes.

There was a bakery with a wide door. There was a post office with two windows. A paper road ran between them. Ruby set a soft fish at the end of the road. Ms. Inez checked the boxes, then opened the kittens' carrier.

Pip came out first. He marched straight down the road and grabbed the fish. Clover followed, stopping to pat each paper sign. Marmalade took one look at the town and sat down to wash a paw.

Then Pip carried the fish behind the bakery. Clover slipped through a side door after him. Marmalade got up and followed. In a moment, the road was empty.

Niko peered through the post office window. "They made their own street," he said.

Ruby looked behind the bakery. All three kittens were there, curled in a bright patch of sun. Pip held the fish between his paws. Clover tried to pull it away. Marmalade rolled over them both.

"The visitors will be here soon," said Ms. Inez. "We can let the kittens choose where to play." She put out a mat where the visitors could stand and watch.

Ruby placed another soft fish on the road. Pip ran out, picked it up, and carried it right back to the sunny spot. He had found the shortest way through town, and he meant to use it.

Ruby noticed a gap between the bakery and the post office. It was just wide enough for a kitten. "What if we make their shortcut part of the town?" she asked.

Niko liked the idea. Ms. Inez watched the kittens while Ruby moved the bakery a little. Niko turned the post office so its windows faced the sun. Together they laid the paper road through the gap. The sunny spot was now a little town square.

Clover tested the new road first. She walked through the gap and sprang up to pat the post office sign. Pip dashed past her with both fish. Marmalade stepped into the square, sat in the sun, and watched them race around him.

When the visitors came in, Ruby showed them where to stand. Pip shot through the shortcut once more. Clover hurried after him, while Marmalade reached out one paw and tapped the road. Kitten Town had opened, and its three small guests knew every way around.