Defending chivalry

On hind-legs, front paws assertive like little pink boxing gloves,

The mouse sniffs the air in an environment turned hostile.

His opponent, tail swishing blue-eyed monster, readies its body for the jump

But hesitates while seconds drop, frozen in time.

No attack is possible while rules of chivalry persist

And so, mouse and cat stay locked in arcane opposition

Trapped on the floor of an old cottage.

Will the cat leap into the fray or can the mouse escape

Without trace before the suspense becomes too great?

Nobody knows until the outer world

In shape of a human being enters and the duo becomes a triangle of violence

The cat pounds, the mouse transforms into a tiny warrior

But nothing can obstruct the falling of a broom

Did the mouse escape?

Perhaps this time, but cats will be cats and so

Mice lead a precarious existence

***

From Animal Kingdom

© HMH, 2013