As we return to our story we have assembled around the altar Loki Dog,
Sterling the Cat, Caff-Pow the Ferret and Todd the Ferret, who had put
his little red turban back on, and was once again shedding shattered
specks of diamond light over everything. Todd looked solemnly into
each animal's eyes by turn and said "the altar is in order and
pleasing to the ancestors. But...two things remain. The curse, and the
sacrifice..." It was a solemn moment. All assembled understood the
gravity of the situation. The terrible wrong done, and how important it
was to try to right it. Todd looked up into Loki Dog's black and white
face and asked "Will you please push the button?" Loki looked at him
blankly for an instant then remembered the plan, the plan that they
had been refining and rehearsing for days. At that moment her mouth
was pretty dry so she said nothing, simply padded over to the stereo
and pushed the "ON" button with her nose. That started the tape that
had been selected for this part of the Ceremony.

Suddenly the living room and kitchen were filled with a soft backdrop
of sound, like a curtain being shaken out of its folds and displayed
full length. It was a simple mix of primitive drums and an accompanying
banging sound, like two large pieces of metal striking one another in
a way that might have been trying to indicate some overall tune, but
then again, maybe it wasn't. For all it's apparent simplicity there was
something insistent about the music. The Cat's tail began to swish in
time with the drums, and soon the Dog's did too. Caff-Pow noted that
his was beginning to swish, too, so he simply tucked it beneath himself
to avoid the distraction. Todd seemed to be too busy to be so easily
distracted. And the Turtle up in her tank? Who knew, who knew. That one
kept herself to herself. The three chickens remained silent by the warm
current of air next to the pellet stove.

Todd stood up on his back feet and took several steps that brought
him right up to the edge of the altar, decorated with 'shinies' and
other things pleasing to the ancestors. His front paws were folded
respectfully up against his chest. He cleared his throat several times
and tried to speak. Hesitantly at first, as if he might be asking for
permission to do such a brash thing. But after a moment or two his
voice took on an air of confidence. They were doing an important thing.
They were trying to right a terrible wrong. Todd closed his eyes, and
spoke--

"Oh, Man God... Oh great One, We have been sorely tried by your
terrible Unknown Man Cub and my kind have been disrespected in their
own Hammies and on the Great Giving Tree. Our Kits have been
disrespected, Our Kits have been maligned and ill-treated by this one
of your Cubs. O Man God, I beg that this that I ask for shall come to
pass... That a cold wind shall blow and will not leave their hair to
grow, and that all their Man-fur shall fall off and away, leaving them
as bald as a newborn Man-Cub for the rest of their days. That they will
know the coldness of no fur, the nakedness of no fur, the shame of no
fur..that their fur shall never return. No fur on top. No fur down
below. And that they shall know it as a punishment for their egregious
violation of the Giving Tree, and of the United States Postal Service,
and of every decent instinct that they should have been cautioned by."

At just that moment something terrifying happened. Terrifying.
Terrifying to companion animals and domestic livestock who have
suffered every possible violation and unkindness at the Hand of Man
over millena. The pen. The abattoir. Skinning. Branding. Dumping.
Experiments. It is not easy to really scare an animal that has
knowledge of Man. Place him in a state of watchfulness and mistrust,
yes. But truly *frighten* him, after all these years? The end of the
stick of incense slotted into the little hole atop the figurine of the
seated Buddha burst into flame atop the altar. It was a broad orange
flame that singed the air a good six inches high. Then it quickly
faded down into an ember and a lazy curl of aromatic gray smoke lifted
up toward the ceiling.

It was actually a good half minute before Todd realized that his little
red turban with the diamond brooch had fallen from his head and onto
the floor. The Cat was apparently unconscious, and the Dog was trying
to lick him awake with big, clumsy swipes of her pink tounge. Caff-Pow
was down on the floor, seated upon one hip. One front paw held him in
an upright position as he watched the thin thread of smoke rise, and
the smell of jasmine filled the air. 'Pow looked over at Tina only to
see that she had blown her ballast tanks and was now lying motionless
on the bottom of her tank. 'Pow stretched back and around to look at
the chickens . Three Bucks the Rooster sat as he had for most of the
evening, but now he held the head of one wife beneath each of his
wings.

Todd, ignoring the turban at his feet folded his paws even more tightly
against his chest (more for protection than supplication) and
continued--

"Oh, Man-God...

Part Seven Tomorrow

Alexandra in MA

[Posted in FML 7299]