Thebes the Not-So-Fraidy Cat

It is widely believed that cats can easily be afraid of just about everything. They're afraid of water, loud noises, even cucumbers.

And then there's Thebes, who's certainly not afraid of anything. She loves to take baths, dances to rock-and-roll music, and her favorite toy is a cucumber!

A gang of four neighborhood cats, jealous of her inability to be scared, decided to challenge her.

"Hey, Thebes!", shouted one of the cats so sneeringly. "We dare you to spend the night in that!" They point to the creepiest, most abandoned house in the neighborhood, its shattered windows and deteriorating roof making it look all the more ghastly.

"Unless you're afraid to do so!", the other cat in the gang added. Thebes simply replied, "Sure! It looks like a pretty normal house to me."

That night, Thebes walks over to the ghastly-looking house with a big smile on her face. The other cats join with her, hoping to see just one moment of her being terrified.

They all walk through the front door, seeing nothing but cobwebs and broken floorboards. They can hear ticking coming from the old, rusted grandfather clock on the side and wind howling from upstairs.

All of the cats were shaking in their paws. All except, of course, Thebes, who simply shrugs her shoulder and says, "This place looks okay. A little drab, maybe."

As they started to walk towards the stairwell, the clock immediately tolled the loudest toll ever. DING! DONG!

One of the cats SCREECHED before bolting towards the front door. Thebes simply commented, "Wow, I didn't think an old clock would work that well!"

Thebes reached the stairwell while the other cats were lagging behind her, treading as slowly and cautiously as they could. One cat's paw stepped on a loose floorboard and... SQUEAK!

The cat let out a loud REER before bolting towards the front door. Thebes simply shook her head and said, "Boy, somebody needs to fix this floor."

Thebes then walks up the stairs. The two remaining cats followed her, but very carefully so as to avoid creating another noise. Once they reached the top of the stairs, they started to move into the dark hallway.

As the other cats are fearfully shivering with their teeth chattering, Thebes gleefully stated, "Boy, this is fun!"

The cats continued to walk down the scary hallway when suddenly, out of nowhere, a spider dropped down from the webbed ceiling.

"MEEEEOOOOWWWWW!!!!", screamed one of the cats before bolting towards the front door. Thebes simply greeted the spider with a friendly smile, "It's very nice to meet you, Miss Spider!"

So now, it was down to Thebes and one more cat. The lone cat sassed to Thebes, "Those other guys may be scared, but I'm not! I can outlast you! You're a fraidy cat and I'm going to prove it! I..."

CREAK! The lone cat suddenly heard a noise. The door at the end of the hallway slowly opened, making an eerie creaking noise.

The lone cat started to freak out. Even Thebes is a little spooked, and yet a little curious as well. The door opened wide, revealing a tall, dark figure with evil-looking eyes.

"AAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!!", hollered the lone cat right before bolting towards the front door, like the last three cats.

Thebes was all alone with the tall, dark figure who soon turned on the lights and revealed itself to be...

...a kind old caretaker of the house, his evil-looking eyes the reflections on his glasses. "Well, hello there!", the old man said to Thebes. "I guess I gave that other fellow quite a fright, huh?"

The old man laughed as he picked up the smiling, meowing Thebes to look at the collar around her neck. "Well, Thebes, I guess I better take you home", said the old man.

As soon as Thebes came back home, she went right to sleep on her nice soft bed, happy in knowing she was still not a fraidy cat.

THE END