Shrimp
Esk Pteppic Iggy Mustrum Aliss Molly Zool Pepper Shrimp Drumknott Lilith Liessa
29 February 2000
I simply can't believe I'm having to write this, but we lost Shrimp, our snow marble girl this morning. She was just seven months and two days old, and she had lived with us for only one day less than two months. It looks as though she fell from the study windowsill, and broke her neck. Thankfully she was killed instantly, and didn't suffer.
this photograph was taken on 26 February 2000, just three days before she died. She had been rushing round the garden, climbing trees, and chasing the rest of the Tribe, and she absolutely loved it outside. Shrimp was the most utterly charming kitten, and had been through a lot in her little life. She was tiny for a Bengal, and had been very snuffly and quiet for the first four weeks we had her. But recently, she'd regained full fitness, and was tearing about as a kitten should. We will always treasure the memory of her attacking Mustrum last Sunday until he backed away, and then she went after him for another go! However, we wonder if this sudden onset of complete fearlessness might have been her undoing :(
she was asleep on my lap last night, and then had a huge scrap with Pepper - good memories, although we don't have nearly enough of them. I feel angry that she was taken so young, although she had a very good life, even if it was far too short.
we'll miss her dreadfully, as will the rest of the Tribe. Good hunting, Shrimp, and I know you'll grow into a stunning cat, wherever you're roaming now.
all our love to you, sweetheart
Shrimp was Pepper's twin sister, and as such, you might have expected her to have been made welcome by at least one member of the feline household - not so. Pepper displayed no signs whatsoever of sibling affection, and is instead giving a very good performance as a vexed kitten.
however, Shrimp was yet another Frappant cat, and thus gave not a toss!
Within half an hour of arriving in the house, we found her curled up on the bed, close to Uncle Ptep and Zool(although not too close, obviously - she's by no means daft). There was a certain amount of hissing and spitting going on from the other members of the Tribe, but nothing too hideous, and far less than we expected. It was all too quiet, really.
Shrimp was always very small - much smaller than her sister. Just now (3 Jan 2000, @ 19:50), I was writing up some stuff for the Gallery page (at last, they all cry); l popped into the bedroom for something, and discovered the pair of them asleep on the bed. I quietly called to Pete to bring the digital camera, and he managed to snap her and Pepper together. "How nice", we thought - they're starting to get on. 'Twas but the eye of the hurricane unfortunately, but at least you can see them side by side. Immediately after this was taken, a huge amount of hissing broke forth from Pepper, and normal sibling rivalry was resumed. Hey ho.
and now she's gone. We simply can't believe it. A beautiful, bright young cat who should have years of happiness ahead of her.
27 July 1999 - 29 February 2000
Foul Ole Ron [is] a member of the Beggars' Guild. He is a Mutterer - he walks behind people muttering in his own private language, until they give him money not to. His familiar phrases include "Bug'r'em", "Bugrit", and "Millennium Hand and Shrimp".
People assume that Foul Ole Ron has no grasp on reality, but this is not true. He holds very tightly indeed onto reality, but it is not the one shared by most of the rest of the world.