I remembered hanging the cat in the garden of the house next door. During the fire the garden was
full of people. Probably, someone cut the dead cat from the tree and threw it through the window — to
try and wake me. The falling walls pressed the animal's body into the fresh plaster. The cat burned
completely, leaving the black shape in the new plaster. Yes, I was sure that was what happened.
But I could not forget that black shape for months. I even saw it in my dreams. I began to feel sad
about losing the animal. So I began to look for another one. I looked mostly in the poor parts of our town
where I went drinking. I searched for another black cat, of the same size and type as Pluto.