Read Miranda the Great for Free Online Page A

'woe-woe.'"
    Miranda narrowed her eyes and coldly surveyed Marcus. What did he think? That she could keep herself spotless with forty, or however many there were now, kittens to keep clean, to teach them manners besides, and how to walk and eat, and to get them lion's milk also? Let Marcus try to do all that himself sometime. And besides all that, she had had four brand-new kittens! She would shine again. Just wait! She eyed Marcus malevolently.
    "You are right," said Marcus. "This is Miranda all right. I can tell from her expression."
    "And she has had her kittens!" put in Lavinia. "Dear, darling Miranda! You have had your kittens ... and where are they?"
    "And Punka?" said Claudia. "Where is Punka? And Zag?" she said. "You couldn't possibly know where Zag is, could you?"
    "Yes, Zag!" shouted Marcus. Marcus spoke to Miranda as though she were a foreign cat, not a Roman. "Miranda!" he shouted. "Where's Zag? ZAG, Zag. Zaggie? After all," he said to Lavinia, "if we have found Miranda, perhaps we may find that dear noble great dog, Zag. Alas! I should have tied her that day when we reached the villa. I might have known that she would try to follow me." Marcus put his face in his hands to hide his sorrow.
    "We should all have thought of tying her," said Lavinia. "But we were so tired, so confused..." and Lavinia began to cry, too.
    Claudia put her face in Miranda's sooty fur and sobbed. "Punka?" she said softly to Miranda. "Zag? Dear roll-over Zag? Do you know where they are, Miranda? Oh, Miranda, do you?"
    Miranda looked gravely into Claudia's eyes. Then suddenly she wiggled herself free, jumped down, and ran out the gate. Stopping for a moment, giving a slight nod as though to say, "Follow me," she trotted up the street.
    "She's running away!" cried Claudia. "Miranda, come back! Come back!"
    Miranda paused, turned her head, and now definitely beckoned them to follow. Then she went on slowly, looking back now and then to make sure they were following. "Wirra-wirra," she said.
    "Do you hear that?" said Claudia in excitement. "She wants us to follow her. That's what she did and said when her second litter of kittens was born. They were in an urn, and she kept saying, 'Wirra-wirra,' and beckoning me to go and see. Oh, what a great cat! Come on, everybody!"
    So Claudia, Lavinia, and Marcus hurried after Miranda, who was now running and jumping expertly over the rubble. "What senseless destruction!" groaned Marcus. "'
O temporal O mores!'
" he said, for he was a learned man. And when they reached the Colosseum and saw the new damage to it, again he groaned. "Ts!" he said. "Our glorious Colosseum!"
    At the main entrance into the Colosseum, Miranda paused dramatically. She turned around to make sure the family was still there and then, imperiously, gave another beckoning nod. Next, with head held high and tail waving like a banner, she marched proudly through the archway. Claudia, Lavinia, and Marcus followed her in, and at the end of the arcade, in full view of the vast arena, they saw an astonishing spectacle. Even Miranda was astonished, for she had never seen this sight before either.
    There, at the end of the arcade, was a pyramid of kittens! One large cat, silvery-looking, stood in front of the pyramid, which wobbled a little. Of course this was Punka, for she gave one of her matchless perpendicular leaps, straight up in the air and then straight down again, said "wah!" in her rasping, husky voice, and down came the kittens, dissolving the pyramid.
    "
Io!
" said the big cats. "
Io!
Hurrah!" They said it over and over, and Miranda said "woe-woe!" which sounded much the same, ran to Punka to congratulate her, and bestowed a kiss.
    Punka purred. Punka, having been born a trick cat, had, in her mother's absence and to keep all occupied and out of mischief, trained the kittens to do this remarkable feat.
    Recovering from her surprise, Claudia said, "Why, that's Punka! The way she leaps! Punka, come here!"
    Punka came. She rubbed