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Mum smiled.“I thought you were saving up for my Christmas present!”

Jasmine grinned at her.“Oh, I bought your present ages ago, when you let me go Christmas shopping with Lara. Please, Mum,” she added. “It’s only for three weeks. I promise you won’t have to do anything – I’ll look after her all myself. I’ll even do the vacuuming, in case Star sheds hairs on the carpet. Oh, pleeease! She’ll be so miserable all on her own…”

Mum and Dad exchanged a look.“Well, I suppose we could ask Helen and Andy what they thought,” Dad said, rather reluctantly.

“Yes!” Jasmine flung her arms round his neck. “This is the best Christmas present ever!”

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Star sniffed thoughtfully at the pile of bags in the hallway. What was going on? Her owners seemed to be very excited, and kept running up and down the stairs.

“Oh, Star! I nearly put that on top of you. Careful, pusscat!” Helen picked her up and stroked her. “We’re going to miss you. But Jasmine will look after you so well. We’d better get your things together.”

Next door, Jasmine was watching the clock anxiously.“It’s nearly eight o’clock. Oh, I hope they hurry. I really want to spend some time with Star before we have to go to school! There’s the doorbell!” She leaped up from her chair and rushed to answer it.

Ten minutes later, the Murrays were on their way to the airport, and Jasmine was showing Star where her bowls and her litter tray were. It was so exciting watching her sniffing round the kitchen, her whiskers twitching delicately as she investigated all the interesting corners. Jasmine picked her up and stroked her lovingly, and Star rubbed her ears against Jasmine’s cheek.

“Come and see my bedroom,” Jasmine told her. She laughed. “You can read my cat books while I’m at school.”

“Oh, I thought we’d keep her in the kitchen for now,” Mum said.

“But she’d hate that, Mum! It’ll be all right. Helen said she’s good about using a litter tray – she won’t make a mess.”

Mum frowned.“Are you sure? Won’t she be worried about being in a new place?”

Jasmine looked down at Star, who was purring in her arms.“She doesn’t look very worried…”

Mum nodded, a little reluctantly.“I suppose not. Come on, then. We need to get to school.”

Jasmine sighed.“I hope she won’t be lonely without me…” she murmured.

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Star sat in the middle of Jasmine’s bed. She was rather confused. She’d been told off for being in this house before, she remembered. But she was definitely supposed to be here now, because her owners had brought her round that morning, and they’d brought her bowls and her bed too. Her bed was downstairs in the kitchen, but Jasmine’s was nicer.

Star sniffed. The bed smelled like Jasmine, which was comforting. She had stayed in the kitchen for a while, but Jasmine’s mum kept watching her and looking worried, and it had made Star feel worried, too. Then Jasmine’s mum had gone into another room, and she hadn’t liked it when Star tried to play with the wires on her computer. Helen always laughed when she did that.

Star had wondered if she’d done something wrong, if her owners didn’t want her any more, but they hadn’t seemed cross. They’d held her and stroked her and made a big fuss. Star was quite sure they were coming back. And meanwhile she had Jasmine, who was almost as good. Star stretched out her front paws, yawned andcurled up to sleep. She hoped Jasmine would come home soon.

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“Oh, Jasmine, she’s gorgeous! You’re so lucky!” Jasmine’s friend Lara had come home from school with her to see Star. The girls had gone straight upstairs, and found the kitten snoozing on Jasmine’s bed. She was lying on her back with her paws folded on her soft cream and brown tummy, making a funny little whistling noise – a very small cat’s snore.

Lara was only whispering, but Star opened one eye thoughtfully, and then bounced up, purring delightedly at Jasmine. She was back!

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“Isn’t she beautiful?” Jasmine said proudly. Then she sighed. “It’s almost like having a cat of my own.”

Lara nodded.“Three weeks is ages. Oh, I wish someone wanted me to cat-sit! I’m sure your parents will get to like her – how can they resist! You never know, then they might let you have your own cat.”

Jasmine nodded, sitting down on the bed and hugging Star close.“That’s what I’m really hoping, but I’m not sure it’ll work. Mum was really fussing this morning, about not wanting Star to get into her office and mess up her paperwork. She wanted to keep her in the kitchen all day, but I persuaded her it wouldn’t be fair. I think they only let me look after Star because they wanted to help out the people next door. Neither of them are really keen on having pets. They’ve said I can have a gerbil or a hamster, but I’d much, much rather have a cat.”