‘Not really.’
‘Why not really?’
‘Because you could only talk to me, and I could talk to you and the fish. So…’
‘So?’
‘So, I’m obviously like a golden key or something.’
‘A golden key?’
‘Yep, cross my whiskers and hope to die, stick a mouse tail in my eye.’
‘But it still doesn’t explain why it only opens if we’re both here.’
‘Sure, it does.’
‘It doesn’t.’
‘Yeah, it does.’
‘Cat, it doesn’t!’
‘Suit yourself! But it does.’
‘Aaah! Well done, my boy!’ beamed the doctor, the first to emerge from the glass wall. ‘You did it!’
‘Thank you,’ said Arthur, handing the box back to him. ‘Doctor, what it shows, it’s a map isn’t it? To get to those planets with the writing next to them?’
‘We believe so, my boy, we certainly believe so.’
‘But what I don’t understand then is that even if it is a map, it’s never going to be possible to get there, is it? I mean, I read that we don’t have the technology for space travel, and that even if we did, it’d still take lifetimes to be able to get anywhere.’
The doctor smiled at him approvingly. ‘This is of course an excellent and valid question and one which deserves a serious answer. But just not at this moment, if you please,’ he replied, hearing the general coming over and turning to shake his hand.
‘Good job,’ said the general, shaking Arthur’s next.
‘Thank you.’
‘Hey! Look at you, lapping up all the glory. I haven’t heard my name being mentioned once yet,’ came a disgruntled meow.
‘Cat! Shh,’ Arthur hissed.
‘’Everything OK?’ asked the general, noticing.
‘Yes, I think he might be hungry. He always starts to moan when he’s hungry.’