kafka on the shore

"Hello there," the old man called out.
The large, elderly tomcat raised its head a fraction and wearily returned the greeting in a low voice.
"A very nice spell of weather we're having."
"Um," the cat said.
"Not a cloud in the sky."
"...for the time being."
"Is the weather going to take a turn for the worse, then?"
"It feels like it'll cloud up towards evening." The black cat slowly stretched out a leg, then narrowed its eyes and gave the old man another good long look.
With a big grin on his face, the man stared right back. The cat hesitated for a time, then plunged ahead and spoke. "Hmm... so you're able to speak."
"That's right," the old man said bashfully. To show his respect, he took off his threadbare cotton waking hat. "Not that I can converse with every cat I meet, but if things go well I can. As right now."
"Interesting," the cat said simply.

murakami haruki, 2003