And for our moment of panic ...

... teinedreugan got home and asked me if I'd seen Lennon.

There was a bit of going over the house, in the "I don't think I've seen him since yesterday" mode, and we came to the conclusion that he had to have gotten out. (He frequently vanishes for many hours at a time, because he's a Very Introverted Cat, so his absence is not as notable as Arthur's would be.)

Thus the flashlight and the flailing and the calling for him, and finally the relocation of cat in the bushes in front of the house and the transportation back inside. Where he poked around, declared, 'Yay, kibble!', got growled at by his brother, and appears fine.

Waugh, crazed.