The Black Cat

Chapter 1 Glass

I used to be a queen.

I used to stand by the side of a king.

Not a great king, but one of wine. So much wine. This is most of what I remember.

In the faint corners of my mind, I can only recall sort instances of servants and peasants calling me... Every time I try to remember it seems that it just slips out of my reach even more! For this, I do not remember my name. All my thoughts- my deep memories- are just ones of a silver dagger with the tip cloaked in blood.

I was killed... This I know.

I avoided the sharp fragments of a broken window at the mouth of the opening of the alleyway.  I flicked the glass away. Yesterday it wasn't there. I find it terrible when people mark up my territory.

I stopped and looked up at a window missing a hole of glass. The Fergusons lived there, a father, mother, and small child.

"Ah ha! Scatty, you're back."

I purred as I quickly rushed down the alleyway and into the arms of a well known chef.  The Italian man cradled me gently and stroked my neck softly. I purred and curled up in his arms.

"Scatty, I have rarely seen much of you this month. What have you been doing girl?" The Italian smiled and ran his finger from my head to my tail.

"Something new," I whispered knowing very well that he couldn't understand me. "No more of that now Felix, gimme food. I am starving." I pawed the man's nose softly and he chuckled.

"Hungry I see! Well, I still have some scraps left over from the day. Some prank calling teens had us make two plate fills of spaghetti. Wait right there." Felix stood up with a sigh and quickly walked into the restaurant.

I meowed and licked a patch of ruffled fur from my front left paw. I stretched out and flicked my tail into the air. "Thank you college boys," I chuckled softly. I shut my eyes as I soon went into a weary sleepiness. The smell of fresh food was the only thing keeping me-. A noise ran through the alleyways.

I hissed and looked to my right. My heart pounded and I quickly dashed down the alleyway leading to the back of a old diner.

"Scatty!" The Italian watched me zip through his legs and through a narrow way heading to where the scream came from.

The first thing I saw was a man in a all black outfit holding a shiny grey weapon towards a couple. A gun. It was a gun in the man's hand. "Money! Now!"

The couple instantly pulled out their pockets to the man. The dropped rolls of green paper onto the damp ground. "Please," the older woman cried hiding her face in her partner's chest.

They both were no more than half the human life span plus half of that. They were elderly, elders to young thief like the one in front of them. They probably lived long and quiet lives and did nothing wrong to deserve being stolen from. My heart moved with them. Even sixteen times smaller than them, I still felt their feelings. I aimed at the ankles of the man.

Just like me, it seemed that the thief looked into the eyes of his captors and saw the terrifying fear that they held in their hearts. His movements became uncertain and he shook wen ever he shifted his weight. He already did the crime, he snapped out long enough to swipe up the money, but he hesitated with his next order. "Jewels. You got 'em I want 'em!"

I watched motionless as the couple threw all their belongings to the man.  All they had were their clothes and each other. I was inclined to help, but I waited until the man passed by me in a run to follow close behind him.

He took many sharp and direct turns; So much so that I nearly lost him twice. He ran into the trashcans and tipped over trash bins before traveling in straight line down a alleyway. He mumbled short words to himself and occasionally tripped up in his running pattern. I knew he didn't feel guilty, but there was something in him just the opposite. He was excited. He was...happy he did what he did. From the alleyway up until he made it to the wide street did he celebrate.

I took this time to attack. I pounced at his leg, but the moment I touch him, a scent burned my nose. I let go of him quickly. "Get away from me cat." He quickly crossed the busy street and made it perfectly on the other side.

I hissed as I zipped across the four lane street. A car nearly hit me and a larger one nearly killed me. Even if it did, I'd still have seven more.

This time I waited for him to turn the corners before I went.  He would check back around the corners after I ran into a bottle though. Stealth was called here and I didn't have it. This made me have to travel even slower if at all.

Why was I following him? Why did he rob those innocent people? These thoughts were all that went through me as I slipped through the underside of the hedges around the corners he passed. I was obvious, but the night hid a black cat well.

I followed him to a large red and brown bricked building. In the front, the name Smiths was etched in the brick in faded black dirt from years of collection. Now, only the letters M, T, and H remained.

Sadly I ignored the building as I tried to catch up to the man now. The porch door slammed shut as soon as I turned the corner. When I got to the porch, the man had already begun to lock the locks to the door securely.

As if showing off, there was absolute silence when I clawed the door frame. I was too slow. After years of only chasing away things smaller then me, I was a terrible hunter. I couldn't catch the thief, but I could wait for him to come back out.

I sat on the porch facing the door. I meowed and scratched the ground painfully. "I will wait," I said with determination. I sighed and rested myself under a white plastic lawn chair placed next to the door. "You may explain yourself then."