The Ailurophilic Lustrate (Passion_25 and LoneCatboy)

[Deleteduser_120]

9:03

All was quiet and in darkness in Wesley King's sparsely furnished apartment. Nothing around him was to disturb him in his deep sleep, seven hours already having passed after spending a long time chatting with a friend online, who had predictably begun to call attention to his permanent appearance and form after he had switched on his webcam. He would normally be awake by now, were it not for him staying up so late or the dream he was having, which had recurred from a few nights before. On his mind was him chasing a hawk in a meadow and struggling to keep up as he hungrily followed the bird. Eventually this dream drew to a close as the hawk escaped, leaving him to go dissatisfied for another day.

A few minutes later, his dreamy slumber came to a halt. Yawning and stretching, he lay in wait for a further twenty minutes as he prepared himself to wake his system up. Swivelling around and throwing himself out of his bed, he slowly ambled to the bathroom to relieve the contents of his bladder. Funny how I don't need to use a litter tray. he smiled to himself as he flushed the toilet, strolling straight back to his bedroom. However, just as he pushed open the door and looked to his left where his bed was aligned against one of the corners, his computer marked a revelation: the monitor was missing, which meant that for the first time since he'd moved in, somebody had burgled him! Surprisingly for him, every other component was still there and they had even left his album collection which was alongside the desk, although naturally this angered his mind, leading him to miaow out of fury.

"I don't believe this," he snarled aloud as he searched around his room for anything else that had been stolen, "of all the things they could take, they had to go for that." What crossed his mind after his mouth snapped shut however was a thought which reflexedly occued after a burglary: How on earth had they got in? Throwing open the bedroom's curtains, he ruled out the possibility of them having entered through one of the windows because of the height his apartment was above the ground. The only other way he could think of was through the front door, which, after he inspected it, didn't look damaged at all. But then he realized that he had left his house key on the small shelf next to the door. And that was now lying on the floor. Cheeky little fucker must have hooked it and got in using that. he decided as he strolled back to his room.

[LoneCatboy]

Reoku smiled as he carried a recently stolen computer monitor into his hideout, which was an old, abandoned warehouse uptown. He inspected it carefully. Hmm, looks like it's in pretty good condition. I should be able to pawn this off for some quick cash! He was quite content with how the early morning's events had gone, and he sat to reflect on the job he had done.

However, something still didn't sit right with him...He felt like the job was unfinished. He closed his eyes, trying to recollect some of the items he remembered seeing in the apartment he visited. It suddenly dawned on him that one of the things he saw was a very extensive album collection. He jumped up in excitement. Yes! That person has a ton of music in there. Oh, I would love to get my hands on that! No need to pawn it, as that stuff is too classic to let go of.

If there was one thing this catboy loved more than stealing, it was music. He loved all kinds, and could sit and just listen for hours at a time. The thought of him owning all of that music he saw in the apartment made his tail flick with excitement and a wide grin spread across his face. That settles it. Tonight, I'll go back and grab that music stash. He yawned widely and stretched. Ah, but first, a nap. These late nights sure take a toll on me. With that, he crashed onto his sofa and drifted into a light sleep, thinking of all that music he was going to get his hands on.

[Deleteduser_120]

9:42

Losing his monitor would mean that Wesley would now have to modify the routine of his day quite significantly, because owing to his mobile phone having been sent to Germany for repairs after he smashed the screen by dropping it, his computer was his only way of communicating with anybody outside his apartment, and now that he had lost this a field of desolation would undoubtedly wash over him until he received his weekly state payment in two days time. This also meant he had no way of contacting the local authority to alert them of the burglary that had taken place, but he never relied on them because he didn't express much trust in them.

With no hesitation he threw open his curtains, the sun blazing through the window into his eyes, which he shielded with one of his paws. Swivelling around on one foot, he turned to face the doorless wardrobe built into the hollowed wall and latched the outstretched claws on one of his paws onto a pair of grey shorts, which he pulled off of the hanger. With some difficulty he changed into them, having to pierce them with both sets of claws to get them to stay in his paws. The set on his right paw slipped twice in succession as he did this, but after pulling them up to his lower waist he sprayed his underarms and chest with an aerosol can perched on top of one of his computer's speakers.

Once he'd pulled on a pair of socks in the same manner, he rammed on his shoes which lay on the floor and made his way to the kitchen, and returning to the foyer holding a pint bottle of milk, which he downed quickly as he picked up his keys and wallet by latching them onto his claws and then dropping them into his pockets. He gulped down the milk several more times in succession before pulling the unlocked door open, slamming it shut before locking it and advancing to the lift at the end of the corridor. As he strolled along with the now empty bottle, he tried to construct a daily routine in his head as to what he would do without his computer in service, but to no avail; though he often ventured out of his apartment anyway, he'd never been without the recently-purchased system since moving in, and now that he'd made it this far he couldn't turn back now. The first cut is the deepest; I'm sure I'll be alright for two days. he said to himself, by a way of reassuring his state of mind. But if there was one thing he liked more than speaking to people online, it was trance music, and there was nothing that enthralled him more than slipping one of his CDs or cassettes into his stereo and letting the soothing electronic sounds take hold of his mind.

(My apologies if this seems a bit tedious at first, but this is just the warm-up!)

[LoneCatboy]

After trying to nap for a bit, Reoku found himself too excited to sleep. All he could think about was getting his hands on all of that music. It wasn't like him to return to the location of a previous heist, as it was too much of a risk, but he wanted that music. This is useless, I should just get up and try to be productive today. He walked into the kitchen area to find something to eat, and was met with disappointment when he found that he had no food. Well, dammit anyway. I guess I'll have to go out and get something.

He put on his coat and headed out the door. It was a decent day, to say the least; sunny, but not overly bright. Still, he put his goggles down to shade his eyes. That way, he could glare at the people who gawked at him, laughed at him, or pointed fingers, and still make it look like he was ignoring them. He hated people, and usually stayed clear of them whenever he could. If they were too intolerant to accept him, then he wanted no part of them. He was doing just fine without them. Life wasn't the easiest at the moment, but he could manage. If there was any thing he needed, he could just take it. It was working so far, and he felt no need to change it.

He neared an outdoor market area that sold produce. The vendor at the produce stand was busy helping a customer, so Reoku took the opportunity to help himself to an apple. He walked by, gabbed it, and pocketed it in almost one fluid motion. When he was far enough away from the stand, he pulled the apple out and rubbed in on his coat. Yeah, I'm just that good. He continued walking until he came to a bench, where he sat down to relax and enjoy his apple.

(Heh, no problem. No need to rush. I'm enjoying myself!)

[Deleteduser_120]

9:50

Wesley reached the end of the corridor, pressing the call button on the lift. While he waited for it to come up, he began to whistle to himself as he threw the empty glass bottle down one of the rubbish chutes to his left. Usually it only took a minute or two to come up to him, but five minutes had passed and still nothing had arrived. Pushing the call button again, he pressed his ear to the door. What should have been the sound of the lift's gearing turning was instead replaced by silence, which drew a conclusion he knew only too well: I take it someone's pissed on the floor of the lift again.

Growling briefly, he turned to his right and began to circle his way down the building through the staircase. Just as well these can't be blocked off, he thought reassuringly to himself as he climbed down seven floors, making it to the 67th level. At this floor he left his path and tried to call the lift for a third time, again pressing one of his ears to the corrugated metal doors. Still no sound. By now frowning, he ambled back to his footpath and continued circulating until eventually reaching the ground floor where he turned off.

He continued strolling until he reached the security gates, which as he was used to seeing were closed. At the ticket machine on the right of it, he searched his pockets for his key fob. But misfortune was to call forth when he could not find it on his person anywhere. Scanning himself for a second time to make sure, he found nothing directly shaped like it.

"Oh, not again," he snapped, his face reddening as a direct result of his plight, "Stupid thing; I knew I should have attached it to my keys." And with that, he turned around and began to walk back in the direction he had come, cursing to himself audibly.

[LoneCatboy]

Reoku sat on the bench, eating his apple and watching people stare and snicker at him. He had every right to tell them off, but he was just too comfortable at the moment to do anything. Ah, let them have their fun, I've got bigger fish to fry. He just smiled back at them and nodded, trying not to let it affect him. He just kept thinking about that music collection that he saw during the previous night. He never wanted anything more, and he was obsessed with it. I should probably plan how this is going to work.

When nothing was left of his apple but core and seeds, he stood up, stretched, and tossed the apple into a nearby trash bin. He continued on his way, flipping the back of his long coat out to give his tail some room to move. Perhaps I should head over to that apartment and figure out how I'm going to do this. Reoku always liked to make sure that everything was planned out before he did a job. He was lucky last night, but he couldn't count on that luck to happen twice in a row. After crossing a few intersections, enduring a few honks from passing cars, and making it down a few blocks, he finally ended up across the street from the apartment.

He always made sure to keep his distance when he was casing a possible target. He stood there and studied the building. A few people asked what he was doing, to which he replied, "Oh, just waiting for a friend." He hoped that he could get in from the inside, but he knew that it would be a long shot. He just stood there, studying the building, trying to devise a plan.

[Deleteduser_120]

10:10

Wesley came to a stop in front of his front door once again, furious that he had once again forgotten his key fob. Latching his keychain onto one of his claws he used his other paw to twist it and force the key into the lock, and both paws to turn it around until it clicked. Knocking his front door open with a single petite kick, he paced around for his key fob. I hope that thief hasn't taken that as well. he thought odiously as he checked the drawers in his computer's desk. But just seconds into this search he spotted a green object shaped like a small USB key; this was it! He snatched it up, fully clasping it with one of his paws and dropping it into his pocket.

His journey from 74 stories to the ground began once again as he opened his door and locked it shut in the same manner he had used to open it. Hopefully this will be the final time I'll have to come back for stuff I forget. he said to himself hopefully, sensing the shapes of the items in his pockets as he strolled. He detected his wallet, his identification card and keys, which also doubled up as a small pocket watch. Taking the staircase again he spun through the building, ignoring somebody who laughed aloud at his appearance as he passed their front door on the 24th floor. The first time he had attracted negative attention based on his appearance it had hit him like surgery for impalement, but because this happened on a frequent basis he now took derogatory statements about his kind as compliments, despite their signs being a prelude to their repulsion. He had also received positive feedback and had even had a fellow neighbour in this block following him around and flirting with him at every opportunity, even in front of others. Despite having called it off by quoting that he was not sexually interested in her, he still crossed her path every now and then. Even after what he'd admitted, his inner mind still expressed exultancy when they met, although he didn't know where exactly in the building she lived.

Finally he made it to the gates for a second time, and opened the gates by flashing his key fob over the ticket machine next to them. Today the street outside was empty; the market area normally opened at weekends only but occasionally came for weekdays too; this was not one of those days. As he turned right and ambled up the pavement, he let his gaze settle on the Hafnium gates of Smokestacks Gardens, eagerly desiring to access. But when he turned his head back to the street, a look of surprise overcame his previously irritated expression. He had spotetd from his position another feline-human form sitting on the bench near the South entrance, much to his shock. Despite having come across feline beings before, he had never seen another catboy besides himself in the mirror. Not wanting to draw any attention to himself or make him feel uncomfortable, he carried on walking along the pavement as he tented his whiskers, wondering what the headline of that day's newspaper would be.

[LoneCatboy]

Reoku sat and studied the building for a while, trying to figure out the best plan of attack. It could be tricky attempting re-entry into a previously entered residence, but he felt that the outcome would be worth it. He looked around every now and then to make it look like he was casually waiting. Upon looking near the gate of the apartment, he caught an interesting sight...another catboy! This catboy had a few more feline features than Reoku did, but the overall comparison was still very similar. He turned his head, but kept his eyes fixed on the other catboy through his shaded goggles. I'll be a son of a gun, we've got ourselves another hybrid living around here, and a feline one at that. He watched the catboy head down the street, then got back to the task at hand.

After sitting there for a few more minutes, he felt like he was ready to move on. He got up and decided to kill some time. One of his favorite places to visit was the music store. Due to his lack of funds, he never really bought anything, but he loved to look around and sample albums. As long as he was around music, he was content. He journeyed back towards his part of town, where the music store was located, and walked in, giving the cashier a nod. He had wanted many times to steal an album or two, but they made it very difficult for theft to occur in their store, so he just had to be content with looking.

After listening to a few samples from a classic rock hits album, it was about time for him to head back to his hideout. I need to make sure everything is in order for tonight. I'll probably hit around 3 in the morning or so, just in case the resident is a night owl. Yeah, 3 should be fine. Reoku headed back to the warehouse, dodging a few more glares and a laugh from an uppity looking woman. He took all he could for the day and turned around to her, lifting his goggles so she could see the agitation in his eyes, "Oh, what the hell are you laughing at?!" He turned around and didn't give the woman time to respond, as he came to his door, opened it, and slammed it shut.

[Deleteduser_120]

10:33

Nodding to the cashier as he strolled into the shop, he headed straight for the newspaper rack and picked out a copy of The Daily Prompt. Scanning it carefully, he cursed aloud when he read the headline to himself, Now we can't sleep at night any more. As he read on, he let out a slaked, low-pitched growl as he read that it would soon be compulsory to have a risk assessment performed on beds owing to the fear by some 'experts' (or morons as he loved to call them) that they 'might have bedding which can cause injury by rubbing against the snoozer'. Folding this up in one of his arms with some difficulty pulling his claws out of the newspaper's back pages, he picked up a Sudoku magazine and pornographic magazine from the shelf above and grabbed a Cornish pasty from the fridge to his left before strolling to the counter.

He didn't have to worry about the cashier taking notice of his altered appearance because he had visited nearly every day for the past few months since he had been in the apartment and they had grown far too used to him to care what he looked like. Scanning his wallet, he handed over a ten-pound note as the cashier calculated how much he needed to pay. Taking his change and the plastic bag, Wesley shot a warm smile to the cashier as he left the shop and strolled out of view.

Halfway back to the security gates, he turned his head to the gardens again to discover that the other catboy had left the bench, as if intimidated by his presence. I hope I didn't scare him away. he thought sadly, pulling his pasty out of his bag, Did he see my paws? Was it my tail? He turned back to the pavement and found that to his relief, neither of the gates had been vandalized. Wesley dipped into his pocket and after a brief moment of sensing, he clasped his entire paw over the key fob, flashing it over the sensor on the left-hand gate. To his surprise, the loudspeaker on the ticket machine on the other side bellowed 'Access is denied'. He tried again with a brief snarl, and the gates opened accordingly. Strolling in with a sigh, he opened his paw and dropped the fob into his pocket, and then used the same paw to feel for his keys. Thank God for that. he said to himself with relief as he started to saunter back the way he had come, wondering where the other catboy was now. But what had never thought of at any time was whether this was indeed the person who had robbed him of his monitor the previous night. Little did he know was that he would fall victim to the catboy for a second night in a row.

[LoneCatboy]

For the rest of the day, Reoku prepared for his next project. He made sure he had everything in order. If he couldn't get in through the front door, he'd try a fire escape. If that didn't pan out, then he would have to enter from the outside. If he needed to, he could climb down from the roof, as he had some cable he could use, though he hoped it wouldn't come to that. Ok, I think I have everything I need: Hooks, cable, nap sack...perfect!. He went through one final checklist. Nerves were usually never a problem for Reoku, but for some reason, he found it just a little hard to concentrate. Perhaps it was the revisiting of the same apartment, or maybe the fact that he was getting all of that good music. It wasn't quite time to head out yet, so he sat down on his sofa to relax.

His mind wandered for a bit, and suddenly he was reminded that he'd seen another cat hybrid near the apartment today. It didn't surprise him that another one lived around the area, but he just found it interesting that this hybrid happened to live in a place that he was going to rob. Wouldn't it just be something if I was actually robbing that catboy...nah, a lot of people live in that building. The odds of that happening are quite slim. He pondered about the catboy he saw for a while longer, then got up, yawned, and stretched.

Whether he was ready or not, it was starting to get late, and the time was drawing near. He still had a few things he needed to do before heading over, so he would make a few detours along the way before reaching his destination. He said to himself aloud, "Ok, when I come back, I'll be rich with music!" He opened the door, carrying his nap sack full of supplies, and began his journey.

[Deleteduser_120]

10:41

By now starting to tire out from all of the stair-climbing, Wesley began to walk slowly up the same staircase he had circled through so many times since first moving in. Panting heavily as he moved up in the building, he dearly wished for the mess in the lift to have been mopped up so that he could use it, although this was an unlikely scenario; the cleaners had disappeared three days after he had moved in, which meant that because nobody had taken up the vacancies the landlord had offered, he'd had to do this himself. But he only came out when there had been vandalism to the flats or its direct surroundings, or if there had been a fight, which meant that predictably the general condition of the corridors had deteriorated. Such a shame to see such a lovely-looking apartment block allowed to sink into these walls of dust. he observed as his mind took in what he passed on each floor.

Eventually he reached the 74th floor, close to collapsing with exhaustion. The sweat gleaming on his forehead reflected the sunlight shining in through the roof window onto the mirror to his left, momentarily stunning him on the spot. Moving on, he reached into his pocket and pulled out his keys, clasping it with one paw and trying to locate the one for the front door with one of the toes of his other paw while at the same time trying to hold the plastic bag steady. After much flicking, he found it and latched it onto his outstretched claw through its hole, and then cupped his hands to secure the key before sliding it in and turning.

With noticable effort he shoved the door open before removing the key and dropping it into his pocket again. Closing it snugly, he strolled straight to his bedroom and began to browse through his album collection, eagerly wanting to clear his mind in the form of aural and mental enshrinement. When he found what he was looking for he reached out with both of his paws with his claws outstretched, wrapping his bag around his wrist, and pulled it away from the small rack with both paws. As he took it to the living room, he studied the cover. He'd picked out an album which he had recently ordered online, Trance Nation Electric. "Oh boy!" he exclaimed aloud, "Can't wait to get this going."

He laid his bag down on one of the seats of his sofa while he sprawled himself across the others, loading one of the CDs into the small stereo on the table in front of the sofa. As he pressed the play button, he pulled his pasty out of his bag and tore off the packaging, greedily tucking into it just before the breakdown of the first track begun to passively control him.

(Hopefully Judge Jules won't mind me referencing this title - but it's one of the greatest albums I have ever purchased.)

[LoneCatboy]

Reoku just made it out the door, when he realized he forgot one of the main things he needed for one of his errands: the computer monitor. Jeeze, I need that if I want to trade it in for money! He returned inside and retrieved the monitor. When he was sure he had everything this time, he exited once more. He would be glad when he could rid himself of some extra baggage, as the combination of the nap sack and monitor were quite cumbersome. He trudged to the pawn shop just down the street, and set the monitor on the desk. He greeted the cashier, "Hi! How much can I get for this?" The cashier glared at him, and the monitor, replying, "Hmm, not too sure...let me consult the manager." Reoku waited for a few minutes for the cashier to come back. He returned, sporting a serious look. He shook his head and replied, "I'm sorry..uh..sir, but we can't give you anything for this. We already have too many in stock." Hearing this, Reoku became outraged, "What the hell are you talking about! This is a perfectly good monitor, and has to be worth something!" The cashier simply shook his head, "I'm sorry, there's nothing I can do. Have a nice day sir." Reoku grabbed the monitor and stormed out the door. "This is bullshit!" he yelled, causing a few people to stare. He walked into an alley and tossed the monitor against the wall, shattering the screen. Walking back into the street, he grumbled and continued down the street.

Needless to say, Reoku was not in the best of spirits getting the news he did from the pawn shop. Those jerks think they can shrug me off just because I'm a hybrid. I'm not good enough for their business, they have too many, that's a load of rubbish! More people gawked at him as he stomped down the street, but he payed them no attention. I think I'm going to go sit in the Gardens for a bit to clear my head. Yeah, that's just what I need.

Whenever something was going wrong, a nice walk or a trip to Smokestacks Gardens was just what the doctor ordered. On the way there, he noticed that the apartment he had his eyes on was right by the Gardens. Huh, all this time I never put two and two together. Imagine that. Oh well, guess I can crash here for a while and scope out the traffic to the building. He found a nice bench where he could get a good view of the Gardens, yet still see the building. He sat for a minute, staring at the scenery, before nodding off.

[Deleteduser_120]

11:48

Sitting on his sofa in a sleepy, trance like state was Wesley, whose mind had been fully enthralled by the powerfully enchanting music blaring from the double watt speakers of his small boom box, leaving him in little more than a dreamy stupor as various images appeared in his mind with each song. The album had now reached the fifteenth track, which served to make him think of a time he had travelled into outer space with his father when he had been summoned to repair a satellite which had been damaged by a small meteorite. Just thinking of when he'd peered down at Earth on the platform he and his father were positioned, not particularly high above Earth, was enough to fully transfix him, and as the track entered its breakdown his eyes began to close slowly as he let out a sigh of total, relaxed exalt, as if his body was permanently shutting down. This had happened to him before, however, as some of his albums had actually been entrancing enough to send him into sleep until the full disc elapsed.

[LoneCatboy]

Reoku awoke from his nap, peering at the building that housed the music he was so desperately after. He was starting to get impatient, as time was moving too slowly for him. "I wonder what the chances would be that the person isn't home right now. Well, the least I could do is check," he said to himself. He got up from the bench, grabbed his supplies, and headed over to the the entrance to the apartment. Seeing the security gate, he realized that the best way to get to an entrance to the inside would have to be from around the back. He scanned the area, to make sure nobody was around to see him sneaking. When he was sure the coast was clear, he darted around, following the fence to the rear of the building. Using his cable and a few hooks, he carefully cleared the fence, and moved back around to enter the building. He smiled to himself. "So far, so good. Now, to get up to that room...I hope the lift works."

Entering the building, he noticed that the lift was out of service. "Well, this is great, I have to climb all those stairs," he grumbled. He began his climb in good spirits, thinking of the collection of music he would find at the top. His high spirits soon drained out of him as he found out what a workout it was climbing up to the 74th floor, especially with all of his equipment. His pace slowed as he climbed higher and higher. Eventually, he reached his destination and walked up to the familiar door he had seen the previous night.

He put his ear to the door to find out if he could hear anyone in the apartment. He heard music coming from inside and pounded on the door in frustration. "Dammit, I knew I couldn't be that lucky!" It suddenly dawned on him what he had done, knowing that someone was probably home. He looked around quickly for a place to hide, in case the person inside came to investigate who pounded on the door. The only thing he could think of was to hide in the entrance to the stairwell. He ran to the door as fast as he could and hid behind it, keeping it cracked to see if anyone would emerge from the apartment.

[Deleteduser_120]

11:56

When the CD's seventeenth and final track of the first CD of the set finished, Wesley's eyes slowly opened up once again. The dreams that his altered state of being had let him into had been some of the most euphoric and powerful he had so far witnessed, and surprisingly for him his ex-girlfriend had not appeared once in his fantasies. Many of the tracks that played had nonetheless made him think of travelling through space in some way, and his enchantment and enthrallment turned into slight disappointment as the final track faded out into silence. He looked around him, sensing that all was exactly as it had been before switching on the stereo; his plastic bag was still on the left-hand seat, the wallpaper in the living room was still peeling, and as ever he had remained in the same place.

"My God," he said to himself, overjoyed by what he had internally witnessed, "I haven't been entranced like that since I was at my mum's." Wanting to delve further into his mind, he opened the CD drawer and removed the disc, replacing it with the second and final disc. Shame there's only two CDs with this album. he thought to himself as he closed the drawer and pressed the Play button. He positioned himself comfortably and readied himself for another 75 minutes of mind-blowing electronica.

However, what should have been a calming experience caused him to jolt with a start; just twenty seconds into the first track he heard a loud thump on his front door, immediately followed by a muffled (but still decipherable to his acute hearing), "Dammit, I knew I couldn't be that lucky!" If this is the clown who robbed me last night, he thought odiously as he recited what he heard, then he's a dead man. Dispondent to what risk could await him outside, he hurled himself onto his feet, stopped the stereo and walked to the front door. With both paws he gripped the handle and turned it, pulling the door open. With great anticipation and fear that he could be attacked, he bared the claws of his left paw, but kept his arm to his side.

"Hello?" he called out, "Somebody there?" He had expected to hear the sound of children laughing as he said this, but he could not hear anything as silence filled the air. After a few more seconds he sighed and retracted his claws, certain there was nobody else around. "Bloody kids." he said furiously and inaudibly to himself, stalking back into his apartment, "Must have gotten away already. Little shits they are on this estate - God knows 'ow their parents put up with 'em." But what stuck in his head was what he'd heard said: "Dammit, I knew I couldn't be that lucky!". Had this been the burglar of last night coming back to check if the apartment was empty? Or had it been somebody losing a scratchcard raffle? With his experience the second choice was unlikely; as he closed his front door he hooked the security chain onto the hinge, and made the decision that he would not be leaving the flat any more today.

[LoneCatboy]

Reoku watched as the door slowly opened and the occupant of the apartment was made visible. Oh man, it's the other catboy! What are the odds? He listened as the catboy blamed the disturbance on the kids, being careful not to open the door further to make his presence known. Yeah, it was the kids, that's right. Get the wrong idea. He kept completely silent until he saw that the catboy had gone back into his apartment, hearing the chain lock. Damn, there goes my chance at the door. Guess I'll have to find another way in. But, that will have to come later. He knew he ruined his chances of getting in there early, and headed back down the stairs to get out of the apartment before someone noticed him.

Climbing down the stairs was so much easier than the brutal climb up them. Soon, he was at the bottom and out the door. He went back to the spot on the fence where he entered and exited just as quickly. Returning to the front of the building he looked up to about where the room that he tried to enter would be. Just wait, catboy. I'll be back for that music. You can count on it. With a flick of his tail, he headed back into the Gardens. He sat his nap sack on the bench and plopped down beside it. He shook his head as he knew what a close call he'd just been through. Closing his eyes, he recollected the tune he'd heard when he pressed his ear to the door. It was an unfamiliar electronica song, but the sound of it was so enchanting. If the rest of the music collection was anything like what he had heard, then this was going to be a very sweet deal. He purred a little as he laid his head back, deep in though. He couldn't wait for the moment to strike.

[Deleteduser_120]

(You're doing brilliantly at this, LoneCatboy - but how would you feel about me sending you the track listings of Trance Nation Electric or linking you to YouTube's videos or Amazon's market area? )

12:03

Locking his front door, Wesley ambled back to his living room, grumbling audibly. God, I hate being disturbed. he said to himself without looking particularly pleased. He had had trouble in the past with the children living in the flats having knocked on his door and then run off, and on one occasion setting his doormat on fire, but he had always been able to detect the presence of at least somebody, especially if he'd heard them giggling when he'd come out to investigate. But since the time they'd lit up his doormat he no longer positioned it outside his front door as this had caused significant damage to the door, meaning that both had had to be replaced.

But while he had grown accustomed to the fact that he had moved into quite a rough part of town and that this was commonplace, there was something different about this occasion that bothered him. He'd not heard any high-pitched chuckling and hadn't detected any presence of children. It was almost as if there was an adult who somehow knew he had been burgled and had attempted to play a trick on him to observe his reaction. Well, no chance of that happening for a second time. snapped his mind as he reconciled this possibility. They've seen me once, so when they knock I'll just answer through the peephole. That'll show them! He chuckled to himself as his mind said this, and ignoring the plastic bag on the sofa and the remnants of the pasty and its packaging he sank back into his sofa and pressed his stereo's Play button for a third time, allowing himself a forseeing sigh as he braced himself for what was coming.

[LoneCatboy]

(Thank you very much, Passion! This is great! And yes, I would love to find out more about Trance Nation Electric. I'm always looking to expand my musical horizons. )

Reoku was deep in though, letting the track he heard play in his mind. The music took him away from the chaos of the city life and the laughing, staring, and hostility. He was disrupted by a booming voice, "Hey, catboy! What do you think you're doing?" Reoku was jolted back into reality, looking up and seeing a police officer grimacing at him. He replied, "Oh, I guess I was just daydreaming, officer." The man shook his head, "Right, what's in the bag?" "Oh, that's just my nap sack. I've got a few supplies in there," Reoku said. The officer wasn't convinced, "How about we take a look?" The catboy grumbled, "Sure, but it's just some towing supplies. I'm gonna meet a buddy of mine who's car died, and he didn't have anything to hook it up to his friend's truck." The officer dug through the bag and saw the cable and hooks, "Well, just watch yourself, I don't trust you one bit!" The response didn't surprise Reoku in the least. He stood up and glared at the policeman. "Look, I haven't done anything to you. I'm just minding my own business, waiting for a friend, and you have to hassle me. Do you treat all hybrids this way?" The officer just turned away and muttered, "They're all the same."

Reoku angrily searched through his bag to make sure nothing was missing. He always had small altercations like this, and it really bugged him. He was always afraid that one of them might actually be one step ahead of him, and catch him. It wasn't that he was afraid of going to prison, but he didn't like the idea of being locked away, without freedom.
The idea of people telling him what to do was just not appealing to him, and he wanted no part of it. On the other hand, he knew what he did may lead to that, but he couldn't help himself. He'd stolen all of his life, and stealing was all he knew. It was how he survived and, now, it was how he would increase his music collection. He let the incident with the officer slide as he sat back on the bench, closing his eyes, and returning to his pleasant daydream.

[Deleteduser_120]

(Okay, the message has been sent through - but it's quite a long passage!)

12:19

His mental journey carried over to the second disc's fourth track, which, as the breakdown briefly faded into silence, left him with glossy-looking eyes which showed total enchantment, although not visible because of his sunglasses. Even his tail, which frequently wagged at a varied pace depending on his mood and was at the moment tucked to his left, had stopped entirely as the music took full hold of his mental state. But even though a crow called as it sailed past the window on his right, this did not wake him from his trance. He had reached full enchantment - if the crow had flown past him or the window or if he had merely heard it this would have been enough to attract his attention and get his predatorial senses moving like a tank rolling into a battleground. But not on this occasion.

The fifth track now dawned, which took him even further into the depths of his conjecture. But were he not under the album's control, he would have noticed a particularly desirable sight; a large hawk resembling that which he had dreamed of chasing after the previous night had flown past the same window the crow had sailed by, but unluckily for him the bird was not an anthrpomorphic form like he was. Owing to the resemblance this would have driven him to try and chase him/her fully intent on consuming them, which he had tried to do once to another bird before he lost sight of it. Although he had come across other anthropomorphic beings before now and hybrid forms, he had so far never seen one who had the features of any kind of bird, not even in the newspaper or online. Until that day came though, this mere insignificant fantasy would go unfulfilled, though this was something that had slipped out of his mind not long after he had woken up.

[LoneCatboy]

(I got it! Thanks!)

The more Reoku sat with his thoughts, the more he wanted back there to get that music. I can't get that music outta my head. I must have it. Oh, I've got to get back there. He sat and thought for the longest time. His last trip there almost got him caught, plus he had a police officer that had an eye on him. This was becoming more and more difficult, but he knew he could pull it off...he had to! He thought he was a good enough thief, at least. He thought about how he would get into the apartment. The door was now out of the question, unless he beat it down. That wasn't going to happen because it would alert the catboy of his presence. His next bet would be to try a fire escape. The building had a few, and hopefully one ran near the window of the targeted apartment. Judging from what he could see from the outside, it looked like one came close enough for him to swing to the window. That looks like it'll be my best bet. I think I'll go for a change of scenery.

He got up and grabbed his nap sack. Leaving the Gardens, he gave a glare to the officer patrolling the area. He wanted to get closer to where he needed to be, but to do that, he would have to get back into the building. This was getting frustrating, back and forth and back and forth. Never before had such a job made him feel so impatient. All he wanted to do was get it over with, but he kept running into problems. He followed the same path as before to get back inside the security fence. He decided to wait for a bit, as he needed to prepare himself for the climb up the seemingly endless staircase.