Harry followed dutifully behind the woman as she scurried across the streets and into a dark part of the city that was no place for a human such as her. He found himself happily confused.
She was an enigma. A spirit that was bright and pure and yet a dark swirl of something sinister beneath it all, just barely scratching the surface.
She smelled human, she didn't have the markings of a witch or warlock. She was nothing of any import.
And yet...
She'd captivated his most astute attention.
He watched as she climbed a set of stairs and withdrew a key from her purse of greed, and then made her way into the building, effectively shutting him out.
No matter. He could appear wherever he wanted...and right now....he liked the idea of appearing just outside her door, meowing to be let in.
Oh how intolerably beneath him to be whining and mewling like the cat he was. How absolutely dreadful to stoop to such a level to garner her affections and attention but he had to gain access.
The object of his fancy just cleared the stairs as he curled into her door and meowed loudly.
She stopped and stared for a moment, blinking those onyx eyes at him as if he were exactly what he truly was.
She couldn't know...there was no way for her to know...but just to be sure, he flopped onto his back and wiggled from side to side with another annoying mewl.
He peeked one eye open at her and watched as her plump pink lips twitched into a smile.
There she goes...a beautiful butterfly caught in a net.
"And just what do you think you are doing here?" She asked teasingly and Harry just meowed again. His head was full of words he'd love to say back to that question but...the cat sounds would have to do...for now.
She traipsed over in her white sneakers and crouched down to swipe her fingers around his red collar.
"Harry," she whispered.
Oh Harry loved the way she said his name. A Hell of a choice he had to admit.
"Well you don't have any information from your owner," she looked left and then right down the hallway and then looked back at Harry with a shrug, "I suppose I can't just leave you out here all alone can I?" She asked sweetly and Harry did everything he could not to answer her by shaking his head.
She rose to her full height and readjusted her skirts, "Alright, enter if you dare." She sighed and then unlocked the door to her home.
What does one feed a cat?
Sera did not know the answer but she'd seen enough television to assume a can of tuna should suffice.
"Alright Harry, don't judge me but this is all I have to offer." The black cat tilted its pretty head and then dipped down to smell the open can of tuna in water. Two distinct sniffs and then it wretched.
"Wow....rude." Sera scoffed under her breath but she could have sworn she saw the cat's shoulders shake with laughter.
It was an odd sort of cat. It's hypnotic green eyes were ever watchful and she could feel them on her at every turn. She refused to touch it and she wasn't sure why. It wasn't that she wasn't a cat person, she tended to be fond of all animals, but this one...well there was just something about it.
Something different...something altogether not right.
She wondered if maybe she was putting her own emotions about herself onto the poor creature who was doomed to starve in her apartment. But she also just had a feeling that maybe she could look but not touch the feline perched on her floor.
"Don't shit in my apartment please. I'm going to put newspaper over here on the floor," she indicated by doing exactly as she said, "so please for the love of God," the cat flinched, "don't make me regret this."
The black cat just meowed and observed her as she walked around it and into her bedroom.
She busied herself with changing her clothes into pajamas, and washing her face and teeth, before making her way to her bed where her purse laid waiting.
She stood there, gazing at it like it couldn't be trusted even though it was her that clearly had the issues, not the inanimate object laying on her bed. With a huff, she reached her hand out at the same time Harry, her new furry friend, hopped onto her bed with careful silence.
His glowing jade eyes watched her as she kneeled before her bed, looking to him once, and then opened the contents to find the wallet she'd taken.
She emptied it and found $300 in cash, two credit cards, and a driver's license to one Stuart Hobbs.
Sera let out a guilty sigh. She hated herself. He was probably a decent enough man. Why had she done it?
Why did she feel this need to continue to be so conniving?
She felt evil and she wasn't sure what she feared more, that or the giddiness she felt bubbling inside of her at the notion.
The cat just sat there, perched handsomely on her bed and he seemed to be looking into her. She wasn't sure how she felt about that either.
It was like he knew what she'd done...but his bright eyes didn't register judgement...they almost looked....insanely approving.
Sera blinked her eyes and shook her head.
Now she was just being absurd. A cat couldn't judge nor approve of her chosen behavior, nor could it understand the gravity of her decisions.
With a small chuckle at her foolish delusions, she reached a hand out to the cat and rubbed its head fondly but retracted them quickly when she swore she heard a whisper.
Again. Do it again.
To watch her sleep was a vision of pure serenity. Harry assumed this would be the only time in his sordid existence that he'd find any entertainment in watching a human sleep.
It should be boring. It should be the least pleasurable thing to witness.
And yet....
She twitched and sighed and rolled and snored...and Harry couldn't take his eyes off of her.
He enjoyed the way her neck craned to one side as a bit of drool oozed from the corner of her slightly parted mouth. He liked the way her shirt rose ever so slightly to expose her soft stomach to him. He delighted in how her dreams must be so vivid because she spoke and spoke often and not once did it make the least bit of sense.
"That's not a way to treat a lady...." she slurred and Harry flicked his tail in good humor.
What a treat...what an illustrious treat.
Harry had been watching her for quite some time. It was nearing the witching hour, when he was at his strongest, and he was wondering whether it was a good idea to invade her dreams or not.
Not so much a question of morality, but whether it was worth expending the energy.
He knew once he entered her mind he'd only have minutes to do what he needed to entice her. Knew exactly what to say and how to lure her into wanting to join him down below in his realm.
He just wondered if she was worth it. Was she worth invoking His anger for one night's pleasure before sending her tarnished soul down to the pit where it sinfully belonged?
It all had to be her choice of course. Harry was a monster but he did only want this next part if she truly wanted it too.
There was something fulfilling about knowing one of His creations wanted to fall into his waiting arms. Something joyous and petty that made him ache for her to agree.
He wasn't sure what he wanted more, her or His rage.
He did enjoy pissing Him off.
But Harry was playing by the rules. She had touched him. He had not influenced her as of yet which was shocking and delightful all at the same time.
So now, as he waited patiently for the clock to strike 3am, he gazed down at her and pondered his choices.
As his eyes lazily roamed her features, he wondered how he had only found her pretty before.
She was very much a regal beauty. A complex elegance of features that he had only glazed over before.
How selfish and self absorbed was he to miss her entirety?
The answer was, very.
As the minutes ticked down, he closed his eyes and felt his entity melt away and enter into her elaborate mind and soon he was laying out his plans in her dreaming mind.