Alley Cat Part 2

The young girl peered out from behind the crate, her yellow eyes darting around the alley. ‘Good, no one followed me.’ Tightening her hood, she bolted out into the street. She wove in and out of the crowd, not caring if she bumped into anyone.

“Hey, watch where you’re going, little shit!” A man snarled as her elbow nearly knocked a basket out of his hands. But it was too late; she’d slipped into the stream of traffic like a fish and was already far out of reach. Slipping into another alley passageway, she took off running as fast as she could. In a just a few short weeks, she’d memorized the entirety of Umbria’s intricate system of alleys and walkways. If nothing else, her photogenic memory was the one thing she’d always had going for her. 

Finally, she arrived at a narrow grate in the wall that led into the abandoned backyard of an industrial workshop. Extending her claws, she carefully pried the heavy metal back like it was a tin can, creating a crack to slip through. She then slowly retracted her claws and let the grate settle back into place. She studied it for a moment before nodding in approval. ‘You still couldn’t tell that someone moved it.’ She turned and swiveled her eyes around the courtyard, being met only by the usual piles of rusting and rotting furniture and layers of dirt and mildew. Whatever sort of workshop this place was, they had long since abandoned the smaller building out back and turned the courtyard into a dumping place for unwanted merchandise and scrap metal.

The girl casually strolled across the junk yard, not concerned about being seen. No one ever came out back, except to chuck more junk out from the back of the main building. A gust of wind blew, the slight movement causing the ancient metal and haphazardly piled trash to creak and thump as if the dead were attempting to claw their way out of the earth. She went around the side of the abandoned building and, after checking over her shoulder a final time to be safe, she swiftly slid a decomposing crate out of the way, revealing a small, broken window.

The girl sat down and slid herself through the opening, careful not to let the jagged glass slice her face. As soon she felt her feet touch the chair placed beneath the window, she slowly turned her body and, groping for the rope attached to the crate, yanked the camouflage back into place. The girl paused to catch her breath and pulled her hood down, letting her blue-gray hair fall to her shoulders. She shook her head and her fluffy ears perked up, “Ah, finally I’m not being smothered by that smelly rag!” The girl breathed in relief. She hopped down from the chair and wove her way through the labyrinth of stuff boxes and tools that hadn’t been touched in years. It looked like the kind of basement that belonged to an elderly person that had long since lost the ability to come down and visit the souvenirs of their life.

The girl headed to the small room in that back where the doorway had been blocked off by a hanging sheet. “Pip, I’m back!” She announced, pulling back the cloth. To the left, she spied her companion sitting at the assembled boxes that served as their tables and chairs.

The Tanuki boy swung his small legs and looked at her with bright, expectant orange eyes. “Bisky-Chan! You’re back! Did you have any luck?” The girl chuckled and pulled a brown sack out of what seemed to be thin air. “You bet! That watch got me a whole bag of gold! We should be able to eat three meals a day for the next week!” Pip’s furry tail and round ears twitched rapidly in excitement as he sniffed the air. His eyes went even wider “You got my favorite!” Bisky promptly poured out the fried chicken sandwiches, truffle fries, and cookies from the bag.

“You’re the best!” Pip shrieked, immediately grabbing a sandwich and tearing into it. “Ah, yeah, that’s the stuff!” He sighed happily as he chewed a large mouthful. Bisky snickered and threw her cloak on the ground, glad to be free of it. “My memory is perfect!” She boasted, sitting down cross-legged on the other makeshift chair. “Of course, I remembered what your favorite foods were!” She began popping fries into her mouth. “Besides, these fries are frickin’ amazing. I never had anything as good as this back home! Not like I ever even got to eat fast food back there...” Pip stared at her. “It’s still so weird to me. You seem like someone who’s lived on the streets their entire life.”

Bisky shrugged. “Havin' a roof over your head doesn’t mean you have a home. I’m far happier with this set up than I was at that shitty orphanage. I’m free here.” Pip finished inhaling his sandwich and looked at her hesitantly. “Would it be okay if I had another one?” “I didn’t buy multiple for them to just sit here! Eat whatever you want! We have to be smart with our money, but that doesn’t mean we don’t deserve to eat nice things!” Pip grabbed another sandwich and devoured it with joy.

“Ah, you’re so cuuttteee!” Bisky kicked her feet and flushed with joy as she squealed "It's like Poco from Poco’s Udon World jumped out of the tv! Ugh, you’re precious!” The Tanuki puffed his cheeks out and huffed. “I still have no idea what that means! And I’m not tryin’ to be cute! I’m seventy years old!” Bisky rolled her eyes. “It’s manga...picture book...from my world. You’re still a tanuki and you look like the main character. Plus, that only means you’re the equivalent of a seven-year-old. Bite me.” The two feasted in silence for a few minutes.

“Did you finish checking over the rest of the haul from last night?” Bisky asked eventually. “Yeah.” Pip nodded. “Unfortunately, that watch was the best thing we got. The jewelry isn’t anything special and that wallet you got was nearly empty.” “Fuucckkk!” Bisky threw her head back, whined loudly, and smacked the table. “Are you shitting me? I finally managed to hit the jackpot and you're telling me the guy spent everything already?” Pip winced.

“Yeah, the wallet just had a few pieces of gold. Sorry, Bisky-Chan. You did your best, but the villagers aren’t exactly rolling in money. This is why I told you to focus on adventurers. They’re more likely to have a substantial amount of money on them since they’re traveling. Not to mention weapons and materials we could resell.” The boy smirked. “You still have a lot to learn from the master thief, young one!” Bisky flicked him in the nose. “You’re basically a seven-year-old and that means I’m older! Don’t you call yourself 'master'!” “Yowch!” Pip rubbed his nose.

“I’ll have you know, I’m a pro at this! The dummy whose wallet I swiped and three of his friends tried to get me and I kicked all their asses! It was so easy I felt embarrassed for them, honestly! Did I tell you that one of them was a mage? Such a shitty one that their idea of trying to stop me was summoning a little mud puddle!” The cat-girl's ears and tail stood up proudly. “They were all the world’s most useless idiots! It was fun watching them crash and burn trying to get me! All the guy’s friends had magic, but they still couldn’t do anything to stop me! It was one of easiest and most thrilling swipes I’ve made!” Bisky bragged. “I was gone before they could even tell their heads from their asses!”

Suddenly, an unfamiliar voice shattered the silence as the sheet was ripped away from the door. “Just who are you calling a ‘shitty mage’?”

The two children fell backwards in shock and fear as a lavender-haired young woman marched defiantly into their hiding spot.