Life of a cat / Katzenleben

The trap

Some time ago the fish, already caught and killed, had not been behind a nearly invisible barrier. Instead it had been laying upon a table, easily accessible for a cat that waited its chance to jump upon the table when nobody was looking.
Now however all the food that was interesting to the cat, all the good smells, all the items giving off enticing aromas, were behind barriers too dangerous to pass.

It had tried to get behind the barrier and inside of the waggon with the meet once but had received a heavy blow to its head and a kick to the side that had hurt for a long time afterwards.

Simply being around the wagons sometimes was enough to be chased off and - if not watching out carefully - with a good kick or another.

It still came to the market place on the days of the wagons not only because of the bits and pieces that fell down sometimes or the usually ample dumpsters.

Showing certain behaviours towards certain humans usually made them giving food to the cat.

Today however a tantalising smell had crept into the cats nose and captured its attention.
Now, after receiving its treat in the form of a raw egg in a bowl for letting itself being stroked several times, the smell called to it like a siren, beckoning it to find its source.
It dashes through one alley and then another, avoiding cars and bicycles, crossing yards and even a small stream.

Though strong by now, the cat still can not identify the source of the smell.

It can albeit identify another smell and there is no mystery about it: The intruder is back.

The cat picks up speed in case the intruder too is questing the source of the ensnaring odour.
Upon arriving to a wooded patch it finally is able to localise the source.
It also gains sight of the intruder, which is a lot closer to the desired item than the cat itself.

Accelerating once more it races the intruder to the item only to stop quite startled several feet away from it, the smell hanging heavily in the air.

The intruder reaches the source and claims the item by biting, licking and chewing on it. Instead of trying to protect the item however it simply rolls around, purring loudly and giving off an aura of carelessness and contentedness.
Unlike the cat it is not startled by the loud metallic snapping noise produced by the lid connecting with the heavy wire box.

The intruder seems to be spellbound by the item without any sign of being fazed by being confined to the box. As if it isn't even noticing it, much less being concerned by it.

The cat staggers away, not steady on its paws. Its ears are turned sideways, twitching, not sure where to focus on.
Its back is arched and its fur bristled as well as the tail.

The complete change in the intruders behaviour bewilders the cat to the point of fear.

It first retreats to hide in a patch of undergrowth far enough from the box to gather its bearings. After a moment to take a careful look at its surroundings it runs away.