[lone]

Originally Posted by Beau

Bubbles had noticed the tom eyeing her collar and lengthened her neck to show it off. It was her favorite one, and she loved when others admired it. It certainly accentuated her own beauty and Bubbles hated to take it off. While the she-cat was very naive and lacked any street smarts, she was smart enough to know how valuable it was and that many a cat would want it. Obviously, she didn't think any cat would stoop to stealing, so the molly wasn't worried. However, she would run as fast as possible back to her home if someone did try to take it, not possessing any fighting skills. Despite being on the heavier side, compared to warrior cats, Bubbles was fairly fast.

Bubbles admired the tom cat's fur while she waited for his name. The innocent little show cat wondered how he got it to that perfect spot between groomed and absolutely wild. At the moment it was...unruly. But not dirty or gross. Almost as if it was styled that way. Bubbles found that she liked the way it looked; it was unique to her, since she'd never seen a cat with fur like him before. "Nice to meet you, Barracuda." Bubbles meowed politely in response to the silver tom telling her his name. I sounded familiar, tickling her brain, but the Siamese couldn't think of where she'd heard it and soon gave up, knowing that it would probably come to her later. Bubbles felt his tail entwining with hers and flicked her ears backwards slightly, warning bells exploding in her mind. Bubbles was naive, yes, but that was simply because she'd never spent any time in the real world. She still had her instincts and they were telling her to get away. However, she wanted to stay and see what this Barracuda cat was all about, even if she was rather afraid.

At his question, Bubbles thought for a moment before answering, "I think it comes from my eyes. By housefolk thought they looked like bubbles." Bubbles was unaware how they had known what her eyes looked like when they were closed as a kit. She had no idea that she hadn't been named till after they'd opened. "Where'd you get your name?" Barracuda seemed an unnecessarily tough name to Bubbles since she had hardly witnessed any violence in her very sheltered life. Speaking of shelter, it was getting steadily darker and the Siamese really wanted to return home. She didn't want to be rude, however, and could only hope the conversation would speed up.

Once again, the tom took a close look at her collar as she lengthened her neck out. It was a beautiful collar, one of the prettiest he had seen, and Barracuda made up his mind that it would be a good thing to take. He could take it back to his housefolk, and they could sell it - make a lot of money off of a collar like that. Personally, the tom was not willing to give up Iris's collar, which was a constant reminder of the one flicker of guilt he'd felt in a while, but he could keep hers anyway. A trophy to show how he had once again tamed the heart of a foolish female who had believed Barracuda was capable of feeling that strong of an emotion. It was HILARIOUS! He was so good at showing it, but hadn't felt it in a very long time. Not since he was quite young and, chances were, all he would ever feel again was lust.

A strong lust that overtook him and made him obsessive and right now, he was obsessed with Bubbles and getting that collar. There was a quite simple way to combine the two. Maybe she had a nice place to stay the night? A comfortable bed somewhere, or indeed, even a whole room to herself upstairs? Mm, if it was nice, maybe he would stay a while before stealing the collar. Forget the shows, right? All that Barracuda cared about was himself, and if he didn't feel like doing something, he wasn't going to do it. He would stay here with his new friend Bubbles. His new target, that was. And if things went wrong, her owners couldn't complain - Barracuda was a purebred cat, the purest of the purebreds - or so he called himself - so even Bubbles wouldn't be able to deny that her kits would be of the most desirable blood.

Though Barracuda wasn't particuarly... choosy about the cats that he had kits with. That was only if things went seriously wrong though, at the moment, the tom's eyes were on the collar and the collar alone. "First of all, a barracuda is a type of fish that rips others apart." The basic origin of his name was unknown, but Barracuda was sure he had been named after the fish. He knew why he was called that now, it was obvious, but why he had been named it in the first place - perhaps his owners' high hopes for him in the world of show cats? "But don't worry, I would never hurt anyone. Especially anyone as lovely as yourself, sweetheart." The tom gave her a wink before curling his tail a little tighter around hers and brushing up against her in a charming manner.

"Anyways, I believe I was named Barracuda because my housefolk wanted me to be tough. Being a show cat can be cutthroat sometimes - you wouldn't believe the sabotages I've heard of. My housefolk probably named me after the fish in hopes of thinking I would be tough enough to survive there." The tom shrugged a little. He had other, more sinister imaginations behind his name, but he wouldn't reveal them to the pretty she cat. Moments passed before he drew away from her, his eyes sparkling mischieviously as he glanced upon her. Play your cards carefully, Barracuda. You've got this. Was he slightly insane? Perhaps, but over the past few moons it seemed his sanity was stabilizing and he was becoming a little more like a normal member of society.

Though not quite. He still didn't care who he hurt or why, but those little flickers of guilt reminded him he was perfectly capable of having emotions. "Say, Bubbles... and may I say, that's a beautiful name you have - do you have a place to stay? See, I'm rather far away from my home at the moment, and... well... I hate to trouble you like this, but if there's any possible way that I could, um - and if your housefolk don't mind, of course - is there a way that I could come and stay with you?" The tom asked, lowering his head sheepishly. He was playing this part perfectly... and a naive cat such as Bubbles had shown herself to be was sure to fall for his plea instantly. Barracuda was certainly an actor - and a good one, if nothing else.