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For a hunter, the most important skill was perhaps that to move silently, prowling along streets and rooftops [or, more commonly, among low-hanging branches and berry-laden bushes] unseen, so that they could leap out and surprise their prey. This was why Laoise always sniffed scornfully at those cats with the jingle of a bell at their collar, with dangling metal that clanked and clicked against itself as it walked, with bright flashes of hats or hanging cloth that threatened to tangle in paws.

This was why her adornments were feathers from those birds she'd taken down.

No sound marked her approach across the roof, lean body pressed against the lip of the building, belly almost scraping along the ground as she worked her way from the corner toward the humming girl, her path covered by the sound, by the glitter of light on the feather.

She hit pouncing distance, leapt -- and missed.

The girls would get a glimpse of gold fur, green feathers fluttering in the night air, a woosh of blue beads, as Laoise shot out in front her nose and landed on the other side of her. There, the cat paused, drawing in a breath, her spine raised and her eyes wide for about ten seconds. Surprised, or annoyed, claws dug against the earth --

And then she set to licking one paw. Nope. She hadn't done that at all. She hadn't leapt. She hadn't missed. She'd just been right there, the whole time, grooming that paw. Important business.

Lick, lick -- she looked up slowly, her expression feigning confusion, as if she had no idea why the girl was freaking out so thoroughly. Laoise had done nothing. She'd been sitting there the whole time. Her tail thrashed and twisted in around her hind feet as she squinted at Grus.

"Why are you sitting alone on a roof and playing with feathers?" Perhaps not the same kind of cat Grus was familiar with. Despite her own love of feathers, despite her almost compulsive need to pounce the one Grus had had in her hands, despite the fact that even now her eyes tracked the ones around the hem of the senshi's skirt...

"Shouldn't you be on the move? Patrolling?" Slowly, she lowered her paw. Her tail twitched again, eyes narrowed.

Laoise wasn't a tamed cat, not the sort to lean into pettings and purr or beg for scraps. She also didn't do well with young girls leaning down and thrusting their faces into hers. Her ears went back and one paw shot up in warning, sharp claws extended -- not quite trying to actually catch the girl, but instead just to drive her back, to get Grus out of her personal space. She hissed, a quick and sharp hiss, pointed teeth flashed as she did.

"This generation. You're all so mouthy! All of you! When did 'duty' become a meaningless word?" Her paw curled, and Lee struggled desperately to focus on the girl's face instead of the distracting, tantalizing feathers along the hem of her skirt, and the beads that hung and swung temptingly in the night breeze.

The feather captured Laoise's attention and drew her into its sway, making it hard for he to focus on anything else. As it bobbed in the wind, her head bobbed to match it, yellow-gold eyes not straying -- and, for this moment, she was unable to even come up with a retort. The start of a statement, on the tip of her tongue, was lost until it had worked its way out of reach, floated down beyond even a cat's reach.

Then she looked back to Grus, and her mind came back into focus enough to grasp for words, eyes narrowing as if the girl had done that on purpose to distract her. "What care did you take in picking a battle with me then?"

"I didn't jump at you -- " It came with a disdainful sniff, but her tone sounded uncertain, Laoise's eyes entranced by the dancing feather. She tried, oh she tried to keep her proud demeanor in place, but the second that feather drifted down within reach, she leapt. It was graceful, at least, long body stretched out to its full length, paws extended to pluck the feather from the air as if it were nothing and slap it to the earth within her grasp.

After that, though, it went less proud, Lee flopping onto her side to kick frantically at the feather with her hind legs while she held it down: making sure that the thing was well and thoroughly dead. If it had been a bird, the creature would certainly have never flown again.

Somehow, despite the fury of her attacks, when Laoise finally stopped kicking, the feather wasn't damaged. Or not terribly damaged, at least; a little bent near one end, but still acceptable, still attractive. Sniffing, not amused by the laughter or the amusement in Grus's tone, Lee pushed the feather toward the girl, carefully, and settled down where she was sprawled.

Her pupils were still huge, from the fight. Still ready to hunt down more prey. She blinked a few times to focus.

"I am Laoise. Take this and put it in my necklace." It would look good, red among the green feathers -- at least, until Grus powered down and it faded away. That was fine. Lee would take it for as long as she could.

"I know who you are." It came with a sniff, Lee twisting her head to check the feather and then settling back on her haunches, eyes taking in Grus. This one wasn't that bad, she decided; not fresh faced, and when the girl bowed, the cat's expression relaxed. Finally, someone treating her with suitable respect. That was nice.

"I hunt, sometimes, yes." She sounded calm now, though, easy going, almost even friendly. This was a rarity, for Laoise. Her tail wound around her legs. "Not pidgeons, pidgeons hardly count. But the brighter birds can be a challenge."