Magnet CAT

Why was Lizzie so drawn to the gorgeous little tabby?

- Maisie Bishop

She was a tiny tabby cat with a wise, knowing face. Her green eyes were ringed with black, as if with perfectly applied kohl. Some of her fellow travellers ignored her, while others stole surreptitious glances in her direction. Lizzie, however, made direct eye contact with the little cat, who stared back, as if daring her to speak or act.

The young man with the cat sling across his body gazed out of the window as the train came to a halt in the seaside town.

Lizzie got off the train after him, then, once outside the station, she found herself going in the same direction as him.

He turned left down a street that led to a part of town filled with vintage markets, cafes, health food stores and quirky shops.

Lizzie was meeting her friend Emmy there later, so she wasn't really following the cat, was she? And she certainly wasn't following the young man. He seemed like a bit-part player compared with his feline companion.

It was a Saturday, and the narrow streets were filled with mooching tourists and hip locals, mingling in an edgy sort of harmony.