"Right," Cadr agreed. They had plenty of time to get the human girls to like them. And for the moment, there were more important things at hand.

Saif paused when he saw the tracks, sort of circling around town before going into a thicket of trees opposite of where they both lived.

"Looks like it came through here. Now to see if it's still here."

"Let's go look, then," Cadr said. These were the same tracks he had seen from the air, so he knew they were on the right trail.

Saif started forward cautiously, keeping track of where they were. Just in case. Because he wasn't sure how well this was going to go, after all.

Cadr was just as cautious, and kept an eye out behind them when he could. He didn't trust a feline not to try to ambush them from behind, just because it could.

As it turned out, they didn't have far to look to find the feline. He was lounging in a spot he liked, sprawled out lazily. He raised an eyebrow at the other two without a word.

Cadr looked evenly at the feline. He seemed to have already made himself comfortable, which made Cadr wonder exactly how long he'd been in the area.

"Just passing through?" he asked carefully, looking at the cat.

The feline shrugged. "Perhaps. I have not yet decided." He looked at the two evenly. "I like this area. It is nice."

"It is nice," Cadr agreed mildly, in just such a way that it somehow conveyed 'it's also ours' at the same time. "What brings you out this way?"

"I decided it was time to move. So I'm currently looking." The feline raised a lazy brow at the two, clearly indicating he wasn't worried about them. "This is a better spot than many I've seen so far."

"We make sure the area is kept up," Cadr replied. "We look after it and the town."

"And the town?" The feline blinked. "Huh. I thought normally humans take care of themselves?" Because in the last place he'd been, the humans didn't want anything from him, and he'd been quite content to leave them alone.

"They can, for the most part," Cadr replied, shrugging a bit. "Sometimes they need a bit of a nudge. No big deal, really. But regardless, we take care of this area."

"I see. Well, if it's just the two of you, there should be plenty of room here." The feline smirked.

That made Saif stiffen a little. He didn't really want to deal with another shifter in the area, certainly not now.

"See, that's the thing," Cadr said. "This is our territory, and we like it that way. We don't need anyone else moving in on it."

"Really? And you're going to kick me out?" The feline raised his eyebrows at them. "I rather doubt that."

"And what says we won't?" Cadr asked. He glanced at Saif to see if he had anything to add.

"Two against one isn't very good odds for you," Saif pointed out.

The feline shrugged. "Not even willing to give me a chance? For all you know I could turn out to be good for this area."

"This area is already doing very well. We don't need anyone else messing with things here."

"It would be best if you simply moved on to another area," Cadr said. "There are plenty of other places that are unclaimed."

"Perhaps." The feline got to his feet suddenly, looking at them both. "I have to wonder why you're so protective of this area. I have never met another of our kind who is so... territorial."

"Does it matter?" Cadr asked. "Anyone would be protective of their home territory."

The feline shrugged with a fluid grace. "Hmm. I suppose. I will think about what area I would enjoy most." Not saying he'd leave, but not saying he'd stay right there either.

For the moment, that was going to have to be good enough, and Cadr wasn't satisfied with it. He would make sure to keep Sabine close to the nest for a while.

Saif didn't feel the need to continue threatening the feline at the moment, so he nodded and backed off. As soon as they were far enough away, though, he glanced at Cadr.

"I want him gone."

"I do, too," Cadr replied. "I don't like him, and I don't want him anywhere near Sabine."