The cat at 52 was a watcher. Whether it be from his place on the windowsill, the roof of a car or his spot on the fence, he was always watching. He liked to watch the birds that dug for worms on the grass next door, and the excitable dogs that took their people for walks towards the park. His favourite thing to watch though, was the small, smiling child that passed twice a day. Every morning she would walk by and, if he were in touching distance, pet him gently on the head as she greeted him good morning. Then, as the sun began to set, she would return once more in the opposite direction and greet him goodnight as she went. Occasionally she'd place small bits of food on the fence for him, which he gladly accepted.

He did find it odd that she was always alone. From what he knew of humans, their young were always accompanied by their parents until old enough to venture out alone. There was no doubt in his mind that she was young; far too young to be roaming the streets alone. So he watched and greeted her back each day in his own little way; a flick of his tail or a rumbling purr. Until, one evening, he didn't.

As she passed by while the sun set, she didn't smile nor did she greet him at all. She walked by and ignored him completely, eyes staring downward and she wasn't alone. Another human walked beside her, tall and imposing, with the same coloured fur atop his head as the child. 'The parent?' He thought? 'How odd'. He'd assumed she didn't have any family, as what parent would let their offspring venture out alone while still so vulnerable to the world, but the resemblance was clear. He didn't feel like a parent, though, he felt wrong and he could feel something akin to fear from the girl. And so the watcher decided to follow.

He followed behind them for many streets, further than he'd been before and at one point though perhaps it would be better to turn back lest he not find his way home again. The look of dejection on the child however, pushed him to continue until they came to a house; Small and in obvious disrepair with broken pieces of wood and metal littering the grass in front of the door. He watched as they entered, shutting the door behind them, and began to scout the area. There was no sound from inside, and he could see from a window as the child sat at a table and began to do whatever it is humans do with small sticks. There she sat for a long while, before heading off to another part of the house. It took some time but the cat found a way in; a hole in a door just big enough to fit through. He found her asleep in a tiny room, in her arms a tattered thing resembling a cat, not unlike himself. Finding a spot in the corner of the room, he waited. He watched.

The moon was high when floorboards creaked and the door opened. A monstrous creature slunk into the room, clinging to the walls like a shadow and stopped before the bed. The watcher crouched, poised to attack, and waited. The monster stood for a time, hunched over the sleeping child, mostly still but occasionaly swaying, its breath heavy and ragged. Slowely the cat moved forward unseen, hoping to put himself between them, when the monster made its move. Grabbing the child, it pulled her from the bed. As she cried our in fear, the watcher leapt. Claws met flesh and the monster yowled in pain, staggering as it tried to bat it's assailant away. As it flailed, it tripped. It crashed to the floor with a sickening thud and moved no more. The child cried, and the watcher watched. Waiting for the thing to attack again. When no sign of life came from the body, the watcher approached slowely and saw that instead of a creature, there lay a human. The adult male, but a monster all the same.

He stayed with the child all through the night, and the days that followed, his soft fur giving her comfort. Others soon came and took her away from that place. But he swore that wherever she went, he would follow. And he would watch.