"Let me start by thanking you for saving me today. Without your intervention I truly believe I would be dead. Most people I tried to approach either ignored me or shooed me away. One woman even tried to kick me with her silly pointed shoes." Drake recounted with a sigh before lapping at his coffee. Mara had to stifle a laugh at the absurd scene before her.

"I'm sure you have questions," Drake continued. "But I'm not sure where to start.

"Perhaps you could explain the whole talking cat thing, as I am considering the possibility that I have a brain tumour and I would like another explanation."

"Oh yes, well you see I am not actually from this world." Drake said plainly as if it were as common as meeting someone from another city. But judging by the expression on Mara's face he guessed that might not be the case. "Ah, umm, there are in fact many, perhaps even infinite, worlds out there and I am from one of them." He further explained. Mara took a moment to drain the last of her coffee before setting the empty cup down. As she swallowed she considered for a moment that her excessive consumption of coffee had probably given her a stroke and this was all just a coma dream.

Well if that is the case I may as well play it out. At least it will ease my boredom. Mara thought with a tilt of her head.

"Okay then, so how and why did you come here?"

"The 'how' is easy," Drake stated proudly and his whiskers twitched with excitement. "I am a Transistor." He said as he puffed out his chest. "I know what you're thinking. That can't be true, Transistors are made up, a story told to children, but although we are few in number, we do indeed exist."

Mara stared at him blankly for a moment, thinking that more explanation would follow.

"Ummm, I don't know what you are talking about. Isn't a transistor a part in computers? So are you like some cat cyborg?"

"What's a computer?" Drake asked with a tilt of his head. Mara momentarily thought of all the cat videos she could put on YouTube. "Never mind," Drake dismissed his question with a shake of his head. "Perhaps I should start over. I am a Transistor, which is to say, a person who is able to create doors and travel between worlds." Mara's eyes widened in awe.

"That is so cool!" she exclaimed as she leapt from her chair. "So are you here on some secret mission to save the world of cats from certain disaster? Or are you looking for your lost cat princess, or, or maybe you're searching for your long lost father who disappeared under mysterious circumstances when you were a kitten?" Mara rambled excitedly, her eyes growing wider with every word. Drake's eyes in turn flickered nervously as he avoided eye contact.

"It's nothing so fantastical. The truth is that I was running away." His voice was little more than a whisper and his gaze was fixed firmly on the floor. An awkward moment hung in the air and as Mara didn't know the words to break the silence she instead refilled their coffee. After a fortifying mouthful Drake continued his story.

"About a week ago I went to visit a friend of mine; I suppose he was my only friend really. When I got there, the door-" Drake's voice caught in his throat but he attempted to hide his emotional distress by taking another sip of coffee. "Umm, the door was open when I got there. I called out but there was no response.

"When I found his body I went in to a state of shock. I'm not sure how much time passed. The next thing I knew I was being dragged away and put under arrest and charged for his murder. Initially I was not concerned. I figured they would realise their mistake and I was preoccupied with who had killed my friend and why. When they started presenting evidence and witnesses that could not exist, I became a bit worried. But still I believed my innocence would be proven. After all I was innocent. Though while enduring one of the many interrogations I suspected something was seriously wrong when they handed me a confession; that had been signed for me.