Backyard intruder

I've suspected for a while that animals have been visiting the backyard. There was that one night where Charlie got growly at the back door, and I found flattened grass between a trellis and the fence the next morning. The water in my fairy garden pond keeps disappearing, even after a good rainfall. My pepper plants look nibbled on. There are no peppers.

Tonight I was in the backyard playing with the Google Star Maps app on my phone. I felt something soft brush against my left ankle, like a breeze. I continued with the app a little bit, then looked towards the house.

Outlined against the light of the kitchen, I saw a cat sitting on my steps, up against the patio door. Looked like a young Hermione with grey fluffy fur from behind. Inside the kitchen, I could see Hermione slowly approaching the door, crouched to the floor.

I called out to Mom, who came to the door and clapped her hands, scaring away the cat. The intruder ran away, squeezing between the gap between a fence post and the neighbour's fence. She thought the cat was pretty, and well-cared for, her fur looked clean and fluffy.

Charlie yowled and patrolled the patio door until we closed it. We told all of the cats how brave they were, defending the house. :-)