"Quiet!" Nightshade hissed as Flame accidentally bumped into a tall silver tree trunk that smelled like carrion. He cast her a dirty look but moved away from the shiny thing.

Shadow narrowed her eyes in focus as they approached the unsuspecting, innocent, kitty-pet. The fat, snow-white tom was sprawled out in the sun, his long fur wafting gently in the breeze. He lazily began grooming one of his paws, his amber eyes half-closed.

Ivy prodded her apprentice forward, then retracted back into the shelter of a big bush. Shadow took a deep breath and padded forward, forcing a confused look onto her face. She had rubbed against a two-leg den earlier, weaving their putrid scent into her tangled fur.

The white tom’s nose twitched as he smelled her coming. He gave her a friendly blink and hauled himself to his feet.
“‘Ello youngster, watcha doin? I’da reckon’ you’re lost!”
Shadow was surprised at his strange accent but decided to ignore it.
“I-I was w-wondering if you’d t-tell me where the-the small forest is?” She stammered dumbly, referring to the small forest of trees and grass in the middle of the two-leg place.

“‘Acourse! S’not far, don’tcha worry your precious soul darlin’, it ain't far, just ‘round the bend and then-” At that moment Flame and Frost pounced on top of him, pinning him into the ground. Ivy and Quartz followed quickly after, knocking the tom unconscious.

Nightshade padded up to them, giving them approving looks. Typical Sky move, Shadow thought, Letting other cats do the dirty work.

Quartz and Frost dragged the unconscious kittypet to their temporary camp where they would stuff him into a prison they had built that morning from thorns and branches. Frost stayed behind to guard him, being an assassin, she could easily stop him from escaping or fend off any of his kittypet friends stupid enough to try and free him.

"Well done," Ivy growled in a low voice, appearing suddenly behind Shadow. The apprentice nodded, flustered at her mentor's sudden appearance.

"Alright everybody, gather around!" Nightshade called out, gesturing for the remaining cats to come closer. Shadow tried not to let her fur stand up as Quartz stood uncomfortably close, breathing hot, foul air onto her.

"The next action plan is simple, I saw a whole nest of kitty-pets earlier, we'll pretend we're just some lost hungry cats and hopefully they'll take us in. When they're all asleep, we'll attack. There's four of them and six of us, that should be an easy fight, especially since they have little to no fighting experience." Nightshade explained briefly, looking around to make sure everyone understood.

Shadow nodded but shuddered at the thought of having to share a den with those disgusting kittypets.

They started walking, the setting sun turning their fur shades of orange and yellow. Shadow was glad when the sun finally disappeared behind the huge two-leg dens, the sun had turned the rough, dark gray surface under their paws scorching hot.

The sky had gone almost completely dark when Nightshade stiffened, her ears twitched and her nostrils flared. Ivy too had stooped in her tracks, a low, warning growl rumbling deep in her chest.

“Dog!” She finally yowled as the scratching of large, blunt claws on the hard gray surface also became audible to the rest of their patrol. Everyone scattered into different directions, leaving a very bewildered and alarmed Shadow behind.

A medium-sized white dog came tearing around the corner, barking ferociously, slobber flying from her bared, glinting fangs. The terrified apprentice shot from her spot, fur on end, eyes wide.

She bolted away from the dog, frantically looking for an escape. A thorny bush caught her eyes, just a tree-length away. Shadow dove under the bush, ignoring the sharp thorns dragging at her pelt. Small pricks of blood started welling up on her muzzle, she blinked them away, panicking as the dog started pawing at the bush.

Shadow backed up as far as she could, until a wooden wall blocked her. The dog was getting excited, growling and snuffling as it got closer to its prey. But before the snarling dog could reach the terrified apprentice, a blur shot in front of the dog, Ivy was speeding in the opposite direction now, distracting the dog and leading it away from Shadow.

Quartz's large head appeared in a gap between the branches, "Don't just stand there you stupid apprentice, move!"

Shadow snapped out of her shock and wriggled her way out from under the bush, leaving more clumps of her fur on the sharp thorns. She ran after Quartz, who was already bolting for where Nightshade and Flame stood on top of one of the many wooden walls.

Quartz leaped up, his strong shoulders easily hanging onto the edge of the wall, and pulled himself up. Shadow took a deep breath and propelled herself into the air and onto the wooden wall. She sunk her claws into the wood and tried pulling herself up with the same ease as Quartz had.

She struggled as her claws began to slip but thankfully, Nightshade dipped her head down and hauled her onto the wall roughly. A few heartbeats later, Ivy came padding around the corner and joined them.

“I lost it easily enough, stupid thing.” She meowed, still slightly out of breath. Nightshade agreed, then led them down to the ground. After making sure they were traveling in the right direction, they continued walking at a steady pace.

When Nightshade finally halted them, Shadow was so tired she thought her paws might fall off. “Alright, remember, we’re just some dumb, cute, innocent kittypets that went exploring and got lost.”

Shadow was honestly sick and tired of Nightshade’s orders and was desperate for a warm den and some food. She padded after the others, head bent low and tail dragging on the floor. Nightshade led them to an old-looking den, it was so dark right now that Shadow could barely make out the features.

“Hello?” A husky voice called out. A tom stepped out of the den, his dark amber eyes looking right past all the others and boring straight into Shadows. Starlight reflected off of his eyes as Shadow’s heartbeat pounded in her chest.

Finally another chapter!! Sorry it's so short but I promise the next one will be longer! I have so many ideas for new characters so keep an eye out for those (:
Some ✨ questions✨
1. What do you think of the cats on the  patrol so far?
2. What would you like to happen in the next chapter? (It can be as crazy as you like!)
3. Forbidden romance, yay or nay?

Love you all so, so much and don't forget to vote and comment <3