The amazing art was made by RosestarofRoseClan11! Please go show her some love! Her art is so amazing and I absolutely love it!

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    The sun peaked above the forest top, casting warm rays of sunlight onto the meadow. It was a summer morning and a gentle breeze blowing. The golden grass bowed with the breeze, making rustingly sounds as the stems rubbed against each other. Small animals were already ambling about, searching for food before it got too hot. It was peaceful. Until a loud sneeze startled a nearby flock of magpies, sending them leaping into the air.

    “Dang it!” A dark brown and white face poked past the golden grass, honey eyes glaring after the birds. Pushing past the fronds, he sat down with his tail lashing. “I’ll get you soon,” he muttered under his breath, watching them as they flew farther away.

    "Ah, yes, soon," a tom's voice purred in his head. "But only as soon as you stop sneezing, Willow." Already, he felt the familiar feeling of raw annoyance. Swallowing down his feelings, he shook himself out.

    "Don't worry, Stone, I will get something soon," Willow spoke aloud, flicking his tail in a matter-of-fact way. He gazed around him, but there was no other cat in sight. The voice laughed, a soft and raspy sound that reminded Willow of bark scraping on rocks. A few moments later and it was silent again. He took this chance to continue on through the grass, his tail swaying slowly. Jaws opening, he allowed the scents of the meadow to bathe his tongue.

    The calico paused, spotting tiny prints on the ground, and sniffed around the prints. Only when the faint smells of mouse filled his nostrils did he stalk forward again. Silently he moved, carefully trying not to disturb the grass around him. The warm scent of rabbit overtook his nostrils and tongue. Ears pricked and body flattening, he followed the scent trail; excitement buzzing through his body. He shoved his muzzle past more golden grass and there it sat. 

    A few tail-lengths away, he spotted the brown and white pelt of his prey. The rabbit was nibbling on fresh green grass, ignorant to its new threat. 'Perfect,' Willow thought, slowly dragging himself forward. 

    "It's not perfect!" A she-cat's voice jarred through his thoughts. "It's too small, you'll barely fill yourself with it." She paused before continuing. "You need to go look for something else, like the magpies!" Willow grunted quietly, his tail lashing in frustration. 

    The grass stirred behind him and the rabbit bolted upright. Its brown eye spotted him and its muscles bunched.

    'No!' Willow snarled in his head. He launched upwards, his leap sending him soaring just as the rabbit started running. In his mind, the she-cat was still screeching at him.

    "Willow stop!" She howled, clearly angry. The tom landed on top of his prey, belly first, causing him to scramble to grab a hold of it. It squealed and kicked out, but its defensiveness didn't last long as Willow's teeth sank into its throat. It twitched beneath him for a few moments before finally becoming still. He kept his hold on it for another few heartbeats, then released it.

    The calico sat there, staring at the rabbit, his tail flicking annoyedly. 

    "Robin, what in the world was that?" He snapped. His eyes closed and the image of a long-legged she-cat sat in front of him. Further off to the right, hunched over, was a gray tabby tom, whose stripes were a darker gray. Willow's eyes narrowed at the she-cat, who gazed at him nonchalantly. 

    "I was only trying to help," she responded in her blunt, pompous attitude. "I am right, aren't I, Stone? This rabbit isn't gonna keep you full for very long. You were just wasting your energy," she pressed. The gray tabby looked up at her, his blue eyes unreadable. Willow shook his head before stepping towards Robin. 

    "I appreciate you trying to help, but this rabbit is gonna give me more energy than one magpie could. You do this all of the time! You really need to stop because you keep distracting me!" He was practically begging her at this point. The russet and white she-cat snorted, hunching in on herself. 

    "Then what am I supposed to do?" She sniffed annoyedly. Willow took a breath, hope flaring in his heart.

    'Maybe she'll actually listen!' He thought happily. "I only need you to help me when I ask for it, not when you think I need it, okay?" He told her, his tail flicking eagerly. Robin narrowed her green eyes at him, then snorted.

    "Fine," she muttered, settling onto her belly. "I'll try to do that." Her voice was full of annoyance. Heart deflating at Robin's answer, Willow let his ears droop. He twisted his head to look at Stone, who only stared back emotionlessly. After a moment, Willow finally opened his eyes and he glanced down at the rabbit.

    'Better eat while I can,' he thought, glancing warily at the rising sun. Soon it'd be too hot to keep hunting. He settled down and tucked into his meal. When Willow had finished, he pushed himself upright and began to pad along a trail. There were plenty of cat scents all over the path, both old and new. His ears pricked as he heard the nearby bubbling of the creek. 

    The fresh scents of several cats reached his nostrils accompanied by the sounds of squeals coming from the creek. 'It sounds like Anemone and Allium!' The tom thought excitedly. 'That means Pebble should be with them!' He hurried down the trail until it opened out onto a creek bank. The golden grass seemed to create an equal line on either side, several tail-lengths away from the bank.

    "Why do you want to see them so badly?" Robin whined as Willow flicked his eyes up and down the bank.

    "Because Pebble is my friend, and I like playing with the kits!" He responded rather hotly. "Now, hush!" The calico finally picked a direction and trotted downstream. After several tail-lengths, he rounded a bend in the creek. There, Willow spotted the trio. As he had suspected, the two kits were wrestling on the bank while Pebble hung close to the creek. 

    The mother cat's orange eyes were focused on the water, the flicking of her ears the only sign she was listening to her kittens. "Pebble, Anemone, Allium!" He called, raising his tail in greeting. The kittens paused; Allium trapped beneath Anemone; and looked up. Their mother was too focused on the water to even spare him a glance.

    "Willow!" Anemone yowled excitedly, scrabbling off her brother. The two kits barreled towards the tom, tripping over each other in their haste. 

    "Hey guys!" Willow purred, leaning down to nuzzle them as they crashed into his legs. The kittens squealed as their tails flicked back and forth. "How have you been?" He finally asked as he stood upright, peering down at the tiny cats.

    "We're doing good!" Anemone squeaked. "Mama is thinking about letting us meet our dad!" She turned in a tight circle, tail flicking in Willow's face. Allium nodded rapidly, his eyes bright.

    "Yeah, she said that he might even get to stay at the den with us!" He added, shouldering his sister out of the way. Willow purred, partially in amusement, partially in happiness.

    "That's fantastic! Are you two excited?" He asked, eyeing them playfully.

    "Yeah!" They yowled in almost perfect unison.

    "Why wouldn't we be?" Allium asked, almost tauntingly. Willow laughed, flicking the younger tom's ear.

    "I was just making sure," he reassured the kit. Willow leaned down to nuzzle their heads, earning purrs from the two kittens. 

    "Do you know our dad?" Anemone asked after a short pause of silence. Willow tilted his head. He had a few ideas, but he didn't know for sure. After a moment, the calico shook his head.

    "No, I don't. I'm not sure if any cat knows…" He admitted, but then his whiskers twitched in amusement. "Well, except for your parents, obviously," he teased. The brother and sister let out giggles, pawing at his tail. Suddenly, Pebble struck her paw out. 

    Willow turned towards her to see the she-cat hooking a small fish out of the creek and onto the bank.

    "Ah-ha! Gotcha! Anemone, Allium, come try this!" she called to the kits, flicking her tail at them. The two littermates scrambled over to her as Willow slowly followed.

    "Ooh, you should ask Pebble to teach you how to hunt fish!" Robin chattered excitedly. "You wouldn't need to waste any of your energy on catching birds or rabbits, especially since you'd just be sitting in place most of the time." Willow's eyes flashed annoyedly, causing Pebble to look at him weirdly.

    "Robin, please, I thought we talked about this?" He whined back at her. It wasn't even noon yet and the she-cat was already getting under his skin. "Seriously, I can do things myself. I don't need you telling me what I should and shouldn't do…"

    "Fine…" Her voice, though full of annoyance, faded into a perfect silence.

    "Willow!" Pebble's face was suddenly a muzzle away from his. He jumped back, startled.

    "Wh-what?" He yelped, eyes wide in surprise.

    "I was trying to ask you something," she snorted, tail flicking. "Are you okay? You completely zoned out there." Willow quickly nodded, his heart beginning to slow down again.

    "Y-yeah. I'm sorry. I was just thinking about something, that's all," he told her. She tilted her head, more out of worry than curiosity.

    "Are you sure? You looked really upset," Pebble pressed.

    "Yeah, I'm sure. I promise, I'm okay!" He gave her a gentle head bump, which seemed to relieve her. 

    "Okay, if you say so," she mumbled warily. "Anyways, how are things going? I haven't seen you in a while," she noted, sitting back on her haunches. Willow settled down beside her, curling his tail over his paws.

    "Things are going, I suppose. I've been a bit busy, is all," he told her. However, it was a lie, and he knew it. Two weeks ago, there was an incident between Robin and Dust, another meadow dwelling cat. Afterwards, Willow had stuck close to his den in the hopes of talking to Robin about it. That had never happened, and even now he wondered why he never did.

    "What have you been busy with?" Allium suddenly asked, licking his chops as he sat up. 

    'Uh oh,' Willow thought. Little white lies were one thing. It was another to start a web of them. Pebble seemed to catch onto his hesitation because she gently brushed past him and wrapped her tail around her kit. 

    "It doesn't matter," she started to chide him. "It's one thing to be helpful, another if you're just being nosy." Allium huffed, but wiggled away from his mother and scampered towards the water. Anemone sat up and bounded after her brother. For a moment, Willow watched them as they pretended to be their mother catching the fish. It reminded him, painfully, of his own kithood.

    "I better get going," he meowed loudly, catching the kittens' attention. "I still need to do some more hunting. After that, I need to go get fresh bedding for my den." He explained to Pebble, who had looked like she was about to protest. Her eyes softened and she nodded, pressing her muzzle to his.

    "Alright, be safe. And don't forget you can visit us!" She reminded him. He purred, nodding.

    "I will, and I'll definitely stop by more often," he promised. As he stepped back, he noticed Anemone and Allium were already waiting patiently for their goodbyes. He nuzzled each one in turn as he spoke, "You two need to behave for your mother. She does a lot to take care of you." They nodded, watching him with owl-like eyes. With a final wave of his tail, Willow padded back around the bend, leaving the she-cat with her kits.

    Since the two weeks that he'd been isolated, he felt as light as a feather. His heart practically soared in his chest as he trotted along the bank. He never realized how much he enjoyed being around his friends. Or how much he missed them. 'I should visit more often,' he thought. 'I'm going to, even if I have to keep Stone and Robin in check.'

~*~

    The afternoon sun beat down on the meadow. The heat seemed to soak up all of the moisture from the air and plants, making the grass brittle. Willow poked his head out from a trail, the long, golden stems tickling his ears. Barely a tree-length away from him were the train tracks. Just over the tracks was a line of rather large houses. And beyond those houses, he could hear the blaring of car horns and see the tall skyscrapers in the distance. 

    The city was large and always bustling with humans, cats, dogs, and cars. While it was a dangerous place, he knew the safest spots to go. Specifically the outskirts. The outskirts were the houses just behind the train tracks. Each one had equally large front and backyards. The cars didn't go nearly as fast, and people were more likely to stop for a cat crossing the road. 

    And that's where some of Willow's house cat friends lived. At first, he never understood why they stayed with the humans, but as they became better friends, he realized it didn't matter. They were safe, happy, and taken care of. 

    That's what mattered to him. 

    He finally stepped off the trail when he heard no sound of a train. He trotted across the rocks, his eyes flashing around warily. While the outskirt houses were generally safe, that didn't mean the tracks were. He could recall several times dogs would chase him, or other cats. He clambered up the tracks and hurried across to the other side. Once across the railroad, he bolted for the houses. 

    It didn't take very long for him to get to the row of fences that guarded the backyards. Panting, he scrambled up the fence and looked down below. There were rose bushes lined along the back fence, all with varying colors. 'This should be Lola's house,' he thought with a flick of his tail. Carefully, he walked along the fence top until he was able to jump down into the yard. The green grass was soft beneath his paws. 

    'How do they keep it so green?' He wondered as he trotted across the yard. It was strange for him to see so much short, green grass when he was constantly surrounded by the tall, golden grass of the meadow. He looked back up to peer at the building. The house was large and looked to be made of some kind of dark brown wood. As Willow climbed the steps, he paused at the top to look around him.

    The porch was made of the same dark wood, while a table sat off to the far right, surrounded by chairs. There were blue, green, red, and pink lights strung all around the inside of the roof. Ears twitching, he silently padded to the back door. It was see-through; Lola had told him it was made of something called glass; allowing him to peer inside. The dining room had black and white tiles, with several rows of cabinets, counters, and a large island in the center. The countertops were a light gray marble. 

    A small, light brown table sat off to the left side with four chairs around it. No lights were on, but he could see a cat pacing back and forth just beyond the island. Willow let out a loud meow, making the cat stop. Moments later, the russet she-cat trotted into view. She looked surprised to see Willow, her eyes wide, then she quickly looked behind her. Flicking her tail at him, presumably telling him to stay put, she disappeared back behind the island. 

    With a huff, he sat back on his haunches. 

    "Not going as planned?" Robin suddenly chimed in. Willow hunched in on himself at her words. 

    "You never know," he muttered through gritted teeth. "She always does this when I come by." He could hear Robin snorting, and was about to respond when Lola came bounding up the steps behind him. He turned, ears pricked happily. "Lola!" He chirped as he trotted towards her.

    "Willow, it's so good to see you!" She purred. The two friends pressed their muzzles against each other before taking a step back. Willow could feel the excitement running through his body, causing his heart to race. However, Lola already looked done with the conversation. Before he could speak, she asked, "What are you doing here?" Willow took another step back, ears drooping, and sat down, curling his tail over his paws. 

    "I realized I haven't been by in a while," he started. "So I figured I should stop in and say hello." Lola sat down as well, listening and nodding, but kept glancing around, as if someone was watching them. "I just.. miss you guys," he admitted after a silence-filled pause. When Willow finished speaking, Lola looked over her shoulder worriedly and turned back to him.

    "Well, it was nice to finally see you," she murmured, "but I really think you should go now." Her voice was shaky, hesitant, and she kept looking around. He tilted his head, confused and worried himself. Of all the house cats, Lola was the one that he often hung out with. Why was she suddenly so.. nervous? 

    "Are you okay?" He asked gently, placing his tail-tip on her shoulder. She nearly jumped, her eyes still flicking back and forth. 

    "Y-yeah. It's just my owners." She shakily explained, "They're going to be home soon a-and they can't know how I get out of the house." Her claws were peaking through, and the longer they sat there, the more agitated she grew. Lola's fur was bristling and she kept jumping at every noise or shadow.

    'What's going on here?' He asked himself, feeling helpless. 'There's clearly something wrong… Why won't she tell me?' He could only stare at her, uncertainty filling his belly. 'Does she not trust me?' 

    He thought painfully. A few moments passed when Willow started to feel lightheaded, his body hunching in. For a split second, he could see everything, and then everything was far away. Pitch black surrounded the tom, with a small light in front of him. "No! Robin, stop it!" Willow yowled, but it did no good. 

    Robin was in control of their body now. She stood up and shoved her muzzle into Lola's face, startling the she-cat.

    "Why do you want me to leave?" Robin's high-pitched voice confused Lola, who took a step back. "You're acting very strange," Robin continued. "What's going on with you?" The house cat, still startled, took a few more steps back to put some distance between them. However, Robin followed her, glaring at Lola accusingly. 

    "U-uh, what? You're the one acting strange, Willow," Lola tried to deflect, her fur bristling upwards. Her hazel eyes were full of shock as Robin stepped closer, their muzzles almost touching.

    "No, I'm not!" She hissed. "You are the one acting like we're being watched. Is there something you're not telling me? What's wrong with you!" Robin lashed her tail and her ears flattened. Willow was frozen, his face contorted into anger and shame. 

    How could he be letting this happen? Lola's ears flattened, her eyes growing hard.

    "Nothing is wrong!" She finally snapped. "I'm going inside, and I want you to leave me alone!" Lola spun around and raced away. Leaving Robin and Willow to stare after her.

    "No! Robin, what did you do!" Willow screeched as all his feelings flooded his body, jarring Robin backwards. Now the tom was in control again, his body listening to his own commands. But all he could do was stare at the spot he had last seen Lola.

~●《☆》●~

Author's Note

What are your thoughts on Robin? Or Stone?

What do you think was going on with Lola?

What do you think of Willow?

For a word count, I got 3,316 words.

If you liked this chapter, please vote & comment! It tells me that you like the story and want me to keep writing!

1st Revision: December 7th, 2020

~Paige