I slid through the rocks, praying that the gulls weren't there yet.

Just my luck, they were.

The Nofur was just starting to skin the fish. Every time he threw a scrap off the side, cries from the gulls rose up as they fought for the precious food.

Well, it was precious for us.

Not so much for them.

I noticed a hunched long-furred gray she-cat staring hungrily at the prey. Duchess. She had a small chunk of stale bread at her paws, but I knew she wouldn't eat it. Her teeth were long gone. All she could eat would be a few trash scraps and fish.

I also noticed Yogi, a black and white short tailed tom. He was slower than most, because of his loss of tail, but he was burly, and had a better chance of shouldering some gulls aside.

Trixie was no were in sight. No surprise there. She was too small, too skittish. She mostly stuck to trash scraps.

Of course then there was Edger. The plump but well muscled tom was sitting in his usual spot, protected from the gulls but a good place to get a juicy hunk of fish. The only bad thing about him was that he was meaner than a fox. He bullied Duchess and Yogi, and sometimes beat up on Trixie. But he never did anything to me. He had a soft spot for me, and we all knew it. So I often tried to get him to give me a bite of fish flesh.

"Hi Edger," I purred in a silky tone, winding my way through the rocks to him. "My, that looks tasty. May I have a bite?" He purred. "All right. But just one, love." I fought back a gag, but then reached down and tore a mouthful of flesh from the skin. I swallowed it without chewing. It would last longer that way. I licked my lips, savoring the last bit of taste. "Where are your manners?" He smiled. "You must thank me." "Thank you very much Edger," I purred. A pink strip landed at his feet, and he crouched down to eat. I slipped away from him and made my way to the edge of the clearing. Some gulls had left a red strip of skin in the water, not wanting it after it was so salty. I decided to share it with Duchess, knowing that she wouldn't be able to get anything else. I slowly crept into the water, snatched the skin, and crept to her. "Duchess," I said, dropping the skin at her paws. "Would you trade me this for the bread?" She was far to proud to accept it if I didn't offer to trade it for something. She nodded warily, then in an embarrassed tone, said "Will you rip it into smaller chunks?" I obliged happily, then savagely ate the bread. It was hard and dry, but filled me up. I sighed, thinking of the good old days when me and my brother Acorn had curled up to our mother's belly, drinking the nutrient rich, fishy milk whenever we were hungry. Acorn and mother had moved on to become pets, but I had stayed out of stubbornness and pride. Sometimes, I wished I had gone. "You're an angel Spark," Duchess purred. I smiled and sat in the shade of a rock, praying that some fish would make it's way towards me. None did.

Soon the Nofur had finished skinning the fish and left. So I left too. I went to my den in an old collapsed pipe, which was covered in bushes and half buried. I lapped up some old rainwater from the back of the pipe, then laid down. I really hated asking Edger for fish. I knew what he wanted from me, and it was something I did not want. He didn't just want to be my mate. That day, I vowed that I would never again ask him for food.