TW: The following short story contains guns and murder.

As the wind blew in the warm summer sun, a cat let out a soft purr "Enjoying the breeze, aye Whiskers?" A fisherman asked, rubbing his cat's head.

Whiskers let out a little chirp, purring at the man. The fisherman smiled down at Whiskers before returning to the tangled nets. Inside the nets were fish, but only about 10. The fish seem to keep disappearing. The fisherman thought.

He let out a sigh, beginning to quickly untangle the fish. Whiskers leaped down and joined the fisherman "Not much fish today, unfortunately," he reported to Whiskers. He stared down at Whiskers "But don't worry, we'll catch more soon."

He pats Whiskers on the head for a bit before returning to the fish. By the time he finished, the sun was already high up in the sky. Whiskers helped bring the fish inside the little shed they lived in on the boat.

The cat's tail was high in the air and the fisherman smiled at his companion. They set the fish down in a bucket, the fisherman praising Whiskers for his work "Good work, Whiskers! You're such a great help around here."

After finishing up around the boat, the fisherman sat down in his rocking chair, Whiskers leaping into the fisherman's lap. As the sun slowly began to set a little bit more, they headed back to work.

They cleaned up around the ship a bit more before turning in for the night. The fisherman hung his hat on his hanger, letting out a yawn "Welp, guess I better make us something to eat." he said, stretching himself.

The fisherman cooked up one of his favorite meals. Whiskers let out a yawn, padding over to his bed to groom himself. As the fisherman worked, he heard a loud thud. The boat rocked beneath his feet, and nearly spilled his food.

"What the hell?" he exclaimed. He raced to the nearest window and spotted two men boarding his boat. He quickly ran to his room and grabbed his shotgun "No stupid thieves are gettin' on my boat."

He quietly opened the door, slipping through. Whiskers followed close behind, his ears flattened his head. The man snuck to the corner, ready to attack "On my signal Whiskers. Remember, if you need help, just yowl as loud as you can."

Whiskers let out a hiss, his tail lashing "Come on, we gotta hurry up!" One of the men snapped silently "Are you sure this boat is abandoned?" The second man asked, "Of course I'm sure, I haven't seen anyone aboard this boat in months!"

"Yeah, months, not years. So there could still be someone living here," the second man replied, looking around with weary eyes "Yeah, there is someone living here." The fisherman showed himself, holding the men at gunpoint.

Whiskers let out a hiss, unsheathing his claws "Both of you, put your hands up!" The fisherman ordered, putting his finger on the trigger. Both men put their hands up, completely taken by surprise.

"What are you doing on my boat?" he demanded, slowly moving closer to the men before stopping "I thought you said this boat was abandoned!" The second man snapped, glaring at his partner.

"I thought it was too! How is it my fault that I didn't see this old man?!" The first man retorted "Silence!" he ordered them. Both men shut their mouths "I asked you a question, what are you doing on my boat?"

"Uhh, nothing! We were just checking to see if anyone lived here!" The first man said, but the fisherman wasn't stupid and knew he was lying "Tell me the truth or I'll blow your head off!" The fisherman threatened.

"Wait! Please don't kill us! We didn't know this boat belonged to you! We're really sorry for trespassing!" The second man wailed. The fisherman eyed them coldly "Then why don't you as so kindly get off my property?"

"But we need this boat! The cops are coming after us!" The first man replied, his eyes wide "Then go find a different boat! I don't want criminals on my ship!" The fisherman yelled, pointing his gun again.

"Please sir, we can't go anywhere else!" The second man begged. Whiskers ears perked up and he leaped up onto the railing of the boat. In the distance, a group of cop cars were heading towards the boat.

Whiskers let out a yowl, pointing his tail at the cop cars. The fisherman looked away briefly, his eyes widening "If you two want to live, I suggest you leave!" The fisherman yelled at the men, glaring back at them.

"Let's go Derek! The police are here!" The first man pulled on the second one and the two criminals ran off. The fisherman lowered his gun, Whiskers joining his owner "Phew, I'm glad I didn't have to use this. It would've hurt my old ears."

As he turned to leave, he heard a gun go off. He whipped around, Whiskers hiding behind his owner "Stop right there!" A policeman ordered. The policeman leaped over the entrance to the boat, his gun in hand.

"Can I help you officer?" the fisherman asked, confused yet a tad bit scared "What were you doing with that gun?" The officer asked, pointing at the gun "2 criminals came onto my boat, and I told them to get off."

"Where did they run off to now?" The policeman asked. The fisherman pointed over into a nearby park "Just over there. You should be able to catch up to them, they don't run very fast." The fisherman replied.

"Thank you, sir. Are you injured or anything?" The policeman said "Nope, Whiskers and I are alright," he replied, smiling up at the officer "Good. I'll be sure to check on you two again for more information!"

"Will do, officer," the fisherman said, waving goodbye "Well Whiskers, guess it's time for us to relax and eat some nice, warm-" he cut off as soon as he felt something pierce through his chest.

He let out a gasp, grabbing his chest. A bullet was shot straight through him. The old fisherman whipped around, realizing that the person who shot him were the two men from before "Bye-bye old man."

The old man fell to the floor, his vision blurring. He turned to Whiskers, only to realize he too was dying. The men had shot them both. The fisherman pulled Whiskers closer to him, hugging him tightly.

"So long old friend..." He closed his eyes and never woke again...