Chapter Text

Eldritch–HorrorClan

SOLVER OF THE ABSOLUTE FABRIC

Rotting’Spider

SERIAL DESIGNATION J

Nightingale’Rose

SERIAL DESIGNATION V

Oil’Spray 

(Silver’Wing)

SERIAL DESIGNATION N

Golden’Meadow

BunkerClan

[W.D.F | LEADER]

Door’Knob

[S.I.C | DEPUTY]

Cryptic’Daze (NORI– 0̸̥̏͛̚ 0̶͔̰̭͉̍̍̏̔͌2̷͕̆̎̕ -̵̻̱͒͑́̇)

[W.D.F MEMBERS | SENIOR WARRIORS]

Rowan’Root (Teacher)

Bubble’Fish (Sarah)

Puddle’Grin (Ron)

Burnet’Crunch (Todd)

Brindle’Claw (Braxton)

River’Wood (Makarov)

Plover’Snap (Frank) 

Mangrove’Hail (Tim) 

Bay’Splash (Reid)

Vetch’Tusk (Grant)

[W.D.C | YOUNG WARRIORS]

Violet’Shadow (Uzi)

Lazuli’Dawn (Lizzy) 

Wolverine’Shade (Doll) 

Falcon’Crest (Thad)

Abalone’Shine (Riley)

Chanterelle’Glimmer (Rebecca) 

Lion’Step (Darren)

Spark’Fur (Braidon)

Crash’Drift (Sam)

Kestrel’Bristle (Trevor)

Shearing’Moon (Emily)

Others (not in Clans)

Amber Fang (Alice)

Sun Ray (Beau)

Twolegs (Humans!)

Tessa

(former owner of Rose(Jupiter ), Oil( Venus ), Gold( Neptune ) and Spider( Ceres )

Mr. Elliott

(James)

Mrs. Elliott

(Louisa)

Katie

Mr. Frumplebucket

Chapter Text

Violetshadow was honestly really tired of being in a learning environment with her “ fellow ” clanmates. The urge to bite their noses off for being so utterly irritating to the soul was way too enticing. 

She sighed, tail tip flicking with agitation as she idly listened in to Rowanroot’s terribly monotonous explanation of how proper warriors should act other than pranking each other in the middle of the night or during training. Glowing ringed-planet , she wished she could leave.

Violetshadow grumbles beneath her breath, taking to simply crouching down and curling her tail over her paws whilst she idly watches a nearby insect, possibly one of those vertebrae wall-hopping critters, crawl into a crack in the ground. This place, as cold as it was, was still honestly an utter wreck.

BunkerClan lived in a cave; on the hillside near a tall mountain that shadowed it—-snow fell daily, hardly giving up even during the season of summer. It was less bearable during the treacherous, billowing winter.

She had to admit, it’d be great to move elsewhere, but she doubted her father, Doorknob would even approve the idea. They had already lost her mother and a few others on the trip here.. He made sure not to have them move again, unless it was necessary.

The bloodthirsty, bumbling beasts outside were ruthless ; sinking their protruding teeth and claws into any sort of prey that crossed their path.

–

She wonders what they truly looked like.

Were they as the stories portrayed them? 

With long, protruding fangs and claws that were able to tear apart a single BunkerClan feline with one slice or bite? Were those beasts secretly cannibals who decided to feed off of their former, lesser species to fill the gaping hole in their stomachs that yearned to be sated? Were they—

“VioletShadow.”

She perked her head up, ears swiveling to see who called her name and her look of surprise faded away when she realized it was just Rowanroot calling her attention back to the subject at hand.

Stars above.

She really wanted to get out of here. 

Violet grumbled beneath her breath as she pushed past a few of her clanmates and into the pathway that led to her and her father’s part of the cave. She sniffed at the air, his scent was always so faint nowadays—with him always attending meetings with his senior warrior instead of at home, keeping his own kin , and daughter company.

Deadbeat.

Provided, with her father not being here, it wouldn’t hurt for her to be outside for a few moments.. maybe even until sundown. He probably wouldn’t even blink an eye, or would be too cooped up in his section of the cave, meeting with Puddlegrin and Brindleclaw.

Violetshadow looked around the cave, sniffing one more time for good measure before she ducked through the lichen barrier and back into the hall. She trotted, her pawpads beating against the earthen flooring in a quickened pace until she reached the frontal maw of BunkerClan’s camp.

Violet gritted her teeth, in front of her, she could spot Burnetcrunch and Baysplash chattering from where they sat, guarding the entrance. She shook out her pelt, claws scraping against rock as she unsheathed and sheathed them.

Okay.. okay.. Obstacle one! If I can get past these fuzzbrains, then I can go out.

She put on her best face (a neutral one) and padded forward, hoping silently that this would work—or else, well, she’d be screwed. Violetshadow stopped beside them, waiting for them to get the memo.

It’s as if some cat stuck thistle fluff in their ears and told them to try hunting.

“Hey, you two.”

That is what gets the two toms to flick their gazes her way questioningly before they straighten up when they realize it’s her. Doorknob, the leader of BunkerClan’s daughter, of course.

“Hm?”

“What is it?”

She really has to refrain from rolling her eyes.

“Mind if I head out for a bit? Gotta stretch out my legs, y’know, not much room to do that inside.” Violet flicks her tail, her back paw tapping against the ground in an anxious, apprehensive and agitated sort of way.

Baysplash tilts his head whilst Burnetcrunch blinks before humming.

“Are you sure you can’t just.. I don’t know.. clear a space out somewhere here in camp? Not too sure it’s safe out right now..” He fidgets, nervously looking back outside of the cave, “Since those things are out there.”

Baysplash nods. 

“Wouldn’t want Doorknob’s kit getting herself hurt. You’re hardly a fully fledged warrior,” he puts in, when she glared at him with an irritated look. “And plus, he’d have our tails.”

She sighs.

“Alright then. I’ll just go tell him you said no..” Violetshadow trailed off, already turning on her heels with a disappointed tone in her voice.

“Wait!”  

Baysplash called out, looking as if one of the beasts had jumped out right in front of him. He looked at her pleadingly, his ears pinned flat against his head as he shook it. “You can go—don’t tell Doorknob that, please .”

She glanced over at Burnetcrunch to see him begrudgingly nodding as well; Violet held back a smirk, trotting back over with a dip of her head to them both.

“Thank you.”

—

Now that that was over, she thought as she padded through the thick snow that covered the ground, she could finally try finding that.. cave those big bad “Murder Beasts” lived in.

She sniffed the air, it wasn’t too putrid, considering where BunkerClan’s camp was situated; it was deep in the forest, near the mountain—so none of those Humans should bother her.

Violet sighed, unsure of where she should even try going. Would she even make her way past the territory marking before sundown? It nagged at the back of her mind and she shook out her pelt and continued walking.

Honestly , it’d be cool if she brought back a souvenir.

Maybe a claw or.. a tuft of fur? 

She hummed, hopping over a mostly hidden rock before continuing on. What did those beasts even have as features to begin with? She doubted they’d look exactly like them—especially with the descriptions that the older warriors always seemed to try and scare them with.

Ugh.

Given the mention of the creepy bedtime stories, she was reminded of how her mom had.. met her fate one sudden night. Her father never shut up about it—always somehow managing to sneak in his former mate’s passing in any sentence he could. 

It was always..

Crypticdaze did that way better in her prime than you could Vetchtusk!

Those damned feathered beasts took her away from me.

Violetshadow, remember what your mother said—

–

She huffed, picking up her pace as she rounded the near middle part of the land. Everything looked the same, mostly because the planet probably wasn’t being trampled upon by man-made objects.

Earth-ruiners, if you decided to put it nicely .

Violetshadow stumbles, all of a sudden, catching herself with a shift of her paws as she glances down—-and– ew .. She wishes she didn’t look down.

In front of her, or what was formerly beneath her, lay a mostly disfigured body (or corpse) with signs of fresh rot—and an evident amount of visible decay. She hopes the thing that got to this.. poor husk.. wasn’t nearby.

The shecat flung the gross residue from her pads before pacing around the gore with a scrunched nose. Yuck. She was definitely washing off in a nearby stream after this. Definitely.

Another few sets of walking brought her to a strange looking ‘den’. Violetshadow’s ears twitched with unease as she glanced around, a strong sense of anticipation curling inside her belly as she sniffed around.

Foul. Strong.. And—

BANG!

—

Dust and snow flew into the air as a heavy thud hit the ground. Violet blinked away the mist from her eyes, wiping at her nose with a paw as she pushed herself up from the ground with shaky legs.

“What—”

She shut her maw immediately, blinking with surprise as the large, stocky creature—that seemed to be tearing into something smaller (maybe even one of her own kind—), she could smell the stench of blood, ripe and overbearing.

Violetshadow crouched back down.

I should leave.. Head back home. Ithinkthisisenoughoutsidetime.

She shifted her paws, ears swiveling as she eyed the way she came and the creature in the midst of the den. One wrong move, and she’d be crowfood . Six feet under, just like Crypticdaze..

The entrance wasn’t too far away. She could make it if she left now, a silent but a well-paced stride would get her out in no time.

She backed up, keeping a watchful eye on the beast as she backtracked her way to the exit—why was it suddenly so dark? She left during sunhigh..—

Instead of the chilling air of the outside, all she felt was another solid, furry body when she scooted back.

She slowly turned around, her heartbeat quickening as she swiveled on her heels, coming face to face with a long-toothed… creature—the exact one she was keeping an eye on earlier.

How did it—

They made eye contact. Violetshadow’s spine twitched, and the fur on her back rose—bristling as she inched away with a stupefied expression. She tripped over her own back paws.

The creature blinked; staring at her with a tilted head. Was it still hungry? Not that she cared—but it still mattered; she may just be its next meal. She couldn’t drag her gaze away, cornered and petrified like a hare at the back of its den with no other way out.

Violet shuddered, hoping that the emotion that was flickering in its eyes wasn’t one of malice—or hunger . She did not want to turn out like her mother supposedly did. That wasn’t the edgiest way to go out!

Unfortunately, it didn’t seem to be like it was going to be leaving her unharmed anytime soon. The larger feline lumbered forward, chuffing as it clinked its teeth together; in a way that unsettled her.

Violetshadow fumbled her paws around for something to grab—something, anything she could use as a weapon against the beast.. she hadn’t considered her claws but..

It didn’t seem like a good idea.

However, the sharp rock she just found seemed like a better option!

She gripped in between her pawpads before tossing it, with what she hoped was enough force to at least distract it, through the air.

–

The rock bounced off of the larger feline’s muzzle; it blinked at her for a few moments before rubbing at its snout with a paw, and a somewhat mournful noise. The bloodthirsty expression Violetshadow had glimpsed earlier was no longer in sight—

“Ow.. Did you just throw that rock at me?”

It.. talks..?

She stared, mystified.

The creature nodded, looking happier than she would’ve expected something that.. scary.. could. It shifted paw to paw before sitting on its haunches with a somewhat apologetic incline of its head.

“Yeah! Sorry ‘bout earlier, haha.. I thought you were trying to steal my kill.” He rumbles on, shaking out his pelt as he peers over at her more closely. 

“Are you new to our chain?”

Chain..? As in..

Violetshadow blinked, opening and closing her mouth in search of an answer—should she lie to him.. or–

“Oh, not too talkative? Don’t worry, buddy! I’m Goldenmeadow! It’s nice to meet you..” He looked at her, waiting for her name. She swallowed the bile rising in her throat.

“Violetshadow.”

Goldenmeadow nodded, smiling—it was still frightening to see his chompers out for show, all big and sharp. “Awesome name!”

Violet flicked an ear, glancing at the exit of the cave.

“I.. uhm.. I have to go..”

She starts to push herself off her paws, wincing suddenly—she draws her paw up to her eyes, flinching at the large amount of blood leaking from a fresh cut. Goldenmeadow grimaces in reply.

“Ouch.. cut yourself? Just lick the wound,” he chittered, like it was the most normal thing in the world. “Our saliva helps induce a faster healing process—well, from what boss says anyway; if it didn’t, haha.. I’d be constantly bleeding out here and there.”

Violetshadow blinked. What did he mean by our?

“And by our saliva..?”

Goldenmeadow nods, chipper, and he seemingly can’t sit still—his paws jitter as he shakes in place. “Ye-up! Wildcats—that’s us.”

Oh stars.

She fidgets, swallowing a sigh as she eyes the den. It’d be much warmer there than it is outside—and especially, since it’s currently dark out, and terribly unsafe for her to make her trek back home..

“Let’s.. go inside that cave over there.”

He smiled, nodding.

“Sure! I love doing anything.”

—

Goldenmeadow laps at her paw pad, his work diligent and keen as he works on getting the shard of glass out of her pad. It hurts , she had to admit, but whatever he’s doing is alleviating the pain.

Suddenly, he bites down on the softest, innermost part of her pad, and she winces as his fangs dig into her skin and then out .

The wildcat draws back apologetically, but he has the glass between his teeth, which he spits out to the side, along with a few tufts of her fur.

“Sorry! It was a bit deep where I couldn’t reach without biting.” He chatters, flicking back to her paw, as he lifts it up in his mitts, assessing the damage. Violetshadow can’t help but take a peek as well.

  Yowch.

Yes, the cut was about halfway across her pad—to the other side of her paw. It looked raw, and, thankfully, still fresh (she would’ve been more worried if she hadn’t identified the wound earlier).

Surprisingly, in comparison to how it looked before, the wound did appear to be healing. Violet blinked curiously, sniffing at her paw with a hum.

She decided to bring up her question, it’d be better to do it now.. than later and suffer the consequences. 

“You mentioned.. other felines in this group.. Are they coming back any time soon?” Violetshadow queried, she really hoped she could leave before they did. She heavily doubted they’d be.. welcoming.. to her. 

Maybe their stomachs would.

Goldenmeadow makes a chirp, nodding. He seems giddy.

“Two others! They’re both out scouting currently, but you’ll love them! I’m sure of it. Heh. First, there’s Oilspray.”

–

A set of giggles, terrified whimpers and yowling could be heard—even from far away. The loudest noise, surprisingly, were the giggles.

A larger feline could be seen, digging her claws into a hardly recognizable cat; the wildcat seemingly playing with her food.

It was.. to say the least.. gruesome and gory.

She was stuffing their innards in their maw—and–to a viewer, they would probably be puking their last meal out.

“...Hush! You’ll scare away my prey.. I’ll make all the pain go away..”

She grinned, teeth sharp, and absolutely unfriendly. Her paw unwrapped from the tomcat’s muzzle, allowing him to inhale breaths in panicked, painful gasps.

The shecat appeared to have asked him a question, because he splutters, lifeblood coming out as spittle from his jaws—and he glances up in fear.

“V..Vetchtusk.”

She giggles, eyes crinkling in sadistic elation as she casually shoves her paw deep into his ribcage, splitting apart the flesh and wraps her claws around the pulsing heart and tugs it out.

The pitiful cat is no longer alive, but Oilspray continues to speak to him as if he was—she smirks, bringing the beating heart to his maw.

“Enjoy.”

..

She laps the blood from her maw with a paw, and a recognizable feline shuffles his paws behind her, looking terribly nervous and unsettled.

“And yet, I still feel nothing..”

He pads forward, silently.

“So, Oilspray, uh..”

Goldenmeadow twitches his ears, hopefully wondering if she’d let him talk to her this one time. He’s too hopeful. But he can’t not wish for just one.. moment of her time.

“I heard this upcoming blizzard is supposed to be especially inhospitable tonight..”

I was wondering if you’d like to come hunting with me! 

Or, uh, we could scout the territory if you’d like–

He was about to say, but—

She turns on her heels, jolting back with a bristle.

“Oh, stars! Who are you? ”

Oilspray grabs at the corpse, darting away and he can only stare after her retreating form. Goldenmeadow’s ears flopped downwards, and he sits down, spirits dampened.

“I’m Goldenmeadow.. but I suppose a whole name might be a lot to remember! I forget too, sometimes..”

He nervously, almost broken-heartedly, chuckles.

–

Golden hums, looking slightly bashful.

“There’s totally a bunch of mutual respect there.. (She even let me share her nest once!)” He shifts his paws, “Secretly, though, I have.. a crush on her.  I was thinking, maybe her and I could become mates one day—”

He blinks, shutting his maw with a dramatic snap of his teeth.

Violetshadow blinks. Awkward..

“You can’t tell her, okay?”

She nods, hoping it would appease him, and it did.

Goldenmeadow inhales, regaining his composure with a soft smile, he then shakes out his pelt before settling back down.

“Lastly, there’s Nightingalerose! Our leader.”

–

“You idiotic piece of waste! You’re incredibly useless . Why did you think that was a good idea? Hm? Care to enlighten me?”

A terribly angry, irate, and fuming feline hissed at Goldenmeadow, her teeth snapping close to his nose as he cowered, flat to the ground.

“Sorry..”

He glanced at his paws, still crouching. He was larger than her, and by that, technically stronger; and yet, he did not surge up to meet her blows.

Goldenmeadow grimaces when Nightingalerose claws at his ears, blood spattering onto the ground, as well as dribbling down the side of his face.

“On your paws.”

Nightingale hisses, rolling her eyes as he flinches away when she pads forward. She stops when they’re about a whisker length away from each other.

“If you keep continuing this, I’ll make you wish you weren’t needed in this chain—otherwise I would have removed you so long ago.”

He completely understands the threat.

“..Yes, ma’am.”

–

“Nightingale’s the best!”

He chirped, a sparkle of awe in his eyes.

Violet quirked an eyebrow; what sort of cat would be so.. what was the word..? Eccentric? Naive? Maybe even harebrained? She didn’t understand how he could be so cheerful despite the clear signs of abuse.

“Lemme give you a tour of our camp!”

Goldenmeadow hops up, dancing on his paws as he flicks his tail for her to follow him. They make it to the clearing of the cave; from down there, she could see three noticeable ones in the clefts of the rocky wall.

She twitched her ears. Were there only three of them?

(Violetshadow knew he had two other clan— chain..mates? Both were female, and he was trying to bond with one of them—it wouldn’t really be nice for there to be more predators for her clan..)

Violet swallowed a sigh, shaking those thoughts away before following after the larger feline as he trekked forward, up the slope where the dens were.

Golden waits for her beside one of the dens, which, by how he’s freely standing beside it, may be his. He gestures for her to follow. The den looks cozy, despite the lack of adequate bedding, but it looked like he made it work—and plus, his fluff seemed like a pile of cotton.

“This is..” She searches for the words, “nice.”

He snorts, dipping his head with amusement.

“Thank you!”

Goldenmeadow hums, shifting his paws, he eyes the other two dens but doesn’t go any closer to them or let her go check them out.

“I’d tour the rest of the dens with you, but, haha.. I don’t want to risk a clawing from Nightingalerose if she scents me.”

 Violetshadow tilts her head.

“You make it sound like that’s a regular occurrence—is it?”

He tips his head, suddenly sheepish. Golden opens and closes his mouth before his head droops. 

“I guess that’s a yes.” She assumes, sighing—a bout of abrupt irritation that swells into anger, not on his part, but on his behalf, forms inside her and she bristles.

“You should stand up to her! Look at you, all big and probably stronger than Nightingale! I bet, half of a badger’s paw, that you could beat her with your eyes closed.” She chittered with likeness to a newborn kit’s excitement.

Goldenmeadow profusely shook his head, seemingly surprised at her adamance in him overtaking their leader. She must look crazy to him, in a way, but where was the fun in being perpetually in a place of being degraded?

“V–Violet! Can I call you that?” He stammers, but still continues on in a panicked meow, his eyes darting around the camp, nose twinging, “You can’t just say that! Nightingalerose’s our leader ..”

She rolled her eyes, puffing out her chest confidently.

“So what? Didn’t you say you were the leader? What happened to that?”

He shrinks into himself, glancing away with a despondent sigh. Violetshadow tilted her head, and stars , if she hadn’t seen his happy-go-lucky self (and, what she wouldn’t tell him, mood-swings) earlier, she would’ve believed this was a whole other cat.

“Yes.. and no..”

Golden pawed at the ground, idly tracing things in the cold soil. He tipped his head to the side as she approached, wary but still affable as Violet sat down beside him with an expectant look.

He sighed once more.

“I..” He swallowed, claws scraping at the dirt before he sheathed them, “she, Nightingale, challenged me a few.. moons after the incident . Haha.. It wasn’t a fun moment—for any of us.

“I lost, and by the Code and with proper claim, she took my spot as monarch. I was demoted.. Not that I could do much about that—and I most certainly didn’t mind..” Goldenmeadow hummed, before mumbling, and she had to crane her ear closer to listen.

“I just wish she’d let me walk away from that with my dignity intact.”

Violetshadow blinked, peering at his face before she decided to speak up—curiosity was killing her, and well, she couldn’t quite help it.

“What did she do?”

He flicked his ears uncomfortably before flopping down onto his side; Goldenmeadow rolled onto his spine, lifting his front leg up to his muzzle and— oh . Violetshadow shuddered, drawing back a bit instinctively.

There was a wound.. Well, it was more than a wound. It was a scar. A mark . It was cut grotesquely, with what looked like “swift” mercilessness. If looked at closely, the cicatrix was a tad bit jagged, as if the doer was rushed into completing the task as it ought to be done..

Violet squinted, her tail twitching uneasily as she studied it longer than she intended to. Goldenmeadow twitched, tensing as she leaned forward to sniff at it.

“Looks bad, doesn’t it?”

He somberly meowed, waiting until she drew back before he flipped himself back onto his paws with hardly concealed tremble—she let him vent whatever he had going on, out, before she proceeded a rather uncharacteristically chipper tone. 

“Nah.. it looks rad, to be honest.” 

Violet forced herself to see the bright side of things, if she caused him to wallow in his pain, what sort of.. Skin her alive for thinking/saying this, but , good Samaritan, feline of Bunkerclan would she be?

He blinked in surprise, tilting his head with a searching look at her eyes.

She stared amiably back.

And he seemingly finished his examination with satisfaction.

“Thanks..”

Goldenmeadow swallowed, shaking out his pelt, he still seemed unruffled. She was about to ask what was up, but he opened his maw again.

“If you were wondering.. she had Oil mark me.”

–

  This really is some.. dirt-filled, weird romance slow-burn story. Violetshadow silently thinks to herself, tail swishing slowly as she watches Golden combat the emotions that flicker in his eyes. Heartbreak, mourning, grim remembrance.

He looked terribly glum, dampened spirits instead of his usual elated self. 

“Oil as in that shecat you were, uh.. yabbering about earlier? She doesn’t sound too friendly, now that I think about it.” 

Violet meowed, making her opinions clear about Oilspray. Why did he like her anyway if she treated him like nothing but dirt beneath her pads?

Goldenmeadow tilted his head, blinking at her, he flicked his ear.

“Nightingalerose ordered her too, I don’t think it’s her fault—and I’d rather have me hurt, than her hurt.” He rumbled truthfully, and Violetshadow could, with a silent scrunch of her nose, see how much commitment he put into loving Oilspray despite everything.

She shrugged, playfully bumping into his side with her shoulder.

“Suit yourself then, dude. You’ve got terrible taste in shecats.”

He snorted, amusement now flooding his eyes once more—that’s what she was looking for–and rolled his eyes.

Violetshadow flicked her gaze back to the cave entrance from where they stood on the slope; it was getting darker than before, and she could see some specks of the stars appearing in the sky.

“Say.. are.. uhm, Nightingale and Oil coming back soon?”

Definitely going to have to make my way out of here before they do.

Goldenmeadow also looked at the sky, tipping his head to the side and sniffed at the air. “I can’t really smell them, but I’m sure they’ll be back soon! Nightingalerose doesn’t like us to stay out long.”

She silently nodded, still staring for a moment before she turned back around with some difficulty. Violet really hoped she wouldn’t get herself killed—after all, she had just made a new.. friend.

“Okay.. uhm..” She fidgeted, glancing around. 

She could go for a nap, provided that Golden’s estimation of the two females’ arrival time was correct; she was somewhat exhausted.

“I think I’ll take a nap, I’m sorta tired.”

He nodded sympathetically, tipping his head to the side.

“Since you don’t have a nest yet, you can sleep in mine; I don’t mind.”

Goldenmeadow chirped, gesturing over to his nest as he took a seat on the outside of his den.

Violet hesitated for a moment before she padded forward and into the space, she glanced back at Golden as she approached the nest she was offered. It was cozy.

She plopped down onto the moss, human pelt and whatever else was used as bedding; Violetshadow stretched, curling tightly before resting her chin on her paws.

After a few moments, her eyelids fluttered shut.

Her eyes shot open, claws unsheathed and digging into the bare rock. Violetshadow stiffened at the pungent scent in the air, it was hardly different from Goldenmeadow’s, and by that she could tell that she needed to leave.

Immediately .

She rose to her paws, shaking away the sleepiness that hadn’t all disappeared when she woke with alarm. A peek outside of Goldenmeadow’s den gave her the sight she had not been longing to see.

Yep. Those two are definitely Nightingalerose and Oilspray..

She mused as she peered at the two, somewhat smaller—if compared to Golden—felines, despite that, she was pretty sure they were way taller than her (and by extension, stronger).

Oh stars, how was she going to get out of this? She should’ve left earlier.. Violetshadow sighed, gritting her teeth before slinking from the gloom of the den. Should she wait until they dispersed from the clearing and into their dens? But what if one of them scented her? 

What then?

She eyed the slope that led upwards into the cave. There was, without a doubt, that that was a dead-end. Going back there would get her trapped—cornered. That would not be fun or resourceful for her.

She nervously flicked her ears, looking back the other way with a shudder as she watched one of the smaller shecats break away from the group, making her way to the slope—probably to her den.

Violetshadow silently inched back into Goldenmeadow’s den, crouching down in the gloom of the shadowy space before she rolled over into his nest—masking her scent the best she could without making too much noise.

Stars, give me strength..  

She muttered, crawling back to the outermost part of the cleft in the wall to huddle in the corner, eyes peering anxiously at the light of the den entrance.

The pawsteps grew closer, even more so that she could smell the fresh scent of the other feline—more prominent now that she was padding up the slope. 

Violetshadow stiffened as the silhouette paused in the foot of Goldenmeadow’s den, sniffing lightly at the air.

Please don’t find anything amiss.

Please don’t find anything amiss.. 

Please…

She silently pleaded, slowly crouching even lower to the ground as she prayed that her dark fur helped promote her inconspicuousness than the opposite. Don’t move, don’t make a sound—-not a peep or a shift of the paw.

Her heart must be racing right now, but she willed it to quiet down, holding her breath for the suspenseful moments that dragged on.

Oilspray—she assumed was the one who was standing over there—squinted suspiciously into the den, almost setting a paw inside before she slowly turned away with a hardly satisfied grumble.

The shecat swiveled on her heels, tail flicking as she trudged away from the den. Violet let out the breath she was holding, dropping her muzzle into her paws. Goodness , she had almost believed she was crowfood.

She shook out her pelt, rising back to her mitts and trotted carefully back to the den entrance. The clearing was.. a little bit more empty. She couldn’t see the other shecat (who had stayed there with Goldenmeadow), so she assumed she went to her den as well.

Violetshadow inhaled a breath before she nervously scurried out from the den, padding down the slope as quickly as she could without making too much noise.

Her paws were placed carefully, avoiding the rocks and pebbles—this cave was somewhat more interesting than her own clan’s camp; she had to admit. Violet blinked, now having reached the bottom of the slope.

.. 

..

She turned away from her examination of the camp, taking two steps forward before she bumped into a furry, muscular body and she flinched, falling back onto her haunches.

Violetshadow redirected her gaze, only calming down in her reverie of panic when she spotted Goldenmeadow. She stood up once more, giving him a halfhearted glare.

“You scared me.” 

She whisper-yelled with some irritation; had it been one of the other shecats, she would’ve been doomed . Goldenmeadow bashfully dipped his head.

“Sorry!” He shifted his paws, sitting down with a friendly smile and a head tilt. “Where’re ya heading off to this late? Did Nightingale give you permission or..?”

What..?

She blinked, but then remembered she hadn’t told him of her actual identity. Violetshadow swallowed, glancing at the exit behind the larger feline.

“Oh, uhm.. I was.. just going out to.. scout the outside of our camp! Gotta make sure no intruders get in, y’know?” She nervously chirped, hoping he wouldn’t find any of this.. suspicious.

He squinted, tilting his head even more at her words.

She eyed him silently, and he did the same as well. It was a set of awkward heartbeats before Goldenmeadow’s expression mellowed and he was back to normal.

“Okiedokes! Stay safe! You can call for help if anything happens or if you see something off! We’ll be right there to help.” 

He rumbled (although, she’d describe it as a rambling ) assuringly, leaning over to boop his nose against hers in a friendly manner. Golden pulled back, dipping his head before he trotted off.

That was a close one..

She let out another breath she didn’t know she was holding. Violet waited for him to disappear before she finally padded out of the cave—freedom! If it wasn’t her trying to escape right now, she would’ve flopped down to take a breather—and started making distance from the mouth of the cavern.

From where beasts were dwelling.

She didn’t look back.

Chapter Text

Goldenmeadow happily made his way to his den, whiskers twitching as he thought about all the fun things he and his new friend could do! They could go hunting, bringing back prey as well as indulging in the excitement of it.

He was almost about to enter before a recognizable figure slid between him and his den, her eyes glinting in the darkness as he glared at him. Nightingalerose. And from the looks of it, and the evident scent, Oilspray was not far behind—padding over to the two of them with a blank expression.

He tilts his head, confused.

“Did I do something wrong..?”

Golden questions, blinking innocently at her. What did he even do? Did he not properly keep the camp watched in their absences? Or.. was it because of that mishap from last time? He doesn’t entirely know.

Nightingalerose’s nose scrunches and his gaze grows more anxious by the moment of the chilly silence that threatens to chip away at his sunny disposition. She pads forward, ears pinned back, eyes icy.

“What was that all about?”

What was..? Oh!

He blinked, the light coming back into his eyes.

“I was just making sure our new buddy was okay! She said she went out to scout the perimeter for the night.” Golden naively meowed, oblivious to the growing suspicion in the two shecat’s gazes as he continued explaining.

“She’ll be back soon, I’m sure of it.”

Nightingale narrowed her eyes.

“‘ New buddy’? ”

Golden nodded, grinning, almost ear-to-ear.

“Yeah! Her name’s Violetshadow.”

The shecat, to his utter confusion, scowled even deeper. Her tail was now lashing, claws digging into the rock. Night kept walking forward until they stood nose-to-nose (as much as possible, that is).

“ Goldenmeadow . Tell me, when have we ever had more than three cats in this chain, hm? And when have they ever had such a name like that?” She uttered, tone clipped and borderlining on a sweetly potent form of menacing.

He blinked, fidgeting somewhat. What was she insinuating..? Did she think that their newest member wasn’t up to par or..?

“I, uh—today?” 

He stammers out, confused on what she wants to hear. The sudden, bombarding and probing questions broke his train of thought.

“ Today ?” 

She raised an eyebrow, tilting her head. “And why wouldn't one of us—more specifically, me , be the one to introduce this ‘new’ member to the group?”

“That sounds terribly reasonable, but what if—”

Nightingalerose interjects, speaking over him, “Would whatever you were going to say even make sense ? Think about it, numbskull. Does any of this make sense?”

 It did, make sense, that is.. But he couldn’t help but feel like he should defend the poor thing, she was friendly—and he had liked being the one receiving a cordial interaction for once.

But he couldn’t outrightly go against her words—they were true . And Leader’s word is law, which is unbreakable if one wants to keep the code unbroken. Goldenmeadow dipped his head, blinking apologetically.

“It.. makes sense. Sorry, Nightingalerose.” 

He keenly meows, flicking his gaze away in a subservient manner as the shecat rolled her eyes at his attempt to unruffle her pelt. It worked, somewhat—she was less tetchy as she turned away from him.

“See to it that you don’t make the same mistake again.”

Golden silently dipped his head, paws squeezing at the rocky surface below as he held himself back from piping up against her— it wasn’t entirely worth it.. and plus, as much as he’d like to, anything he did would just rile up Nightingale once more—and a repeat of what just happened would happen again.

He can only watch helplessly as she turns to Oilspray instead, gaze probably filled with calcalculation as she stared at the other feline before speaking.

“Since Goldenmeadow is too much of an idiot to be able to tell apart a regular cat from one of us, how about you go track it down and bring it back—in one piece?”

Really laying it on thick, he frowned, peering to see what Oil would say.. or react to Nightingalerose’s demand.

(Lately, she was going on a bit of a ‘rebel’ streak.. And he wondered if she would reject the prompt.)

Oilspray flicked her ears, staring at Nightingale for a few drawn out moments. She then rolled her eyes with a small huff and a lash of her tail. But, to his utter surprise, Oil did not retort with a snide remark—she dipped her head.

“...Fine. I’m only going because it reeks of that thing in here.”

 Nightingalerose quirked an eyebrow at her tone and tilted her head with an slightly peeved look. “ And?”

Goldenmeadow could sense the growing tension between the two shecats—and it wasn’t a good one. He could see the way Night was glaring, and how Oilspray looked like she wanted to chew someone’s ear off.

..

Oil bared her teeth with an irate look.

“.. And.. ‘Leader's word is law’, blah, blah, blah . Whatever. I’m going now.” 

She trotted off with a toss of her head, brushing past Golden on her way down—to which he didn’t know if it was on purpose or not.

( Not that it mattered, haha! )

She’s so pretty, amazing, and–

He stared in the direction she went, only deterred after a paw—with unsheathed, hooked claws—whacked him in his head and he promptly jolted back into a cower. Ouch ..

“The workplace environment is no place for ogling your cluttermates. I don’t want kits running around here (especially of your blood)—overt tripping-hazard gremlins.

“Stop padding after her. She doesn’t need any more issues piled onto her plate, and none of us are willing to stay behind to take care of some kits. Do you understand me?”

Golden winced, rubbing at the back of his head with a paw—more scars, just great—and he slowly pushed himself up from his crouch to sit properly. He was simply seeing her off not—

“But I wasn’t–”

“I said, do you understand? I didn’t ask for excuses, you deadweight, piece of foxdung—I asked for an affirmative.” And I want it now, went unsaid, but he could still hear it echoing inside his head.

Golden swallowed another retort, simply ducking his head and despondently muttering a ‘yes’ —nothing else because Nightingale had made it clear that she didn’t want to hear another word coming out of him.

She rolled her eyes, pacing a bit away from him, starting her ascent back up the slope—she inclined her head in his direction, not directly looking at him, but where he was idling.

“Since you’re basically as useful as a dead fox at this proper moment—I want you to shadow Oilspray, she might need help if she does manage to trace that creature back to its camp.

“Consider this as a job, not a date or courting between the two of you. If I catch word that you didn’t get a single thing done, or if I scent you— you’ll be crowfood. Got it?”

 “Got it..”

Nightingale curtly flicks her tail, turning on her heels and heads back up the slope to her den. Goldenmeadow lets out a petulant sigh before he rises to his mitts, and stalks out of the den to follow his chainmate.

Breathing was hard—-the air was cold, and terribly dry at that—Violetshadow had to admit; she was still sprinting away from the foreign territory, her pads crisp and frigid as they slammed repeatedly against the snow.

Normally, she would be walking, but a part of her told her that someone was following her. Someone who meant no good, and was probably going to make a meal out of her—when she got her claws into Violet.

What she recalled, when she was hardly a few hare-lengths from the territory, that same scent had taken root in the air again. And she knew she had to pick up her pace.

Stars above.. I can’t even get home safely without that thing following me there..

Violet knew she had to lose her. Lest she lead the beast back to her camp, endangering her clanmates and even herself—yeah, no . 

She wasn’t going to be Violetshadow the Clanwrecker; she was going to be Violetshadow—an honorable warrior of Bunkerclan, who led danger away from camp.

..

And that Violet is going to live .

–

If someone asked her how her day was going, Oilspray would reply with a passive-aggressive response of “Just peachy.”

And peachy it was.

Getting sent back out of camp after returning from an unsuccessful hunt was peachy. She was totally up to high spirits, elated, and obviously not drained of most of her energy.

Despite that, she was going to catch that little den-encroacher, bring her back with a few scars—sadly, she couldn’t kill it, Nightingale’s “orders”— annoying.. —if it was anybody else, she would’ve gone against orders, but ugh , it was hard to decline the offer to hunt something.

She was antsy, and needed to get it out of her system–and what better way than this? Oh, she was going to have so much fun scaring the life out of them.

–

Violetshadow shook out her pelt, nose scrunching in displeasure as she forced herself away from the bog she almost fully fell into—her fur and frame felt rather icky, the damp moss still clinging to most of her dark pelt as she skidded up the slope in a manner of flapping paws.

Not the neatest move, but it’d do.

She scraped her paws into the crunchy soil before continuing on, with a quickly flicked gaze behind her—nothing visible. But she doubted she lost her pursuer that easily.

(If only.)

A series of shudders brought her back to the present as she finally drew away from the cliff-edge, and started up the rise where a more dense part of the land was—trees, bushes, and lots of foliage were the main part of this forest.

Violet hasn’t necessarily become familiar with this stretch of land, she isn’t a regular anywhere remotely away from Bunkerclan’s initial enclave.

But she didn’t have time to stand around.

Just when she was nearing the edge of the openground, a large shape broke through the thin fog, claws skidding against the dense snow as they came to a  stop before locking eyes with her.

Mouth splitting in a big grin, teeth bared, Oilspray let out an amused chuff.

The lynx slinked forward through the snow, her large paws making ease for her steps—Violetshadow wished the same could be for her—and allowing her to sift through it.

She glared, however, legs itching to turn around and run —but she knew it’d be useless. Oil would catch up to her in a heartbeat; it isn’t Violet’s height that’s the (usual) issue, it’s the length of the other feline’s that throws off her original instinctive plan.

Now , what she did know, from training of course—was that elusive prey were usually the ones who scurried away to their dens.. Violet quickly did a onceover of the landscape with her eyes, whilst keeping her front facing her opposer.

Burrows. And a lot of them too.

She could use them to her advantage—she realized, flinching away as Oilspray had suddenly made a move while her attention was elsewhere, the shecat crouched in pounce formation.

And Violetshadow turned on her heels and ran into the nearest tunnel.

–

That little—!

Oilspray had lept, landing on the damp soil with a muffled thud; her paws not wrapped around that shecat’s neck like they should’ve been. She waded there for a moment before shaking out her pelt and approaching the hole in the ground.

Oil sniffed at the air, damp . She knew she was going to have an unpleasant time, especially if that rat managed to slip through her claws again..

The feline inhaled a gulp of frosty air, digging her claws into the ground before she clawed at the soil to widen the tunnel entrance—she slipped in once she could thoroughly fit, shoulders brushing against the roofing.

She was glad she wasn’t a claustrophobe.

(That would not be good.)

She finally fully makes her way into the tunnel, her vision a tad bit fuzzy until it focuses in the darkness; with a glance down, she can see the smaller pawprints of her prey, leading forward.

Oil’s nose twinges and she shuffles forward in a light, giddy trot.

Oh, when she gets her claws on that little pest.. 

Despite what Nightingalerose said, nothing was stopping her from roughing them up a bit. She said to bring it back alive, and that, she would. Just.. a bit battered.

She snickered and turned a corner, the shecat’s scent fresh in the air as she tracked it down the crispy-aired tunnel.

–

Violetshadow slid down the pathway, the almost muddied walkway causing her to lose her grip on the flooring—she slammed into the wall with a soft thud, disoriented.

I am so going to figure out a way to chew out whoever dug these stupid.. tunnels..  

She grumbled, slowly pushing herself back up with tentative pressure—no sprains, at least, she didn’t think so. Violetshadow shook out her pelt, flecks of damp dirt flying from her pelt as she glanced around.

It was.. a tad bit too dark for her likings—and not to mention, damp , in both smell and touch (and taste, but she didn’t want to dwell on that too much before her stomach got an idea).

Violetshadow squinted, looking down the different tunnels, which simply just had to be multiple sections that added on to her already full plate of problems.. Did it even matter which one she chose (other than to find an exit—there couldn’t possibly be a dead end, right)?

She sighed, pawing at the ground and padded forward a bit to sniff at each one. She was looking for light, and clear air—not damp, heavy and murky. The first tunnel.. was overwhelming—the scent was very earthy with a small pinch of dankness to it that unsettled her.

She turned away from it and padded over to the second one; it smelled a bit more promising, but it was still moist and definitely not fresh air. 

With a scrunch of her nose, she trotted over to the next tunnels—not that there were that many (there were smaller, less noticeable ones off to the side–probably made by ferrets), but some were tinier burrows.

The next ones were not as fresh, and so with a final thought–and shallow prayer to the stars, she headed to the second tunnel. Violet pressed a firm paw onto the pathway, sniffing once more before padding through.

Hopefully, she could get out of these tunnels before.. it caught up to her.

—

Goldenmeadow trotted from the cave, sniffing delicately at the air in hopes of another trace of Oilspray’s—or the little buddy’s–scent. He had been tracking for a few heartbeats, which wasn’t long; he ended up taking a swift hunting break before he started on the endeavor.

(Couldn’t be hungry on the job, haha..)

He wondered if Oil had caught up to Violet already--not that he wished for that to happen to his new friend—not at all.. But.. he couldn’t help but be torn on what side to be on.

It was almost like being offered a warm bed or permission to hunt. Maybe.

Still, he didn’t want to break the Code—and Nightingalerose, without a doubt, would give him the worst punishment she could think of. He was very comfortable with having one scar.

Sorry, little buddy.

Goldenmeadow shook his pelt out, opening his maw to taste the air—he was almost certain he was going the wrong way, but he caught a whiff of Oilspray’s scent and started in that direction with a swift jog.

Gee , they were heading far out. He thought to himself as he treaded down the icy slope, slowing his pace so that he didn’t trip over his paws and sprain something—he hoped they were both okay.

He really didn’t want anybody getting hurt. It wasn’t like they had a Medicine Cat at their camp who was quite proficient/adequately skilled to handle profusely bleeding wounds. 

(He had been given a little trust to oversee those duties—Nightingalerose had no desire to stoop that low, and Oilspray did not care for it–he wasn’t quite sure she’d be gentle either. But he wasn’t an official. )

In true honesty, he wished he was a Medicine Cat. 

Fighting battles wasn’t his forte, and it grossed him out quite a lot—the spilling of blood, the biting into another sentient feline’s neck; and a lot of other.. gruesome details he’d rather not tap into right now.

For now, he had a job. And he was.. probably-maybe-sort of failing it right now? He needed to pay attention, lest he lose the entire scent trail.

Goldenmeadow shook out his pelt, returning his concentration back to the path ahead; it was a shallow clearing, the snow was still piling on the ground as he trudged through it, his fluffy paws assisting him in his advance across. 

It took him a while, but he finally came across her scent again, as well as Violetshadow’s. Both were somewhat faint, but still present.

They’d been here recently.

He twitched his ears, sniffing more intently at the dark hole in the ground. There was no way he was going to fit in there—and plus , digging a new route would take forever. Maybe he could follow it? (Or try to.)

Golden leapt out from the dip, padding away from the burrow and started in the same direction it was pointed. Surely, this could only work so well.

–

This little rat was getting on her everlasting nerves.

Oilspray growled, spitting out another hiss as she turned another corner and hit a dead end. She could smell her target, but she couldn’t properly pinpoint where she was. This burrow was ruining her senses—not to mention the damp scent that permeated the entire tunnel system.

She couldn’t believe she was getting her behind kicked by a stray.

Oil huffed, tracing her steps back to the beginning of the myriad of tunnels. She stood there for a moment, ears flicking in different directions as her citrine eyes scanned the entrances.

She gritted her teeth before picking the rightmost tunnel. Oilspray sifted through the dark, carefully placing her paws as she trotted down the pathway.

While heading down the tunnel, she finally picked up on the scent she was hoping for; heart thudding in her chest, Oil shot down the tunnel, optics slit against the gloom as she navigated her way more easily than before. 

With a scent trail, she was on route to finally catching up.

Poor, poor little thing. Whatever will it do when she catches it?

She mused, whiskers twitching as she popped out on the other side of the burrow, paws splayed out a bit across the snow as the melt started flaking at her fur once more.

Oilspray hopped up, back on her pads as she glanced around. This stretch of territory was unrecognizable to a fault. She scowled before padding forward a bit, eyes flicking around.

Rustle...

Crinkle..

Rustle. 

The crunching of autumn leaves alerted her. Oil swiveled on her heels, teeth bared in the fiercest expression she ever managed—and there she was, standing all smug, for what reason, Oil didn’t know.

She flicked her ears back, curling her lip– teeth bared.

“You’ve gotten bold , shorty.” Something’s off, I can smell it. “What’s your plan now? Gonna find another set of burrows? Dig your way out of here?”

The tinier feline simply rolled her eyes, sitting back on her haunches a few tail-lengths away from Oilspray.

“My plan? Now why would I tell you that?”

It wasn’t like I was expecting you to tell me.

Oilspray thought, but simply cocked her head to the side and flashed Violetshadow a toothy grin. “I don’t know, ‘ felt bored enough to ask.”

Oil hardly cared that this was considered stalling, she was having about as much fun as she would when she was actively hunting (which consisted mostly of her tormenting her prey through venomous verbal jabs and her claws).

“I guess you’re never going to know!”

Knew it . 

Oilspray bunched up her hindlegs, launching herself in a powerful leap that brought her halfway across the distance between them, she landed on the tips of her claws, staring at the other shecat with strained amusement.

“You do know this is an open stretch, right? I’ll easily catch up to you.”

She wasn’t that blind, she could see the gears spinning in the idiot’s head after she said that; Oilspray wanted a better chase. Not some pathetic relay race with a short-legged that would’ve ended with her winning anyway.

“Who said we were running it?”

The lynx quirked an eyebrow, almost tempted to sit down if they were going to keep this chatter up. She hummed.

“Seemed like it, and plus, you look ready to run.” 

She flicked her gaze to Violetshadow’s trembling tail and steady paws that were pushed into the dirt. “And I know what fleeing prey tends to look like.” She kneaded at the ground with hooked claws, earth scraping up behind her as she did so.

Are you going to run?

Oilspray flexed her claws, waiting for the skidding of pads against snow to signify the chase; however, she didn’t expect for Violetshadow to simply sit down , turning to the side with an air of nonchalance.

She blinked, stupefied.

What.

She opened and closed her maw, eye twitching with annoyance.

Huh.

She’s never been this.. disregarded by anyone before—Oilspray huffs, a growl rumbling in her throat as she prepares her pounce.

“Hope you enjoyed your time out of the nest, little-birdy; since I’ll be taking you back there.” 

Quiet, it’s too quiet.  

Oil shakes out her pelt before surging forward.

Her paws stretch out. 

Far enough, farther—

–but all they do is connect with slush– 

—ground breaks beneath her–

–and she falls .

A loud thud (with a series of frustrated hissing) can be heard and snow flies up in flurries.

She had trapped her.

Yes!  

Her plan worked.

Violetshadow’s whiskers twitched as she heard the ferocious, enraged yowling coming from the bottom of the pit. She smirked, snickering a bit at Oilspray’s violent words as they reached her ears.

“When I get up there, you’ll be TORN TO SHREDS. You hear me? SHREDS!”  

The lynx screamed, ending it with a seemingly deranged cackle.

Always the crazy ones , Violet huffed before backing away from the maw of the drop. She shook her head as she went, making a point to kick some of the snow at the edge into the ditch (for good measure).

Now, without some big “scary” stalker behind her, she could make it back home with her hide still attached to her frame.

Violetshadow took one last quick look around before she began her trip back. She broke in a swift, consistent trot that had her in a faster gait than she would usually be in during a stroll.

It was best to get back home.

The quicker, the better.