Rook peered through the window and flicked his tail. Hades and Domino appeared at his side. 
               "Right, Domino, stay out here and signal to us if somebody comes near," Rook said. 
               "Ok," nodded Domino. He took a deep breath and sat down, his eyes sharp and ears pointed. Rook and Hades leapt down the small ledge and edged towards the barn entrance. 
                "There's a gap," Hades said, nodding towards a small hole in the wood. Rook frowned. 
                "Let's get this over with," Rook said. He approached the gap. He crouched down and slipped under. He felt the wood dig into his back but managed to scramble into the barn. Hades was right behind him. The barn was dark with boxes and cages piled on top of each other. At the end of the barn, Rook noticed something strange. There was a large metallic pen filled with straw. Beside that, hung above a table, were sharp pointed knives. Rook sniffed and felt shivers run down his spine. He froze. The overwhelming smell of blood and death filled him. 
               "You ok?" Hades whispered. Rook shook himself and took a deep breath. He managed a small nod. 
               "Where are they?" asked Rook. 
               "Arian? Bear? Stripe? Alani?" Hades said, raising his voice. There was some shuffling. A few snorts from unknown animals. Rook was ready to run. To leave. After a long pause, Rook started to back away. Hades sighed, ready to follow Rook. 
               "H-Hades?" came a high-pitched voice.
              "Alani!" exclaimed Hades, his eyes pricking. 
               "Shhh," shushed a cat. Hades followed the voice, Rook was behind him. They padded quietly and carefully. Rook glanced up at the window, to see if Domino was still there. He was. Hades leapt up on a box and navigated past a few empty cages and packed boxes. Rook was behind him. 
              "We're here," the voices of cats guided them. Rook and Hades stopped in front of a large cage. Inside were huddled four cats. Rook remembered them. Alani, the pale yellow cat was the only one standing. Her face was pressed against the cold bars, her eyes wide with terror. They didn't seem so intimidating, cowering in a cage anymore. 
              "Hades!" exclaimed Alani happily. Behind her was the dark tabby cat. He smiled a little. The two other cats were curled up in balls, their faces hidden in the dark. 
               "You came!" said the tabby cat. 
                "Of course," nodded Hades, approaching the cage.
                "And you brought... him," added Alani, tilting her head. 
               "I'm helping him break you out," Rook told them. "So be grateful." He hoped they wouldn't attack him once they got out, although they didn't seem fit enough for that. 
               "Are you guys ok?" asked Hades. "Arian? Bear?"
               "Arian's ok," said Alani. 
               "Arian, it's Hades," the tabby said, nudging the the silver cat with the missing eye. She sat up. She smiled when she saw Hades.  
               "Bear, we're getting out!" cried Arian. Bear, the black cat, remained curled up although his eyes drifted to Hades and Rook.
               "We're not getting out," he snorted. "How are you going to open the cage?" Hades shrugged. 
               "We will get you out. I don't care how," he said. 
                "Chop chop then," Alani said excitedly. 
               "Come on," Hades said, motioning to Rook then at the cage door. 
                "You haven't introduced me," Rook pointed out, keeping his distance to the cage. 
               "Right well, this is Alani," Hades said, nodding to the pale yellow she-cat. "That's Stripe, as you know. Bear and Arian."
                 "Nice to meet you Rook," Arian, Alani and Stripe cooed. 
                "Hmmmm," Rook said, nodding uncertainly. "Like how happy you were when Domino and I came into your barn?" 
                 "That was a misunderstanding," Alani pointed out. 
                 "Yeah. Can we get on with it?" pushed Arian. Hades nodded. Together, Rook and Hades tried to pry open the lock. Rook dug his nails into the small hole in the padlock. After ten minutes of frustration, the lock finally snapped free. The four trapped cats filed out. Rook was surprised. He hadn't expected for their plan to work. Now they just had to get out without anybody catching them. 
                 "Let's go," Hades said, after they had all greeted each other happily. They leaped down towards the barn door. There were wails and cries of protest from the other cages. Rook ignored them. He wasn't staying in the barn longer than he had to. The six cats slipped out of the barn without any problem. They met up with Domino. 
                "You made it!" cried Domino. Then his eyes landed on the four cats that had almost killed him and Rook. His face fell slightly. Rook didn't know what he had been expecting. Domino looked as if he was suddenly reminded that the four cats he had helped save had tried to kill him. He looked like he was regretting his choices. 
               "Sorry, about the other day," Alani piped in. 
               "Yeah... um no problem," replied Domino awkwardly. Rook sniggered. They fled back towards civilisation. When they reached the sunflower field, Hades thanked Rook then Domino. 
               "Thanks a lot," smiled Alani, running her tail down Rook's spine. He felt shivers of pleasure run down his spine. He smiled a little. 
                "No problem," he winked. 
                 "Ugh, stop flirting," Bear rolled his eyes grumpily. 
                 "we're not flirting!" exclaimed Rook, distressed. 
                 "Ha," laughed Hades. "Thank you."
                 "remember your promise," Rook reminded him. "I want to know more about the Clans." 
                 "You have my word. I'll meet you here tomorrow right after dawn, sound good?" Hades said. 
                 "Yeah. Great. Thanks," smiled Rook. 
                  "Thank you both," Stripe said. "Again."
                  "Yeah, let's go. I don't want to spend more time with these retards," muttered Bear under his breath. Hades rolled his eyes but didn't say anything. 
                 "Let's go," Domino said quickly. Rook nodded. Once the two friends had reached the road and made their way towards Rook's house, Domino started blabbing nervously. 
                "At some point I spotted humans but they just passed the barn. I'm telling you, I almost died of fear. Ugh... and then when I saw those cats, something in my mind just clicked. I mean, I was so stupid to ever want to save them. They almost killed us!" exclaimed Domino. Rook laughed. 
                "It seems to me like you've got a good heart. Although you really are scared quickly, " Rook said. 
                "Well. I hope I never see them again," sighed Domino. 
                "I will. Tomorrow," Rook reminded him. Domino cringed. 
                 "Oh yeah," he murmured. "You don't mind if I don't join you?" 
                 "I guess. But why the sudden change of mind?" asked Rook. 
                 "I just- I don't know... sitting there, I realised I really don't want to die. I know I complain about my family... but that's what makes it home. I like it where I live. I want to live there forever.Or at least, a bit longer," Domino shrugged. 
                "Right," nodded Rook. "I'll see you tomorrow?"
                 "Yeah," nodded Domino. "After your meeting with Hades." 
                "Sure," smiled Rook. "You know he's going to ask why you're avoiding him."
                 "Once you're done talking about the Clans with him, they'll be out of our lives," Domino pointed out feeling relieved. 
               "Hmmm," Rook said, feeling unsure about that.