~A couple moons later~ 

 Spark dragged the scrawny lizard across the stony, rough surface of the twoleg path. Giving a small oomph, the she-cat dropped the prey at the center of a bushy clearing in the park. She let her tail swish twice before squinting and parting her jaws to taste the air. Her eyes snapped open and her neck fur bristled.

  "Storm! Holly! Wolf!" she raced over to the two she-cats and the tom at the edge of the clearing. She gave a low snarl and tumbled forward, aiming for the gray she-cat Spark had known her entire life. Her eyes narrowed into slits, her claws unsheathed and glinted. The dark furred she-cat next to the gray figure cranked her neck backwards swiftly, mewing sharply to alert her littermates before she bared her teeth at the approaching cat.

  Spark charged forward at top speed, tumbling into the gray she-cat, who was on her paws yet knocked over by the larger weight.

  "Spark!" Storm yelped and shoved Spark away as the two cats collided into a heap of russet-and-gray fur. A barely suppressed mrrow of laughter exploded from behind, and Spark leapt to her paws, touching muzzles with the black-furred she-cat.

  "How have you been, Holly?" she purred, breathing in the warmth of her friends. She heard a grunt then a giggle, and turned back to see a spiky-furred, ungroomed ball of fur shaking off Storm's happy form. Spark gaped at Wolf, the spiky-furred tom who just woke up, wondering how could a cat get his fur so messy. Realizing that she was staring, she tore her gaze away and started laughing uncontrollably with Holly, who was rolling on the ground with laughter.

  "Oh, Holly," Spark swallowed her outbursts and tried to act serious, raising her eyebrows and curling her tail over her paws elegantly, "How do you live with a brother like that?" However, she couldn't help but hide a smile, knowing that she was lucky to have such a life, with true friends who would stay with her through anything, and a family that would love her like she love them back. The black-furred she-cat grinned at Spark, making her feel another unexpected rush of joy through her pelt.

  "You'll get to used to it, if you have Wolf as a brother every day!" Holly joked, resting her tail-tip on Spark's shoulder, "How's life?"

  "Pretty nice," Spark purred, sitting on her haunches, "The same little twoleg with the weird flasher and the old female twoleg comes as usual, putting down some food for us." The russet she-cat sat up straighter, "I'd prefer a tasty sparrow over twoleg food anytime, although Amber would probably disagree. Where is that lazy furball, anyways?" She parted her jaws to taste the air again, scenting no hints of the ginger tom. Twitching her tail in half-amusement, half-annoyance, she glanced over her shoulder to see Storm carrying a squirrel in her jaws.

  "You caught that? Cool!" Spark mewed, proud of her friend. She stole a glance towards her scrawny lizard, and back towards the squirrel. Well. She thought half-heartedly. I've never been much of a hunter, anyways, more like a fighter!

  "I was hoping that Amber would be here, is he?" Storm mewed with a tinge of sadness in her voice. Spark's whiskers twitched, even more annoyed now that Amber still wasn't here.

  "No, he's not here. Yet," Spark smiled, feeling the tiniest bit anxiety flutter in her guts. She drew a paw over her ear, concealing her thoughts. Wolf had stumbled towards the friends, sitting between Spark and Storm. The russet she-cat felt a strange sense of relief, then internally scolded herself for it. Nothing is wrong. She told herself, yet her instinct voiced a whisper in the back of her mind. Are you sure? Amber had been late, but not this late. Had something happened?  Spark hissed aloud, receiving a worried look from Holly, before drawing her tail over her muzzle, embarrassed.

  "I was just thinking about this story," she tried to explained to her friends, however couldn't explain to herself why she was lying, "When I saw a tortoiseshell she-cat at the edge of the park. It was cold and freezing, and that cat was trying to drink from a puddle..." Her mind trailed off as she began telling the funny story Fog had told she and Amber countless times. Which only made her think more about her brother. He still wasn't here, and the knot in her belly tied together even tighter.

  "Storm! Wolf, Holly!" she heard a voice calling for her friends, "time to go!"

  "Spark, we have to go!" Fog mewed to Spark, and Storm touched muzzles with Spark and licked her shoulder afterwards. The russet she-cat smiled, and returned the gesture. It was a tradition of the friends: their own way to saying farewell, parting after a happy day.

  As Spark stared after Storm, Holly, and Wolf's disappearing silhouettes, the strange sensation in her gut crept up on her once again. She shook her head, feeling a foreign sorrow in her belly. There is nothing to be sad about. Spark told herself over and over. No reason I should feel this.

  Yet she couldn't get rid of the ominous thoughts that seemed to be shadowing her every day.

~~~

Also read Spirit's The Silence in My Voice (soon to be published), to catch on the day in Storm's point of view! Learn all about Storm and her life there!

Another chapter! Pretty happy chapter in general, but some darkness and action coming up! *Grins evil-ishly* Again, all comments welcome, thanks for reading! I hope you like the darkness butterfly on the top, I just love the image for some reason >:D

~River

Edits done by Spirit.