I honestly felt that I was at my peak, a light breeze blowing my long fur and my paws brushing through the grass as I made my way out of the forest, the sun high in the sky, and two large pieces of prey dead in my jaws that I had caught myself.

Gripping them both tightly, I reluctantly then left the trees behind me and proceeded forward, heading towards the gorge where me, Sparrow, and Chrissy were currently settled for the morning.

My parents quickly came into sight, the both of them sunning near the edge of the cliff and looking as if they could just stay there for days, not having a care in the world. It's a very nice day, and the view from this gorge is absolutely beautiful, I thought as my parents began to stir with my arrival. And their day is about to get even better!

I then held back a purr as I set the thrush and the shrew I had caught right at their paws. "Lunch has arrived!" I exclaimed. "I got a thrush and a shrew to avoid any conflict. Enjoy!"

Chrissy immediately rolled her eyes as she turned over to lay on her belly rather than her side. "Oh, please!" she sighed as she gave her mate a light nudge with her tail. "After all of this time I'd like to think that your father and I can learn to agree to disagree."

I then watched, still amused as my mother then exchanged a half-humored, half-skeptical look Sparrow before bending down to take a bite of her thrush. "Even though he's wrong."

As I then let out a mrrow of laughter, Sparrow gave Chrissy an affectionate look through narrowed eyes. "Why do I feel like this debate is never going to come to a close?"

I shrugged as I then settled down in front of my parents. "Hm, I suppose it depends on how other cats in the family fare."

Sparrow then let out an amused snort as he looked to Chrissy, and then to me. "Well, the pickings are slim, Mist," he meowed with laughter in his voice. "So, I feel like I have to ask your opinion!"

I broke my gaze from my father's abruptly, looking over my shoulder at the view of the waterfall and stream below. "I still decline to speak on the matter," I muttered quickly. Thank goodness I'm not hungry right now.

I then looked back at my mother to see her nodding slowly at me, her hazel eyes narrowed. "I respect your choice to play it safe, Mist, I'll admit that," she meowed before bending her head down to take another bite. "Either way, thank you for the prey! Where did you go to hunt?"

I looked over my shoulder once more and gave a flick of my tail, my stomach filling up with butterflies as I almost relived the experience of getting to hunt near the forest on my own. "Just below the gorge around the edges of the forest. Honestly, not too far from Barley's barn..."

I then let out a long, dramatic sigh as I then looked off in the direction I suspected Barley's barn to be, hoping my parents would catch on to what I was doing... and then comply. "Goodness, I'm sure that barn cat gets lonely sometimes... It's definitely been a little while since we've stopped by!"

I then looked back at my parents, meeting their gazes with wide eyes. "At least half a moon!" I then gasped, letting my head fall down to my chest. "Tragic..."

Sparrow simply stared back at me, giving a single nod. "Smooth."

"Thank you!" I then meowed, perking my head back up.

I then watched as my father also looked off to the side. "Well, I suppose you're right... I do miss the taste of endless amounts of mice..." he muttered before then looking over at his mate. "Chrissy?"

My ears flicked with excitement as my mother immediately gave an eager nod. "Sounds good to me!" she meowed as she then looked up to the sky. "If we leave after this meal, we surely should be able to be there by mid-tomorrow!"

I nearly let out a squeal with those words, but thought better of it almost simultaneously. But goodness, was I so excited to stop by the barn once again – each time we stayed never felt like enough time, and each time that we left, I immediately began to look forward to the next time. At this point, we had been stopping by to see Barley at least a couple or few times each moon, for the last three or four moons.

Even now as I was growing older, our visits there made me as giddy as a little kit – I loved climbing its hay bales, chasing said endless amounts of mice, looking at the view from the roof, and of course, Barley and Ravenpaw had become very dear to me with their warm energy and very kind hearts.

Now, time seemed to be going in slow motion at my anticipation to leave as I then watched Chrissy lick her lips and stand up. I anxiously stood up as well, and to be honest, I was shocked by how close in size I was to my own mother. We're nearly the same size even, I thought, my eyes widening as I flicked my gaze back and forth between me and Chrissy. When did that happen?

But I quickly pulled myself away from my thoughts as I noticed Chrissy then look down at Sparrow, her eyes narrowed once again. "Are you done eating your filth?"

Sparrow rolled his eyes, beginning to walk ahead of the both of us as I let out another mrrow of laughter. "I'm not feeding into that, you know."

Chrissy then sighed, running ahead to flank her mate. I trailed just behind them, no longer being required to walk in between them, as I listened to the two of them talk in front of me. "I guess I should have known I'd have to overlook some things when I decided to be with you," my mother then muttered.

Sparrow looked to my mother, then giving her a lick on the ear as a purr seemed to rise in his throat. "Well, I'm glad that you did."

"Aw, is someone trying to be sappy?" Chrissy meowed as she flicked her mate on the ear with her tail.

"Maybe."

"Aw, that's sweet."

I then snicked quietly as my father then abruptly pulled away from touching his muzzle to my mother's, lifting his head up and puffing his chest out. "Hm, I'm still not ever admitting that thrushes are superior."

Chrissy then let out a purr, nuzzling her head into Sparrow's chest. "That's okay," she then murmured softly. "I sill love you a lot."

I then had to hold back my own purrs as my father then licked my mother's head. "I love you too, Chrissy."

I then couldn't help but shake my head in amazement, still behind my parents as we padded closer and closer to the forest I had just hunted near. While it was something that I had thought about and hoped for for the entirety of my life, it seemed to happen more and more as of late. If I can find somebody and have half the relationship that my parents have sometime in the future, I'd be on top of the world... I thought, my stomach filling with butterflies just at the prospect of it. It must be so nice to have that kind of cat in your life that you can be so vulnerable and lovey-dovey with, and always have by your side...

I then flicked my ears and raised my eyebrows as another thought crossed my mind. I'm just over eight moons now... I wonder if I'll meet someone in the coming moons, but how?

I then shook my head quickly, abruptly pushing those thoughts away. As nice as that does sound... it also implies a reality that would eventually not include my parents... I realized, recalling the talk that me and my parents had at the tall stone area just a few moons ago. Finding that kind of love is not priority right now, I told myself. I have my parents, and that's all that I need.

Just as these thoughts were fading away, I felt my heart practically rise with excitement as we finally arrived at the edges of the forest where I had been just earlier – where I had hunted very intentionally in order to just get a glimpse of this area.

I had smelled so many strange scents – some of them I was certain were the strange scents of cats. Fresh ones. I'd almost felt an exciting feeling of danger just being around here, and was already beginning to feel it again as I trailed along with Chrissy and Sparrow.

Why? I knew that this was an area that Barley had told me that the wild cats live in.

Knowing this, I absolutely had to go deeper into those trees. "How about actually going into the forest?" I blurted out, looking eagerly at my parents as I ran ahead to intercept them. I then tilted my head to the side, widening my eyes just slightly. "Please?"

My mother immediately let out a grunt, slowly shaking her head. "You know that doesn't work as well now that you're older," she teased before peering past at the tall oak trees behind me, her gaze deep and pensive. "Well... I don't think that we've ever been in this area before, despite it being so close to Barley's barn."

She then looked back at Sparrow, who also seemed to be pondering with her. "I am curious to see what's around here."

Sparrow gave a slow nod, looking back at his mate. "I am as well, I have to admit!"

I took a step closer to my parents as I tried to keep my paws from kneading into the ground in anticipation. "Come on, what's the worst that could happen?"

With those words, Sparrow quickly shot his gaze back to me, one of his eyebrows raised. "Famous last words, Mist."

Chrissy let out a purr, then giving Sparrow a light nudge. "Well, what else can our philosophy be when we travel to unknown places and never settle down?"

Sparrow then looked back at his mate, his eyebrows now furrowed, before meowing after a few heartbeats, "Fine, Let's go."

Yes!

I then found myself taking the lead as the three of us then began to pad into the trees, the shadows and sun rays bursting through the trees casting over our pelts. I had already been to and traveled through countless amounts of forests in my life, but something about this one, knowing what I knew, made the whole thing feel so much more thrilling and exhilarating.

And just as I had hoped, almost as if the edge of the forest had been a barrier, as soon as we stepped into the trees, the scents I had only caught a whiff of earlier became so much stronger. If there had been any uncertainly before – I could now be certain that what I was smelling were the muffled scents of some sort of wild cats. Holy heck...

It was clear that my parents had also noticed the change – the both of them with their heads up in the air as they seemed to let all of the foreign scents flood through their nostrils. Sure, we every once in a while caught the scents of other cats while we traveled, but never, ever, had there been so many fresh ones at once.

Sparrow was shaking his head in amazement next to me as he looked around. "Wow, that is strong!" he exclaimed.

Chrissy then let out a sigh as she flanked me on my other side. "My goodness, you've got that right! So strong," she meowed, her head also shaking back and forth. "The fresh scent of so many cats at once..."

I then furrowed my eyebrows as Chrissy's gaze then shot over to me. "...as well as my intuition that tells me that Mist brought us here for a reason."

As Sparrow's gaze also shifted to burn into my skull, I began to flit my eyes around and shift my paws back and forth nonchalantly. "I don't know what you're talking about," I muttered, but when both of my parents continued to stare, I let out a sigh and rolled my eyes. "Come on, it's not like I want a run-in with any wild cats, I just want to look at some of the territory that Barley told me they live in!"

With those words, Sparrow let out a sigh and closed his eyes. "Fair enough," he muttered. And after exchanging a look with Chrissy, he went on. "But we have to be careful – I'm sure they wouldn't take well to strangers being even near their territory."

"Agreed," my mother meowed before gaping open her mouth to attempt to grasp at more scents. "It looks like no one has been through this area since a little past morning, and they hopefully don't have any reason to come around again unless they patrol their territory several times a day."

I couldn't help but flick my ears in intrigue at my mother's comment. Patrolling, I repeated to myself. They wouldn't have to patrol unless they had claimed the territory as their own... that's so neat! And very different...

I then pulled myself out of my thoughts as I felt Chrissy give me a nudge. "We'll explore around for a little while, Mist," she meowed, to my absolute excitement, "but for the sake of your safety... and your desire to go see Barley tomorrow, we can't be too long. Okay?"

I then couldn't help but sigh and roll my eyes. It's something! "Okay..." I murmured, pretending to be annoyed despite how happy I was just to get a few more moments in this forest.

"Good!" Chrissy replied, giving a sharp nod before turning around and beginning to trot through the clearing we were in. It almost immediately became clear to me that my mother was just as excited to look around this new, strange place as I was. "Now, let's see what's around!"

And that is exactly what I did, becoming overwhelmed in the best possible way as I simply walked slowly through the forest, slowly absorbing all of my surroundings, and not being able to help continuing to absorb all of the wild cat scents. Chrissy had been right – while it was clear that they had been in this area today, it had been most of the day since they had departed.

If I was being honest, it was almost refreshing to smell different cat scents, and ones that weren't just my parents' or Barley's.

"What in the world...?"

I quickly turned around at the sound of Sparrow's voice, immediately intrigued by the utter confusion in his meow. My gaze fell on him to find him hovering over something in the grass. Strange...

Almost simultaneously, Chrissy and I broke from our spots and ran up to meet my father, who I now could see was staring down at a dead rabbit. All three of us seemed to take a moment to process what we were looking at before my mother finally let out a grunt and took a step back. "That is one of the weirdest things that I have ever seen..." she then muttered.

After my moment of processing, I was still very confused. "What's weird about some prey on the ground?" I couldn't help but ask.

"Well, I suppose a dead animal is nothing out of the ordinary," Chrissy answered. "However, it is clear that someone..."

She then bent down to sniff the animal. "...a cat, killed this animal – it didn't die on its own."

Her hazel eyes then met my gaze as she gestured to a specific part on the rabbit with her tail – a specific part that was very... bloody. "Do you see that gash in its neck?" After I gave her a nod, she began to shake her head as she sat down. "My question is, why did they just leave it here instead of claiming it?"

"Right – even if they were going to come back for it, they'd likely bury it," Sparrow then commented. He then let out a snort and gave a shrug. "These wild cats must be mad!"

Mad, but very, very interesting...

Obviously, with this very weird sight, we proceeded in our exploration of the forest with extreme caution. However, I personally forgot about the incident within just moments.

I could only just barely see my parents in the distance now as I decided to travel deeper into the trees, the gorge that we had come from now far in the distance, and nowhere near in sight.

And as I stood there in the sunlight, my paws in the grass, and the wind slightly blowing my fur, I suddenly wasn't sure if I'd ever felt so comfortable. Something about several cats calling this specific place their home makes it feel so special...

And all over again, I was basically entranced by everything that overtook my senses – the sounds of bugs and birds twirping, and creatures stirring in the bushes, and the trees and bushes rustling with the wind, and the strange, very strange scents that flooded through my nostrils.

In fact, there were some that I was catching that I didn't recognize in any capacity, and I wasn't sure if that was a good or bad thing.

I began to travel father and farther away, fully under the assumption that Sparrow and Chrissy were perfectly fine with me wandering off for just a little while. They let me hunt on my own earlier, so this is nothing!

I then took an abrupt pause, my heart rising with panic as I found myself having to regain my footing as I nearly tripped over something. Shoot!

But luckily with all of my climbing, hunting, and jumping practice, I had become quite agile, and quickly got back up onto all four of my paws. What the heck did I just trip on? I thought as I gave a shake of my fur.

I then felt my eyes widen as I looked down at my paws. No way...

I couldn't believe it, but it was another dead animal – a squirrel this time – on the ground, that appeared to have been killed in the exact same way that the rabbit had. It was left out in the open, for one, but it also had a very similar gash along its neck that had surely been the cause for its loss of life.

Okay... I thought as I finally decided to step over it and continue in my travels. Two of them, and they were fairly close to each other. Do these wild cats just forget about the prey they've caught?

I then paused once again, quickly processing a very weird, ominous sound that I now realized I could hear from the distance. Or... do they just wait a little bit and then devour them ravenously?

To my complete fear, what I could hear in the distance was very clearly a mix of growling and very, very violent and vicious eating sounds. But despite my fear, I found myself pushing forward, my curiosity getting the best of me as always.

But I didn't have to look much further to discover what had been making the noise.

After peering through two bramble bushes, I was absolutely horrified to see what I recognized as two very large dogs, both devouring what looked like another dead rabbit that had been left their on its own.

I had seen several dogs before – if my parents and I ever traveled in small Twolegplaces, we'd every once in a while find a home with Twolegs that actually owned their own dogs – but I had never seen any sort of dogs that looked like this. These dogs were huge, rough-looking, and their eyes were filled with nothing but hunger as they practically ripped through the poor rabbit.

I could do nothing but stare for several moments. I have never seen dogs in a place like this, I thought to myself. But the fact that several of these dead animals were left here, all near each other makes me wonder...

I then just barely raised my head as I felt my mouth drop. Wait, are these animals bait for these dogs? Why?

Snap.

I then completely froze, and for one of the first times in my whole life, it suddenly felt as if death were right in front of me.

Without me even realizing it, I suppose I had shifted just slightly as I had delved into my anxious, curious thoughts, which had caused me to step on a twig.

And just as I had feared, both of the two large creatures looked up at the sound, now not showing any care towards the rabbit, who was now just bones at this point.

But neither dog would care about that, though – they'd now found a piece of prey that was much, much larger, and a piece of prey that brought them a challenge that would make them feel much more victorious once they were able to sink their teeth into it.

Just at the same moment that I decided to run, I could suddenly hear two heavy sets of footsteps pounding just behind me, the growls of the dogs practically blocking out anything else.

And as I could even feel the two creatures' hot, thick breath on my tail, I was certain that I had never been this terrified in my entire life.

And the two creatures continued to stay right on my tail until I finally decided to take the gamble and climb up one of the several thick oak trees, attempting to let out a squeal to let Chrissy and Sparrow know that I was nearby, and in very, very grave danger.

I luckily was making it up the tree trunk very quickly, and thought that I was just heartbeats from being at least somewhat safe. But I then let out a yowl full of pain when I suddenly felt very large claws dig into my right hind leg. Goodness gracious, I didn't think I was capable of feeling so much hurt at once!

Although something like that would typically prevent me from doing something as simple as walking, my adrenaline and fear allowed me to keep climbing, and eventually, I made it to the lowest branch that was completely out of either dog's reach.

And to my complete surprise, relief, and fear, just a moment later I fully recognized the dark gray and dark ginger blurs that suddenly burst into sight, leaping at the dogs as if they had fought creatures double their size before.

I found myself screwing my eyes shut most of the time the four were fighting, praying to some higher power like I never had before, fearing the worst despite my parents' clear skill and courage.

And hearing both Chrissy and Sparrow let out yowls of pain every once in a while certainly didn't help matters. And when I opened my eyes again, I thought that I would fall off the tree – almost numb with fear at this point as I realized that one of the dogs completely had my mother pinned to the ground, its teeth bared as it growled right in her face. No!

Sparrow was a few tail-lengths away fighting the other dog, and thank goodness, just a few heartbeats later, he seemed to be able to give it one last scratch across the face before it let out one final yelp and ran away.

But I then looked back at Chrissy, feeling helpless all over again as I then watched her dog bend down, grab her by the neck, and begin to shake her violently.

Sparrow quickly whipped himself around, letting out the most angry, ambitious, and determined growl that I had ever heard from him. "Chrysanthemum, don't move!" he then called out as he pelted towards his mate and the dog. "Resisting will only make it fight harder!"

Then, as my father leapt on the dog and began slashing at its back, I felt a chill run down my spine as I realized that Sparrow had called my mother by her full name – something he only did in very serious situations, or when he was very worried.

But I forced myself to continue to watch as Sparrow then creeped farther up the dog's back, and I found myself actually letting out a sigh of relief as the dark gray tom then proceeded to take his claws and slash them across the dog's eyes. This quickly caused the creature to let out a pained yowl, bringing my mother to fall to the ground.

And as Sparrow then leapt back down to the ground, prepared to defend his mate, the dog actually finally ran away, the blood from its bleeding eyes trailing behind it.

And as the dog's cries eventually faded into silence, I let out a small whimper and dug my head into the branch that I was on. Holy moly, holy moly...

"Mist? Mist, are you alright?"

I then frantically lifted my head up at the sound of Chrissy's voice, absolutely bewildered and relieved that she didn't sound hurt. "Y-yes, I'm fine!" I called down, my voice trembling as I tried to stand up.

And it was at that moment that I remembered what one of those stupid dogs had done to my back leg, and I found myself sinking back down into the branch. "Oh, except..."

At the bottom of the tree, I could very clearly see my father's dark gray eyes washing over with fear and worry as he noticed my bleeding paw. "Oh, gosh, Mist, your leg, hold on..." he meowed frantically as he then began to climb up the tree himself, stopping once he was just under the branch I was on. "Try to climb down, and please take your time. I'll be right under you to catch you if you slip."

I slowly nodded back at my father, having to accept that this was the only way I could get down, as I was getting much too big for either of my parents to try and carry me down. "...Okay," I breathed, not taking another moment to overthink it as I tried to make my way down.

"I'll be right back," Chrissy then called up, and I then her light pawsteps swiftly trotting away. "I'm going to try and find some herbs for that leg!"

And as my mother completely disappeared into the forest, time almost seemed to stop as I tried to slowly but surely make my way down the tree, trying to ignore the shooting pain in my leg every time that I moved it.

And I had actually made it about halfway through when I accidentally brushed it against the trunk, causing pain almost as strong as the initial infliction of the wound to shoot up my leg. Holy hedgeapples on a heap of hogs! I thought as I let out a hiss and tightened my grip in the tree.

If this had bothered Sparrow, he showed no indication, and was clearly trying to stay calm as he helped me down the tree. "You can do it, Mist," he whispered softly to me. "We're almost down."

By some miracle, my father was right, and we made it down the oak tree completely after a few more moments of hesitation and struggle. As soon as I got to my paws and had to put some weight on my injured leg, pain seemed to sear through my entire body this time, and I actually found myself having to swallow down the bile that was rising in my throat.

Sparrow quickly caught me as I fell to my side, and helped me to lie down right where I was in the grass. "Oh, Mist, I am so sorry," he sighed as he began to stroke my flank comfortingly. "Just stay there, and try not to put weight on it."

Both of us then flicked ours as the rustles of bushes came from the distance, and just a moment after that, I looked up to see my mother emerging from some bushes, her jaws filled with herbs. "Oh, thank gosh," my father then sighed as he moved out of the way, allowing my mother to drop all of her herbs right in front of me.

She then picked out one of the herbs – something that looked like a yellow flower petal – towards my father. "Here, you know the drill – chew that up for me," she meowed sharply. She then glanced over to me, her eyes urgent but warm. "Honey, can you try and stretch your leg out just a little bit?"

Darn it. With my teeth clenched, I slowly and reluctantly extend my injured leg. With how much doing that was already killing me, I hoped that I had done it far enough to let my mother do her thing.

I then kept my teeth clenched as she then proceeded to give my leg a few licks, and then dab what looked like clumped-up cobwebs across my wound. "It's been a while, but thank goodness this remedy stuck. Sparrow?" She then took the chewed herbs that my father had been working on and spread it over my wound. "That should ease the pain a little bit, and prevent it from getting infected."

She then took a step back, giving a sharp nod. "Something my own mother taught me. How does that feel?"

Still trying to power through the pain, I still managed to give my parents a spirited nod. "As good as it can feel, I guess!"

With those words, Chrissy let out a sigh, her eyes washing over with sympathy as she brushed her tail against my cheek. "You poor thing," she meowed softly before looking over her shoulder at the forest around us. "As much as I wish that we could make ourselves scarce with those dogs wandering this territory, I don't want to make Mist move another muscle with her injury."

She then very slowly looked back at where we were settled under the large oak tree. "It looks like we'll have to stay here for the night."

"I agree, unfortunately," Sparrow then breathed, looking just as uncertain as his mate did. "We'll just have to keep watch, and hope that we scared them away long enough for us to escape tomorrow while we can, with Mist's injury permitting."

With those words, I let my head fall to the ground as an overwhelming amount of guilt seemed to flow through my body. "I'm so sorry!" I suddenly burst out. "I really shouldn't have wandered off like that, and it got me into so much trouble."

I then took a quick glance at our place under the oak tree, feeling my heart continue to sink as I realized that we were almost completely exposed. "And now it's keeping us from being able to travel or stay out of danger," I then nearly whimpered. "I'm so, so sorry."

To my surprise, my mother simply let out another sigh, stroking my cheek with her tail once again. "It really is okay, Mist," she meowed, the warmth and reassurance in her voice sounding genuine.

"I beg to differ-"

To my amusement, Chrissy raised her tail to silence my father's words. She then flashed him a humored, but warning look, and after he took a step back, she looked back at me. "You are growing up, and you are also old enough to be able to go off on your own if you want to. At this point..." She then looked back at Sparrow, her eyes narrowed but gleaming. "We only freak out about you going off on your own because we love you and want to protect you for all of eternity, even if that's not possible."

Her and Sparrow then shared a purr of amusement. "Bottom line," she then continued. "It really is alright, and you most certainly could not help running into those two dogs."

Sparrow then sniffed, already seeming to calm down from his initial anger at me wandering off. "You had said that you didn't want a run-in with wild cats – did you want a run-in with dogs instead?"

After me and my mother let out another purr, she then narrowed her eyes as she looked out to the forest once again. "Still speaking of those dogs... I typically would be very surprised to see those idiots in a forest like this – Barley has never mentioned or warned us about dogs in this area either – but..."

She then looked worriedly back at the two of us. "After seeing those dead animals sprawled everywhere... I'm almost certain that those dogs were lured here."

I nearly let out a gasp, so excited that my mother had come to the same conclusion that I had. "That's what I thought too!" I expressed out loud. I then took the chance to express my confusion. "But why?"

"Gosh, who's to say?" Sparrow sighed as he gave a lash of his fluffy tail. "No matter the motivation, it proves that this territory is very dangerous, and also that..." I then was surprised to see him look back at me, his gray eyes narrowed and urgent. "If we ever run into this situation again, we have to make sure that Mist is ready to defend herself."

This time, I actually did gasp, and I had to ignore another shooting pain through my leg with my sudden movement. "Fighting lesson once we get to Barley's barn?"

"It's a deal!" Chrissy exclaimed. She then took a step closer to me and began to stroke my head with her tail. "Now try and get some rest, my love – that poultice mixed with some good sleep should help that wound heal in no time." She then bent down to actually lick my head once again. "Goodnight. Your father and I will be right here keeping watch."

"Okay, goodnight, mother," I purred, taking in my mother's scent before then touching my muzzle to Sparrow's cheek. "Goodnight, father."

"Goodnight, Mist," he immediately replied. He then flicked my ear with his tail. "We love you so much."

"I love you both too," I then meowed softly as I watched my parents begin to walk over to their spots. I then flicked my ears as I remembered something else that I wanted to say. "Mother? Father?"

Both of them immediately paused and looked back, both of their gazes suddenly full of concern and worry.

But I quickly flashed them a reassuring look as I gave them a nod. "Thank you so much for saving me."

To my amusement, Chrissy sighed with relief, exchanging a warm look with Sparrow before giving me a slow nod. "Always, sweetheart," she whispered back to me before she and Sparrow then made their spots for keeping watch, and I bent my head down, ready to sleep off this crazy day.