Chapter 10

Cool leaffall air brushed past Ravenflight's fur when she finally opened her eyes. Her claws unsheathed as she stretched out her back. Twoleg nests loomed around her when she got a good look at her surroundings. The Portal had led her to another Twolegplace.

For a moment she wondered how far the Clans were from here. Than she remembered why she had left them.

Right, I'm not going back to that, she reminded herself.

She glanced around and spotted Coal stepping out of what appeared to be a nest surrounded by other Twoleg nests. He blinked for several heartbeats before he managed to realize where they were.

"What are these things?" Coal asked when he stood beside her.

"Twoleg nests," she explained. "Now pipe down. We have a mission to complete."

She could feel Coal's stare boring into her pelt. But at this point she didn't care. She kept up a steady pace, avoiding the busy streets of Twolegplace as she picked up the faint scent of the forest. Something told her that Clan territory wasn't far from here.

Ravenflight's tail flicked back and forth when Coal managed to keep up. He padded alongside her, looking happier than ever to be away from Eden.

"I don't understand why you've been so... angry lately," Coal meowed after she came to a halt.

"You want to know why I've been so angry?" Ravenflight suddenly whipped around and glowered at him. Coal simply tilted his head in response. Ravenflight felt her pelt bristling before she continued, "You really don't get it. I saw the way you were mooning over that... other she-cat. Nellie." She spat out the name before looking away.

Coal stared at her in disbelief before shaking his head. Ravenflight's eyes narrowed once more when she realized he didn't understand.

Without warning she spun around and started to run. She didn't care where her paws took her, as long as she was away from him.

Bitter anger coursed through Ravenflight as she followed the scent of the forest. She could hear Twolegs yelping in surprise as she surged past them. Monsters whirled by on the Thunderpath that stretched beside her.

Twolegplace was nothing like the forest or Eden. Ravenflight sensed danger where ever she went. She could feel eyes watching her in every direction.

Something sharp nailed her in the shoulder. Ravenflight let out a yelp of surprise and pain when she was sent flying across the white Thunderpath. Disbelief coursed through Ravenflight when she spotted three powerful looking rogues approaching her.

"Looks like we've caught ourselves a rat," sneered a long-haired silver she-cat. She flicked a torn ear towards the big brown and white tom, whose fur was fluffed up as he glared at Ravenflight.

"Heh, you're right," he hissed. "What should we do with the little rat?" He glanced at the third cat - a lithe looking black she-cat with piercing green eyes.

"What we do with all of the street rats," the black she-cat spat. "She is an intruder who deserves to die."

She flicked a long, whip-like tail at the long-haired she-cat, whose eyes glittered with delight.

These cats enjoy killing, Ravenflight realized.

Ravenflight staggered to her paws and looked at the gang. The black she-cat didn't look as surprised as her companions.

"Kill her!" Rage boiled within Ravenflight when she dodged a blow from the brown and white tom. Smoke began to fume from her claws as after unsheathing them.

The two rogues that were fighting her stared in disbelief when a fireball was thrown towards the black she-cat. The black she-cat simply dodged to the side, ignoring the flames that now caught onto a Twoleg nest.

Ravenflight was about to throw another fireball when she heard a snarl coming from behind. All three rogues looked at her with horror when a bark sounded. Ravenflight whirled around to see a fox crouching before the rogues, lips drawn back in a snarl. Pure white fangs gleamed as the fox got ready to spring.

"Run!" The screech came from the long-haired cat, who whipped around and made a run for it. The other two followed suit, pelts bristling with terror when the fox let out another snarl.

Relief washed over Ravenflight when the rogues were out of sight. She turned to face the fox once more, pelt laying flat as she struggled to keep calm.

"How did you find me?" she demanded after catching her breath.

Heartbeats seemed to pass before the creature's body began to change. Long red fur began to be replaced with shorter dark ginger fur. A shorter muzzle pointed towards her when Coal changed back.

"I changed as soon as you left... I wasn't sure what to do after you said all that you did," he admitted sheepishly. "Look, I didn't know you were upset about Nellie. But there's nothing between us. She may like me but I don't... not that way at least. You're the one I care about, Ravenflight."

Ravenflight looked back at Coal in shock. No one had ever shown any affection towards her. Everyone thought that she was a traitor in the Clans. Coal knew nothing about that, and yet here he was, admitting something she would never have expected.

"Coal... I don't know what to say," she murmured.

"Ravenflight, I care about you more than you would ever know," he meowed. His legs were trembling as he continued, "And... I was hoping that when this is over... we could maybe live together?"

"I... I don't know." Ravenflight hesitated before she looked away. "I need time to think about it."

Coal's tail dropped in disappointment when he realized she would leave it at that. She didn't want to admit that she had feelings for him. Maybe she did. Maybe that was why she had been so jealous when Nellie was flirting with him.

"Let's keep going, the sooner we get this mission done and over with the better," she sighed.

The two of them went on, ignoring the Twoleg nest that had finally caught on fire. They needed to reach the forest as soon as possible. Life on Eden depended on a successful mission.


AN: So I kind of lied about taking a break on this. I really love this series, and Ravenflight's one of my favorite characters. And what did ya think about the team-up between Ravenflight and Coal? Please let me know in a review!