It was night time; well past what would normally be considered bed time. I wasn't in my room at The Hole, though: I was with my brother. The old lady didn't care when I came home, as long as it wasn't in a police car.

I was running alongside my brother. We just charged the forest, like we used to on the Dome ship or on the Andalite home world. The past few months were not good on me, I realized, as it was harder to keep up with him than it used to be.

((Are you tired?)) he asked me, as we leaped over a log.

"Of course not!" I objected, puffing. Unlike Aximili, I had to use air to speak. It was exhausting to talk and run like this at the same time. Dodging around trees and over bushes didn't help, either. There was more open space back home than there is in this forest. Aximili had no trouble, though. Four legs help a great deal in that.

((We are about to approach the highway,)) Aximili said, slowing down and eventually stopping.

"Let's turn around then!" I said. He didn't move. He was breathing rather heavily. "Don't tell me you're tired!" Of course, I was sweating and panting on my own. It was a great run; I haven't had one of those in a while.

((Let's go back,)) he suggested.

"Alright." We started walking back to where his scoop was. It would take an hour or so to get there at this pace, but the walk was nice, with the cool air hitting our faces.

((You're not as carefree as you used to be,)) my brother pointed out.

"I was never carefree."

((You were at some point.))

"Well, when your brother dies, you tend to get a little miffed." Aximili lowered his stalk eyes in respect.

((Yes, I suppose you're right.))

"I should have listened to Mother and stayed home with her."

((If you had done that, we would not be together.)) He looked at me and smiled the way only an Andalite could smile.

I smiled back. "Yes, I suppose you're right." As we walked, I heard a faint ruffle of feathers and looked up. Tobias was perched in a tree near us.

((Hello guys,)) he greeted.

"Hello."

((What are you doing up so late?))

"I could ask you the same thing."

He started preening his feathers. ((I heard some noises and came to check it out.))

((We are sorry,)) Aximili said, ((I did not know we were disturbing you.))

((No, it wasn't you guys,)) Tobias assured. ((They were different noises than yours. You guys were just crashing through the forest.)) If a bird could wink, he probably would have. ((These noises sounded more cautious and curious. I hope you're not being spied on. I would check it out for you better, but it's night time, so my eyesight is as good as yours right now.))

"Do you know how close they are?"

((It sounded like they may have been several yards away.))

"Far enough not to hear me talking?"

((I think so.))

"Good." I started morphing. If Tobias couldn't check it out, I would. I've acquired enough morphs over the past few months to have one for every situation. I needed one that could see in the dark and be prepared to fight, if necessary. I would look a little out of place in this forest, unfortunately, but at least I wouldn't be seen until it was too late.

I felt that I was a fairly good morpher, having had a lot of practise in the past. Therefore, when I began the morph, the first thing that happened was that my skin turned pitch black. Next, it began to get furry. Tobias commented, ((You're as good a morpher as Cassie is.))

"Thank you," I whispered. I didn't want those people to hear me. My knees shifted next, making it impossible to stand upright. As soon as my hands hit the forest floor, they began to change to massive paws. My tailbone extended about thirty inches outwards, giving me a nice, thin, black tail. My body itself also grew and thickened, mostly with muscle.

My ears also crawled to the top of my head and turned triangular. My eyes turned golden and cat-like, while my face extended outward to form a muzzle. To fill the space in my now much larger mouth, my teeth multiplied, thinned and sharpened. My nasal passageways grew as well, and I could smell everything in the forest.

By the time my whiskers formed, I was very much aware of the bird sitting on the tree branch above me. I could reach it easily. I didn't move towards Tobias, of course. I was fairly good at keeping predator instincts in check, as I often consider myself one as well.

I had become Panthera onca: Black Panther. My fur matched the darkness perfectly. I could hide myself among the bushes easily. Because panthers live in forests, I could even move among the leaves quietly as well. My hearing increased as well, and I could now hear the small rumble of voices a little way off.

((I can't even see you anymore,)) Tobias said.

((I'm going to go check out those voices now,)) I replied. I stalked in the direction of the voices, barely making a sound.

((What should we do?)) Aximili asked.

((Wait for further instruction.)) I only needed to move a few yards before my ears and eyes could comprehend what was going on. There were two people in the forest, hanging around one spot on the ground. One of them was holding something. From my angle, I couldn't see what it was. The other was seemingly just wandering around in a circle, stomping the ground softly every now and then.

"Stop doing that!" the person holding the thing growled, after the other stomped the ground rather loudly. "Someone or something will hear you."

"I can't find the spot if I don't stomp!"

"I still don't understand why we're out here. And at night of all times. Couldn't we come back in the day time?"

"The chances of us getting caught are slimmer at night. Everyone's asleep."

"I thought Andalites never sleep."

"Shows how much you know then." He stomped again and I heard a loud CLICK.

((What was that?)) Tobias asked. It must have been loud enough for him to hear it as well.

((I don't know yet,)) I answered.

"Found it!" proclaimed the stomping human.

"You didn't tell me it was so loud! You could have woken up the whole forest!"

"Relax; Andalite hearing isn't that good. Only animals with exceptional hearing would have heard it if they were nearby."

"Andalites can morph, stupid!"

"I already told you that they're all asleep!" The two of them got to their knees and began digging. "Turn that thing on, moron!"

"Oh, right." He flipped a switch and the thing he was holding lit one flashing red bulb. Once their small hole was dug, they sort of buried the device and stood back up.

"There. Now if any Andalite walks on our little trap, we'll have a prize for Visser Three and we'll become his right hand Yeerks. I told you this was a brilliant idea."

"Does that mean we're done? This human body is exhausted."

"Yes, we're done. You'll see. By tomorrow, we'll be the most famous Yeerks of all time."

"And I'll finally have a Hork-Bajir host instead of this useless human one."

"You see? Everything will work out."

I decided it was time to fill Tobias and Aximili in. ((They just finished setting up a trap of some kind. No doubt if an Andalite steps on it, he'll be trapped.))

((Trapped how?)) Tobias asked.

((I don't know. That's all I could gather. I'm guessing the device they buried in it tracks Andalites somehow, so as not to trap anything else.))

((In other words, Ax's in trouble.))

((Precisely.))

((How do we disable it? How many are there?))

((I don't know… Yet.))

((Yet? What do you mean by-?)) But before he finished, I had already jumped out of my hiding place and well into view of the two Yeerks. They barely looked up to see what the rustling was before I had landed on one of them.

I was 130 pounds of muscle and I not only knocked him to the ground, but by pinning him there, I must have made it very difficult for him to breathe. My cat eyes flashed in the darkness, creating a frightening display indeed.

The other Yeerk was just shivering a little ways off. I was aware of his presence, although my attention was focused on the one I was on. ((What are you doing here?!)) I roared at the two of them.

The one that was under me said to his friend, in a shaking voice, "You were wrong: they are awake at night."

I roared a fairly loud panther roar. It was loud enough to wake up all the birds nearby and cause them to take flight. It was loud enough to provoke other roars and chatter from other animals. It was also loud enough for the two Yeerks to scream and cower slightly. ((When I ask a question, I do not wish to be ignored!))

"We're sorry!" they both said at once. The one under me babbled, "It wasn't my fault! I didn't want any part of this! He told me to come here!"

((How many of these did you set up? And be warned: if you lie, your health will be in great danger of getting worse.))

"Five! Only five! I swear by it!"

"You idiot!" the other hissed. "Who are you more afraid of? This Andalite or Visser Three?"

((From what I heard,)) I pointed out, he does not know of this. ((Would he be pleased if you informed him of working behind his back?)) The two said nothing. No, he wouldn't be pleased. Of course not: he likes to be in the middle of everything. ((You will take me to each trap and dismantle it correctly before my eyes, understand?))

"Y-Yes sir!" I got off the one Yeerk and he immediately jumped to his feet. They both looked as if they'd flee, but I had better vision, speed and strength than they did; they would not get far if they ran.

((Sarah that could take hours!)) Tobias told me sternly. ((And you're already in trouble for jumping out there without a plan!))

((What would you have me do instead?)) I asked him, following the Yeerks as they approached the other trap they set up. Although Tobias was right, I was determined to see this to the end.

((I don't know; maybe thought about it? And they still could be lying about how many traps they set up in the first place.))

((I will trust my sister's judgement,)) Aximili spoke up at last. Inside, I grinned. ((What will you have me do?))

((Do you have any nocturnal morphs?))

((A few.))

((If Tobias is right, and this takes hours, we'll have to do this in shifts. After about an hour and a half, you'll follow them, and so on.))

((Agreed.))

I felt like my General instincts were coming back. Taking charge, leading an army, making decisions… This was not my place anymore. The title of 'leader' belonged to Jake now, not me.

But Jake was not here, and I had already gotten into this mess. I had to take charge to get out of it. I heard Tobias scoff in my head and fly off, probably back to his tree. I heard my brother silently follow behind me, making sure to keep his presence away from the Yeerks in front of me.

This was not how I expected to spend my night, but we did manage to disarm all five traps before the sun poked up. I allowed the two now exhausted Yeerks to leave alive, and waited for them to be gone completely before I demorphed back to human.

((I am glad you let them go,)) Aximili said. ((There was a time when you would have killed them without hesitation.))

"Yeah, I know," I replied. I smiled at him. "But you and your brother gave me a conscious."

((Annoying thing sometimes, isn't it?))

I laughed. "Yes. But it is useful."

((Yes.))