Chapter 13

"Get up," Socks said, not unkindly. "Let's get a head start. I might be a little slow walking there."

Fleet sighed. "Okay." Slowly, he rose to his paws. Outside, Socks had a small bird waiting for him.

"Eat it quickly. There's no point in starving you when you're trying to get stronger, now is there?" She pushed it over to him and he ate about half.

"The rest is yours. No point in starving you when you're trying to mentor, now is there?" Fleet replied with a smile. Socks obliged, and the two left the camp in a hurry.

"Alright, Fleet. There's something we need to talk about," Socks said once the doors had closed.

"What would that be?"

"Tiger."

"How did I know?"

Blackbirds chirped loudly from their high places, heralding the new day. The sky was overcast and dark, an angry looking gray color that promised rain at the least. The few humans on the streets were covered in thick pelts and furs, likely to keep them warm, and Fleet could see his breath pluming before him.

"He needs to be taken care of," Socks said simply. "He's a threat. No-he was a threat. Now he's worse."

"Surely we can get him to leave. Right? If it's that or his life, he'll leave."

"Sure he will. But that doesn't mean that he won't come back with allies. If he ambushes us in our own camp, we're done for. The needs of the many outnumber the needs of the few, don't they?"

Fleet's tail tip twitched in irritation. "You seem to have made up your mind," he said, a slight hiss in his voice. "Why ask me at all?"

"Because you think differently than I do," she answered without hesitation. "Wouldn't you agree?"

She's got a point.

"Tiger and I always thought the same. I've made bad decisions too, because no one wanted to challenge me. That's what's different about you, Fleet. That's why I like you," Socks continued with a smile. "That's also why, once Tiger is out of the way, I want you to be my second. You've got a good head on your shoulders."

"Uh...thanks," he replied, flushing. Vaguely he remembered a past conversation with Lion, what seemed to have been so long ago.

"You must befriend her if you ever want her to consider your information. Bring her rats, make her a nest, find her gifts. In short, you must be a real...suck-up, as city-cats say."

Fluffy thought about it for a moment before a purr rose in the back of his throat. "Sounds like you want her to fall in love with me," he accused teasingly.

"That," Lion replied with a mischievous grin, "would be perfect."

"Now we need to go and train," Socks said, jolting Fleet back to the present. "That is what I'm supposed to be doing, you know."

"Yes, of course," he replied. A drop of freezing water fell onto his head, and he sighed. "Do tender-paws train in the rain?"

"They do, but I don't think I should be getting wet. At least, that's what Flora said," Socks answered, looking up at the dark sky.

The two moved as quickly as they could to a building with a colorful overhang. The humans couldn't be bothered with anything, all scrambling to get out of the rain in their awkward way, so Fleet and Socks went unnoticed. The brown she-cat laid down on her uninjured side, resting her head on her paws.

"Stupid rain," she grumbled. "It'll scare off all the prey. You're not eating tonight. The kit-mothers need it more."

Once a leader, always a leader, Fleet thought with a smile.

"What are you grinning about?" Socks scowled.

"You," he replied, poking her in the shoulder. "You're the funniest cat I know."

She rolled her eyes. "Shut up," she hissed, flicking him with her tail.

"Why should I?" Fleet purred. "You're not leader anymore. Besides, you're cute when you're angry."

"What are you trying with me?" Socks hissed, a look of wariness in her eyes as she raised her head to glare at him. "I don't like being messed with."

"I'm not messing with you. I'm complimenting you. You probably don't get compliments often, do you?"

Socks sighed, resting her head on her paws again. "No. I guess not. Maybe I'm not...approachable enough for cats to come and talk to me."

Fleet was shocked that the brown tabby was opening up like that, but knew that mentioning it would probably cause Socks to close again. "You were a great leader, Socks. Everyone agrees. All the Diamonds arguing with him when you were...injured probably ended up saving your life. They love you."

"Maybe so. But I was a leader, not a friend."

Fleet shrugged. "You're my friend."

Socks looked up again, eyes seeming to glow with a silver light. "I am?"

"Of course."

The two sat there for the duration of the rain storm, which grew in intensity until they were forced to hide behind a dumpster to escape the wind. The sky grew darker still with the coming of night, and the rain slowed to a light drizzle.

"We'd better get back in case it picks up again," Fleet said, looking out at the sliver of the outside world he could see from behind the metal bin.

Socks had to lean on him as they traveled the short distance, the cold having seeped into her skin and made her bones sore. She called for the door guards, and they opened the doors quickly, ushering her inside. As ordered, Fleet did not eat his evening meal, instead warming up in his den with Lion. The yellow tom-cat was amused by the day's events, though his merriment didn't last long as the conversation turned to Tiger.

"What should we do?" Fleet asked, lying in his nest. "He can't stay as the leader."

"As long as he has his position," Lion answered after a moment of thought, "he is not in need of attempting anything drastic too soon. Should he be given more time to mould his band, he will prove more dangerous. However, I believe that he is not fully comfortable with his leadership yet. I would say that you should spend this time strengthening in preparation for driving him out, or whatever you and Socks decide to do."

"Really? The way Socks has been talking about it, it sounds like we need to get him out right away," Fleet said. "She's really stressed."

"Socks thinks in the moment. She is worried for the safety of the band, like a good leader should be, but I do not believe she realizes that as long as his thirst for power is sated, Tiger will not cause any immediate harm," Lion replied, climbing into his own nest. "I rather dislike the damp," he added, wrinkling his nose and settling deeper into his fluffy bed.

Fleet sighed. "Me too. It gets dark so early now. There's no time for anything during the day."

There was no reply from Lion, as the tabby tom-cat had already fallen asleep.