A/N's:

Alright, so this chapter was updated fairly quickly. To be honest, this chapter was a bit of a filler. It's just so you could be properly introduced to our little friend down here; Foxblaze. He and precious little Belle are going to be our main characters, with the odd other POV as we progress along. Hopefully he's a likeable character.

So, the next update might be a little while, as I'm up to my elbows in writing and am currently trying to update my other stories. The next chapter of Sides is going to be out soon (which by the way *cough cough* if you're into PJO, you should totally check out), it's just currently undergoing major behind the scenes editing. Also, I'm currently typing up River and Hail, and Jinxed is going in for a major brainstorming session, as I'm having huge writers block with that. My poor little Clarity must be getting so lonely over there. Tied is currently on hiatus while I fix up some other things, but other than that I think I've addressed everything.

Thanks for sticking by (if you've even bothered to read down this far) and enjoy the story!

Thank You's;

Thank you so much to Moonsplash3201 for favouriting the story.

Reviews;

Gamblers Are Never Happy -Thank you so much! Hope that you enjoy this chapter.

CHAPTER TWO: Shadows

Foxblaze

"Oi, you pesky little rascal!" Foxblaze darted after Tawnykit, purrs rumbling from his throat. The kittens were in a pesky mood, and Ripplekit wasn't feeling well, so Foxblaze had offered to keep the kits occupied while the queens took Ripplekit - and Cloudkit - to Hazelcloud. That meant running around, something that was almost exhausting as the little scraps of fur darted circles around him.

Still, Foxblaze didn't really mind. He had always been told that he had a lot of energy, so at least this way he could put it to good use. Waiting for the perfect moment, he batted a sheathed paw at Tawnykit, but in an instant her brother was there, growling playfully.

"Leafkit, I thought you were on my side!" Foxblaze questioned with a mock offended tone. The dark grey kitten shrugged, grinning as Tawnykit and Thunderkit skidded to a stop beside him.

"Us kits have to stick together," Thunderkit meowed proudly, puffing his chest out. Foxblaze felt his fur ruffle as he growled playfully at them. There was something about the innocence and naivety of kittens that seemed to warm his heart. As he was about to attack again, he felt a light weight leap onto his back, and tiny paws cling onto his fur.

Foxblaze let out a mock yell, gently throwing a familiar ginger blur off his back.

An amused purr came from next to Foxblaze, and he spun to see Ivytail blinking warmly at them. "I see you're having fun there," she meowed, eyes glittering in an unreadable emotion. "But Windtail called for you kittens to come inside."

As Thunderkit began to crow his triumph, Ivytail stopped him. "And I'm sure Skyfeather wants you inside as well. You all need a bite to eat, you can come out to play later. Don't disturb Ripplekit, he's sleeping, and he's not been feeling well."

It was with reluctant meows of protest that the kittens dragged themselves back to the den, tails trailing along the ground and paws scuffing at the dirt.

Ivytail padded forward to sit next to Foxblaze, wrapping her tail neatly around her paws. With a nervous tingle, Foxblaze realised that their fur was brushing gently. "How's Ripplekit?"

"Not well," Ivytail sighed, sweeping her tail back and forth gently. "He's so weak already, what with the difficult birth, and he's only getting sicker. Windtail's refusing to hear it, but-"

Whatever the pretty she-cat had been about to say next was cut off by an urgent yowl. Brackenpaw burst into the camp, skidding to a stop and calling out blindly, looking rather confused. Foxblaze jumped to his paws and ran over immediately, concern ruffling his pelt. He took comfort in Ivytail's faint presence as he checked over the young tom.

"What's wrong?" Ivytail questioned, as cats started to gather, whispering anxiously. Gossip was already spreading through the camp at a hair-raising rate. At this point, the whole forest would know that something was up.

"Our patrol encountered two cats on our territory," Brackenpaw panted, his flank heaving with each breath that he drew. "They're being escorted to camp now, and they're really injured."

A familiar calico she-cat slid into the commotion, eyes glittering in confidence. Poppystar always seemed to know when and where to jump into action. "Ivytail, run and tell Hazelcloud and Honeypaw to prepare their herbs."

Ivytail dashed away immediately until all that was visible was a cream tail disappearing into the medicine cat den.

"Foxblaze, Thrushpool. Go set up the spare den."

Foxblaze frowned, russet fur bristling in irritation. "Poppystar, how do we know if they're safe to be let in camp?" His mind hadn't forgotten the innocent kits who had stumbled into the nursery. He didn't want them to be in danger, but it appeared Poppystar wasn't listening, already ordering other cats around to do various duties.

"They'll be safe enough in the spare den. Two injured cats against a whole group of Clan cats will be nothing," Thrushpool meowed sensibly, already nudging Foxblaze in the right direction. "Just do as told, you can talk it over with Poppystar later, alright?"

Foxblaze shook his head, suddenly feeling foolish. "Yeah, sorry. I'll sweep out the den if you get the moss?"

Thrushpool only responded by scurrying off to gather the bedding. Foxblaze bounded over to the spare den, widening the entrance with his muzzle. As he squeezed his way in, he wrinkled his nose in slight disgust. The spare den obviously hadn't been used in a while, it was dusty and smelt damp. Shaking it off, he began to clear it up a bit, turning over the dirt and making it a tad more presentable. There was nothing much he could do, but he was saved when Thrushpool squirmed in with a bunch of moss and bracken. The two worked together to make some nests, but before they could do anything else, Thrushpool picked up some commotion.

"That'll be those injured cats," Foxblaze pointed out, and the two quickly made their way out and over to the crowding cats. Sure enough, Brackenpaw had been right. Frostfur and Fernfoot were supporting two heavily injured cats. One was a pure black tom, with a noticeable white foreleg. The other was a ringed ginger and black she-cat. Both were covered in heavy scratches and wounds.

"Who are you?" Petalstep was demanding, whisking her tail back in forth in suspicion and anger. Foxblaze secretly admired the deputy's strength, and how she seemed intimidating in the smallest ways and simplest things, but still kept a rational way of thinking. He was pleased to think that he had been taught by the best.

"I'm Pearl, and he's Chase," the she-cat meowed weakly, slumping her weight on Fernfoot. Foxblaze felt a stab of pity for the two, his previous anger now gone. While he still felt wary, he doubted that these two rogue cats would be able to harm the Clan in anyway. Comforted by the thought, he pushed his way closer to stand next to Ivytail, who had returned from getting the medicine cats. Most cats were hovering a safe distance away from the cats, as if afraid they would lash out and kill anything they touched.

"Why are you here?" Petalstep pressured, not seeming in the least concerned by their wounds and scratches.

Pearl and Chase exchanged looks, before Chase spoke, looking tough despite his weathered condition. "We were kittypets," he said roughly. Despite his tough exterior, Foxblaze thought he caught glimpses of pain in the black tom's eyes. They don't look anything like kittypets, he thought dubiously."Our twolegs moved, and we were left behind. We were trying to look for a good home, when.." His voice cracked, and Pearl stepped in quickly to continue the story.

"There was a band of cats... They attacked us, hurt us, kept us prisoner. We were their slaves, but we finally escaped."

Petalstep finally relaxed her position, although her expression was horrified. "Those wretched cats.." She meowed slowly, her eyes hardening. "I know who you ran into. They live in a ravine, we call them the Wicked. They live in a small ravine, which they like to call the Abyss."

Foxblaze's breath caught. Was Petalstep really accusing the Wicked of enslaving cats? Our old time enemy... He knew they were evil, but were they really that cruel? It seemed downright horrifying to be enslaving cats for their own benefit.

Poppystar slid into place, with Hazelcloud and Honeypaw behind her. The two medicine cats jumped into action immediately, blending poultices and applying them to the cat's fur.

"That sounds horrible," Poppystar meowed politely, her tone genuine. "We are very sorry. In fact, we would like to offer you safety and hospitality in our ranks."

Petalstep shot Poppystar a bewildered look, and Foxblaze felt like doing the same thing. "Poppystar-"

"No," Poppystar interrupted, shaking her head in warning at her deputy. "Trust me on this decision, Petalstep. We'll go over this later in my den." As Petalstep relented, the calico she-cat twisted to meet the two rogues gazes once again. "What is your decision? Of course, we cannot let you into our Clan right away. You're not trusted enough for that, unfortunately. But we will give you shelter and safety until you are well enough to travel."

Pearl and Chase exchanged looks once again, before Chase nodded, dipping his head in a sign of respect. "Thank you very much. We appreciate it greatly."

As the two were lead away into the medicine den, Foxblaze couldn't help but overhear Poppystar and Petalstep talking in hushed voices, on their way over to the leaders den.

"Poppystar, this isn't a wise choice. What if they're-"

"What was I supposed to do, Petalstep? They were two injured cats, would you be so heartless as to let them suffer through the forest?"

"MistClan would have taken care of them, you know that!"

"Who knows if they would make it that far? And you know as well as I do that MistClan would jump at any chance to recruit new warriors, no matter where they're from. They'd have two warriors on us, and then where would we be? I know that they've been getting fidgety lately, it's only a matter of time before they demand yet another border extension."

Foxblaze strained, pricking his ears forward and sliding closer as inconspicuously as he could, but he could still only make out faint snippets of words.

"Well... Warriors are... MistClan..."

"Yes, but... Petalstep..."

Soon enough their voices faded out all together, and Foxblaze was left with doubt brewing in his stomach.

...

It was getting darker now, towards the end of the day, and Foxblaze had been on a few hunting patrols, yet he still felt restless and jittery. He couldn't get over the conversation he had overheard earlier. Is MistClan really planning an attack, all for a small border extension? He scuffed his paws against the ground, and he received an exasperated sigh from Petalstep, who was picking on a rabbit next to him.

"Sorry, Petalstep," Foxblaze meowed sheepishly, flicking a tail and settling down on the cool earth, trying to seep up the chill. The day had been unbearably hot, and the heat was only getting worse. Still, at least prey was hardly a problem.

"You've been restless during the whole afternoon, Foxblaze," his former mentor pointed out, looking up from her prey to stare at him. "Is something wrong?"

"No.." Foxblaze lied hurriedly. He didn't want Petalstep to know that he had been eavesdropping on her and Poppystar's conversation. "It's just.. The rogues. They're bothering me, how easily they've been accepted into the Clan."

"Well, were we just supposed to leave innocent cats to suffer?" Petalstep queried. Poppystar said something really similar, Foxblaze mused to himself, remembering the conversation earlier on. "You're still young, Foxblaze. Why don't you leave the worrying until your older days?" The patched she-cat rose to her paws, shaking out her fur. "But if it makes you feel better, I'm posting guards to look after them tonight. Just as an extra precaution. You can be on first shift, pick someone of your pleasing."

"Er, okay." Foxblaze blinked in confusion at Petalstep, frowning in further puzzlement as she smirked.

"On second thought, I'll do it. I'm sure Ivytail would like some sleep."

Feeling his pelt heat in embarrassment, he protested quickly. "Petalstep-" After a moments pause, he realised that it was probably easier just to let it go. "What about your prey?" He diverted the attention quickly, nodding towards the abandoned rabbit.

"Oh, you can finish it for me. Perhaps share it with Ivytail." Petalstep padded off, eyes gleaming in amusement.

...

Foxblaze stretched out lazily, flexing one paw and then the other slowly.

"Showing off, much?" Robintail purred in amusement from beside him, and Foxblaze jumped up to playfully cuff the other tom's ear. Petalstep - the wretched cat - had put him on guard duty with his brother. He supposed there could have been worse cats, but his brother was forever teasing him, and he knew that if Petalstep had thought something was up with him and Ivytail, then his brother would definitely be up for teasing him about it.

Before he could send Robintail a witty reply, a small golden figure appeared beside them.

"Hazelcloud says that you guys can escort them into the den now," Honeypaw chirped, bubbly as ever. Foxblaze nodded, relenting and slipping back into serious mode once more.

He watched in quiet amusement as Pearl and Chase were ushered out of the den by a fussing Hazelcloud.

"You have to come and tell me or Honeypaw if you feel even the slightest pain, alright? Come back in tomorrow, and I'll redress your wounds. If the poultice rubs off during the night, don't worry, I'll just-"

"Hazelcloud." Foxblaze stopped the tawny brown she-cat with an amused rumble, twitching his whiskers in badly concealed amusement. "They understand. We'll send them your way if anything is looking wrong."

Hazelcloud only nodded, disappearing inside the den without another word spoken. Honeypaw blinked, shuffling her paws shyly, before darting after her mentor with a parting meow.

Pearl and Chase looked awkward and out of place, shuffling along across the camp. When Foxblaze got close, he could only smell the pungent scent of herbs, as well as a thin under-layer something unrecognisable underneath.

It wasn't long before Foxblaze and Robintail were nudging the two newcomers into the spare den. Chase went in easily, settling down with a pained grumble. Pearl, however, lingered at the entrance. Foxblaze easily detected her hesitation.

"It won't bite," he told her, shifting from one paw to the other. The air was just perfect now, not too hot, but not too cold. It was a pity that it was the middle of the night. In the silence, he could pick out the faint mewling of the kittens. It sounded like they were bothering the queens for a story.

"Is this where you keep yours prisoners?" Pearl asked carefully, each word deliberate.

"No," Foxblaze frowned at her, faintly surprised. "We don't keep prisoners. Would you?"

There was a pause before Pearl responded. "No," she said tightly. "I was just... still on survival mode. Those rogues kept prisoners. We were put in a den, one far less comfortable than this one." She disappeared into the den without a second word.