Frost could never stay mad at me and I could never stay mad at Frost, anytime we got mad at each other we would see something that we needed to tell each other, so we would break our unspoken non speaking terms.

It seemed her grudges were more of a balance system, if you did something bad and she didn't know you well that was all she would ever know you by but if you did good things she'd just dismiss it and I was incredibly thankful.

I was older, and I liked to think I was smarter too. Frost would disagree if you asked her, but I was older therefore I was wiser, if they got smarter because they were older so could I, and once I got really old I could tell less smart cats what to do.

Frost seemed to think that was an odd way of thinking and that she could be just as smart as "any old adult" I think she is crazy because of experience and wits or something. I didn't say that to her face although I think she knew, I wasn't so good at pretending.

What I really missed was the company of Falcon who mysteriously stopped coming and even Feather who had stayed with us for a couple nights for around a moon.

Either way I had grown up. I was already 8 moons old and I had finally lost my kitten fluff. Today I was sniffing around the houses practicing tracking skills. Trying to find Alder, Ivy, and Frost was harder than I thought.

Then I heard a noise, faint and minute, if I wasn't playing Hide and Seek I would have dismissed it but it sounded a little too deliberate to be a squirrel. So I crept along the base of the fence quiet as a mouse and to find my assumption to be right, my friends dark brownish red fur blending in almost perfectly with the fence.

With a battlecry I launched myself forward tumbling over and slamming into the fence, the chase was on. I chased him down through piles of wet leaves and-

"Beetle!" yelled my Mother, "Beetle!"

I shrunk back, my Mom never got over that time I snuck out and got lost… ever since then she'd been very strict, I was to be perfect. I was her only kit afterall, besides she only wanted what was best for me. I knew she kind of regretted her own life choices, so she was just guiding me!

I ran over obdiantly. "What is all over you?" she said and immediately began grooming me, "Leaves? Beetle! You'll catch a cold!"

I tried to stop squirming so much allowing her to get the mud off of me, "Not to butt into your games but please, play something safer, and something that won't drag in mud!"

I looked down, I didn't really want to stop our game, but if she insisted. "Guys! Can we play something else."

Alder grumbled something. Frost hopped down from a hole in a tree and landed next to me alos looking discontented, though she had more respect for my Mother since she was practically her Mother too. Ivy slid down from the roof.

"Kits, I need you to stop playing this rough game." declared my Mother, nobody disagreed and she walked off looking very satisfied, her leg was healing well and now it was no longer dead weight and she could actually put pressure on it.

Frost rolled her eyes. Meanwhile Alder smirked batting at the top of my head, "Your Mom's a totttall nutcase!"

"Yeah! It's just a game!" giggled Ivy, doing the same, I ducked out of reach.

"Hey!" I yelped, "She's just keeping me safe."

Ivy scruched up her face, and tilted her head, "Aww come on! That's just smothering, you know what we should go on an adventure out in the woods, like Falcon!"

I shot a glance towards Frost who stared back, we knew what happened last time. I wouldn't dare do it again, but would Frost? And I couldn't leave Frost or any of my other friends out there. Maybe I could change their minds, "Uhm. Can we not?

Ivy winked, "Scared?"

"No." I felt tempes to boast I already had, but I knew these cats since we were young kits, they circled around like crows always ready for the next hint of weakness, I wasn't going to let them goad me into trouble, I wasn't allowed to mention anything about that night.

"Come on, it'll be fun, you need it, your Mom's so suffocating! We don't gotta go far!" cooed Ivy.

Alder nodded enthusiastically, "Yeah, boring! Come on! Frost wants to go."

I glanced over at Frost with the burning question in my eyes. She did an admirable job looking bored and disinterested, clearly placing it on my shoulders. But the gleam in her eyes gave her way, and I didn't want to upset her. "Fine, a short walk, that's it!"

Everyone cried out in joy before Frost quickly shushed us. Slapping us across face with her tail. At that we carefully went around any windows my Mother could see out of and crept out a different more secretive way that Frost preferred. The world opened up with glorious green grasses and pretty flowers, and towering trees.

It looked so amazing, without darkness shroduing everything in uncertainty it felt amazing, I shimmering blue butterfly landed on my nose as I went to bat at it then it took off with me right behind it. I made sure I didn't go out of sight of the Twoleg Place though, right when I was about to head back since I had several thorns caught in my pelt that I would need to work on getting out I looked up and I swear I saw my Mother staring at me. The same golden pelt, the same bright green eyes, the same light brown and white mixes.

It was gone in a blink of an eye.

I suddenly didn't feel so safe.

I carefully backed up, eyes alert, whiskers twitching, when I was leaped on by a cat even smaller than I was, yet almost a carbon copy of my Mother.

"Intruder! What are you doing on Thunderclan territory!?" it shouted standing up with all the self importance and judgemental look that my Mother would give me when she caught me sneaking extra snacks at night.