Mkay, sooooooooo... only one review... sadness. but i guess that's what i get for disappearing for like, four months. ;(

Well, THANK YOU SO MUCH TO EMO CLOUD JUNKY FOR REVIEWING! YOU MADE MY LIFE. I LOVE YOU. so have a TWIST PLUSHIE! yay!

WOOT. SO. THIS CHAPPIE. SHOULD BE MEGA EXCITING. get ready for some CUTENESS.

Disclaimer- i'm pretty sure we all know what goes here... sooooo... use your mind readin abilities. :)

Chapter 25

"Oh, shush you crazy mouse-brain!" Shiver purred affectionately, flicking Razor's nose with her tail-tip. "I'm trying to hunt here!"

"Sure you are," Razor grinned teasingly. "Suuure. You aren't even trying to scent anything!"

"I am too!" Shiver objected.

"Then why isn't your nose twitching like it usually does?"

Shiver crossed her wintry eyes to look at her nose. "Well then, Mister Observant," She mewed sarcastically, "maybe you should try paying attention to your own nose for once."

"I can't!" Razor grinned. "Yours is much prettier."

Shiver laughed, feeling the familiar warm sensation in her ear-tips. The earth was warm beneath her paws as they padded through the field which was now a collage of new green stalks and old golden ones. The scent of fresh blood suddenly reached Shiver's nose. She frowned, perking her ears. No one else was out hunting. She looked over to Razor and jerked her head in the direction of the scent. The hefty tom crouched down lower in the grass, scenting the air with narrowed golden eyes.

Shiver crept forward, Razor behind her. She wove through the stalks, carefully avoiding running into them. She peered through her green and gold surroundings and immediately recognized the form of a cat. Strangely enough, what she didn't recognize was the cat itself.

She was a very slinky she-cat, lean muscled and elegant. Her pelt was dark and shining; the color of the stream at night when only the stars shone. She was facing towards Shiver, crouched over a bloody mess of what looked as if it had once been a rabbit. The only thing that identified it were two long ears, one almost completely torn off. Shiver blinked in surprise at the obvious ferocity of this cat. Her muzzle was coated in the animal's blood and the two slaves watched as she bared her fangs and tore a huge piece of meat from the prey in a splatter of blood. Then she sat up, her chin raised in a prideful way and licked the blood from her muzzle.

Again, Shiver was surprised. This time, by the she-cat's eyes. They were a beautiful indigo, like the sky at sunset. The cat's eyelids hung heavily over her eyes, yet it made her look more entrancing than sleepy. Her gaze seemed almost convicting, yet welcoming at the same time. She blinked slowly, staring out towards the stream with her heavy gaze.

Shiver looked back at Razor who nodded back. She flicked her tail and slid around to the other side of the she-cat; Razor going the opposite way. After several heartbeats, Shiver stepped quietly from the stalks.

"And what do we have here," She mewed, narrowing her icy eyes at the bloody mass of rabbit at her paws, "a prey stealer?"

Razor stepped out opposite from Shiver and glared at the dark she-cat accusingly. The strange feline only blinked at the two curiously, her eyes inspecting every hair on their pelts. Then, she mewed in a soft, feathery voice,

"It's not stealing if there's no scent markings."

"You can tell that to Sheek," Razor growled, taking a step towards her.

She made no attempt to resist, and simply stood. Shiver glared harshly and padded alongside the she-cat, escorting her to the mansion.

When they reached the center room, she scratched at the door.

"Enter," Sheek's voice was gruff, and when he saw Shiver he snarled angrily. "Why are you back? And without a single piece of prey!"

"Master," Shiver mewed with a dip of her head, "we found this she-cat stealing prey while we were hunting."

Sheek blinked in surprise for a moment and then scowled, his dark eyes flaring angrily. He leaped down from his book shelf and stalked over to the she-cat. Yet before he even said anything, the black she-cat meowed calmly,

"How was I to know these lands were yours? There are no scent markers anywhere."

Sheek narrowed his eyes to slits and stood so that his nose was barely a whisker away from hers.

"You filthy piece of rat dung," he seethed, barely keeping his temper under control. "I ought to make you a slave right here and now!"

The mystifying cat didn't utter a sound. She just sat calmly, her breaths even and her tail unfurled carelessly about her paws. For a moment it seemed that Sheek didn't know how to react. Finally, he decided on rage and raised a paw to swipe her across the face.

No sooner had Shiver inferred Sheek's plans than the she-cat had brought her own paw up to meet Sheek's and force it to the floor with long, gleaming claws curved in crescents around his tortoise-shell fur. Hard, lean muscles flexed beneath her shining pelt. Her expression, however, still had not changed.

Sheek was now in an awkward position, with one paw pinned to the floor, pad up, he wasn't at all balanced and the she-cat had easy access to his throat, though for some reason, she didn't take advantage of this. Instead, she held him there for a moment, staring into Sheek's fuming eyes while her eyes were a wall of clouds, sealing in emotions and thoughts.

Shiver exchanged a glance with Razor and raised a brow in interest. She had a feeling this strange she-cat was to become all too familiar. And indeed, that was what was to happen. Before the two on-looking slaves knew what was happening, they had witnessed a master-crowning ceremony.

"And what is your name?" Sheek meowed, jumping atop the sofa and flicking his tail for her to join him.

The she-cat's reply was too quiet for Shiver to hear. Sheek threw back his head and gave a loud caterwaul. Then they waited in silence. After no more than a few minutes, every master had filed into the room, even Robin and her three kits who were carried by the others and then sat at Robin's paws where they attempted to toddle around on extremely unsteady paws.

"Masters of this agency," he announced, his black claws digging at the torn red fabric, "I have just met someone who I believe could be an important asset to us. At the end of this discussion, I am hoping that you all agree, that she is worthy to become a master."

Immediate murmurs began to fly around the room.

"If you just met her, then how do you know she's worthy at all?" Shard challenged.

"She rendered me helpless with one swipe of her paw and without a single scratch to my pelt," Sheek meowed loudly. "Anyone who can defeat the head master like that is surely worthy to join our ranks."

Shiver watched the masters. Lightning and Robin were muttering very quietly to each other and were a few paces away from the other cats. Shiver wished she could hear what they were saying and so did Razor as he strained his ears towards the two whispering cats. From what the two slaves could tell, neither Robin nor Lightning approved in the least bit. Ember and Jade on the other hand, were speaking much more loudly and it was obvious that they both thought the she-cat had potential. Shard, of course, was skeptical and Twist remained silent, as always.

"Are you sure about this?" Lightning growled. "How do you know that she has what it takes to be a master? It takes much more than just knowledge. You have to have a certain mindset and personality."

In answer, Sheek smiled over at the dark she-cat. "Would you mind telling us a bit about your life?"

"I was born a street cat," she meowed, "and about a moon after I was born, my mother was killed by a tom for trespassing on his territory. He tried to kill me too, but I hid in a small pipe that he couldn't fit into. I hadn't any siblings, so now I was on my own."

The she-cat seemed to mesmerize everyone as they quietly sat in a trance-like state, listening to her tale.

"In the city, things are real tough. Especially for she-cats. Every tom wants a she-cat. Often times, a bunch of toms will gang up on one she-cat and make her choose one tom to go with or they'll all rape her. Now, there's one tom in the city who always gets the she-cat he wants. His name's Viper. I went straight to his neighborhood and began hanging around there, because everyone in the city knows that if any tom messes with Viper's she-cat, he's dead. Now a few other she-cats hang around his place, but they're just a bunch of whacks. They're pelts are always a mess and they'll hit on just about any tom that walks by. So I kept my pelt real clean, just like I always have. And soon enough, he notices me among those other freaks and claims me as his own. The only reason I did any of this was to get directions out of the city without getting mauled before I made it there. I hunted for him, babied him, teased him. He was crazy about me. Around other cats he would act all tough and sinister, but around me, he was like a little kit, begging for attention. It made me sick, but I kept up my act. He taught me all his fighting techniques just in case I ran into any new-comer toms who didn't know that I already had a tom. Viper actually killed a tom once just for making faces at me as we were walking down an alley. After that, no tom came anywhere near to me. After I finally figured a way out, I left the very next day. I've been roaming ever since."

The whole room was silent, shocked by the alluring she-cat's past.

"Well, I think that settles it," Sheek meowed briskly after a few moments. "Dragon, would you accept an invitation to become a master of this slave agency?"

Dragon smiled, though her eyes remained dark. "It would be my pleasure."

Shiver exchanged looks with Razor. She didn't like it. Dragon seemed even more heartless and numb than Sheek himself.

***Later***

"She sure is gorgeous, isn't she?" Shard commented to Lightning as the two masters strolled down the hallway with Shiver trailing behind them.

Lightning grunted in reply, "She seems suspicious."

Dragon had only gotten there that day and she was already the topic of almost every conversation. Ember, in fact, already had a scratch on his nose from trying to flirt with the feisty cat. Shard seemed to be more successful. He was now speaking of how he had convinced her to go hunting with him tonight.

"Nonsense," Shard scoffed. "She's completely innocent, not to mention gorgeous."

"You've already said that," Shiver grumbled, annoyed.

Lightning whirled around to glare at her. He was keeping up his tough-act very well. "Shut your trap she-cat. You may be mine, but you're still a slave. Learn some respect."

Shard, however had already taken the matter into his own paws with a swipe across Shiver's muzzle which earned him a harsh growl from Lightning.

"You know," Shard continued without paying any attention to Lightning's warning, "I think Dragon likes you. She commented on your unusual black tabby pelt earlier. She said it was 'exotic' and 'unique.'"

Shard smiled teasingly. "Not even you can deny that her eyes really do get to you."

"Her eyes creep me out."

"Sure," Shard pranced around to the other side of Lightning. "But Shiver's eyes don't creep you out?"

Lightning snorted and kept walking. Shard padded off into the cage room and Lightning and Shiver kept walking. Lightning was suppose to supervise Shiver as she hunted and give her a swipe or two if she got off-task since a mere two pieces of prey had been caught today because the appearance of Dragon. Shiver padded up to walk beside Lightning.

"I agree," she mewed quietly. "That cat does give me the creeps."

Lightning smiled. "Robin thinks so too. She thinks that Ember, Shard, and Sheek are going to end up fighting over her. I doubt Sheek would do that, but I can definitely see Ember and Shard killing themselves over that she-cat."

Shiver chuckled and let a few moments pass before speaking again. "I've been thinking, and it seems to me that we're going to need a few more cats on our side who know the arts of torture and pressure points and all that stuff. So I was wondering if you could possibly teach me, Razor, Hawk, and maybe even Ashpaw-er, Rain."

Lightning thought for a moment. "I suppose so," he mewed, "but it will be tough to not get caught."

"I know," Shiver meowed, "but I think that if you taught me some today after I catch a few pieces of prey, I could show Razor and Rain tonight."

Lightning paused and then nodded thoughtfully. "Alright," he grinned. "Something tells me this is going to be fun."

After Shiver had caught a raven, rabbit, mouse, and chaffinch, Lightning led her quietly down to the swamp. Shiver was bursting with excitement at the prospect of learning fighting techniques. She could almost imagine herself as an apprentice back in RiverClan, her mentor teaching her how to ward off warriors bigger and stronger than her.

But wait. She thought. Ashpaw said that he was about to become a warrior when he was captured. I suppose that would make us warrior-age.

The thought somewhat saddened her that she would probably never receive a mentor. She would never complain about cleaning the elders' den or be praised for her first time catching a fish. She would never sit and listen intently, innocent ears perked, to a tale told by the eldest cat in the clan. She frowned slightly. Look at how much of her life Sheek had stolen away. Him and Shard and Ember, Jade and even Lightning. No, Lightning had changed, but he had been one of the ones to steal her. Then again, what would have happened if she hadn't been stolen? She would have never even met Razor, much less fallen in love with him. Yes. This was the way things were meant to be. This is why StarClan chose her to be stolen too.

They reached the marshy grounds in no time at all and Lightning told Shiver to stand still.

"This," he mewed, poking the place between her neck and her shoulder, "is a very important pressure point. Can you feel the way your leg goes limp when I press down?"

Shiver nodded as Lightning pressed against her shoulder with his paw. With a strange aching pain, her head and shoulder automatically flinched and she crumpled to the ground.

"Fascinating," Shiver mewed with a huge grin as she got back to her paws.

Lightning smiled. "The same goes with this point right here."

He lifted his paw to where the bottom of her ear met her skull. This one hurt a little more and she flinched away from Lightning.

"If I had pressed much harder," Lightning explained, "it could have even knocked you out. But since it's awfully hard to locate that pressure point on a struggling cat, it's not used very often. The next spot is where Shard cut you. On every leg, where the inside of your leg meets your body, that's a weak spot. Not really a pressure point, but it makes it hard to use your limbs and is extremely painful."

Shiver nodded thoughtfully. She had a feeling the training session was over, though she loathed the thought of returning to her cage so soon.

"Hey Lightning?" She mewed with her most innocent smile. "Do you think we could have a little battle? Just you and me? Please?"

"I don't think so," Lightning chuckled. "It's getting late a-"

"Puleeeeze?" Shiver begged, blinking up at him with wide, sad eyes.

"Oh, alright!" He grinned, shaking his head. His eyes darkened though. "But no claws. I don't want to hurt you."

Shiver giggled. "Who says I'm the one who's going to get hurt?"

Lightning's worries vanished with her care-free smile and he crouched down to the ground. "Ready?"

"Come and get me!" Shiver growled playfully with a mock-snarl.

Lightning couldn't help but laugh as he leaped at Shiver, landing behind her. Before he could grab her tail in his jaws, she whipped around and hit him across the cheek with her paw. Lightning shook his head and leaped at her again, this time pinning her to the ground. But before he knew it, Shiver had kicked his hind-legs out from under him and he fell as she slid out from underneath him. She darted over to him and nipped at his heels, taunting him to try again.

He held back a chuckle and launched himself at the silky-pelted she-cat. He barreled into her and they tumbled across the ground in a tussle, nipping and batting at each other. They ended up sprawled out on the ground, gasping for breath and giggling hopelessly. As Shiver laughed, her eyes closed, Lightning looked over at her with a smile, watching the way her ears perked up when she laughed. He chuckled, looking up at the moon that was growing fuller by the day. He sighed sadly, knowing there wasn't much time now until they would part ways.

She'll be with Razor. He told himself. He'll look out for her. He'll protect her. He'll be there when she needs a friend. I would just get in the way and remind her of everything she tries to forget.

Thanks to Hawksky for DRAGON! She's going to be quite an important charrie. I has BIG plans for her.

Okay. Soooooooo now i wanna cry. :(

LIGHTNING COME BAAAAAAAAACK. ugh. how can i make MYSELF cry when I'M writing the story? how weird. Anyway, I hope you guys are still out there! Cuz the battle is coming up. Very soon.

I've started making plans for a SEQUEL. YAY! Well, I've actually had an idea for a sequel since like, chapter five... but now i'm planning the details. :)

The sequel will be titled something along the lines of Those Forgotten. Or, The Left Behind. Or something like that. Can anybody guess what it's going to be about? :D

~Flamesong