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As every night, this night began with dusk, but this was probably the only thing that was similar between this night and every other night in this sandy hollow.
The hollow was home to a group of cats, who were all very different. They had all very different colours of pelts, different eyes, different lives, and some even spoke different tongues. All, however, shared one common trait, one trait that brought them all together into the hollow.
Each and every cat here was in someway related to the other, whether through companions or blood. The master of this camp, who some would call the leader, was actually the oldest cat of the camp. Whereas every other cat who lived in the area had their own den, shared only by two companions and their kits, he had created a larger group for his whole family. He had originally done so because he had three daughters and three sons. He wanted to protect his daughters, and had wanted to assist his sons in building a strange family. This was impossible most of the time, but as he possessed great power he had chosen to create the great family. Now some of his kit's kits were expecting kits, and the sandy hollow had many inhabitants.
The sandy hollow was formed of mostly, well, sand. It had several dens carved out of the walls of the hollow, one for each companion and young kits. As soon as they were old enough, the kits would seek companions from outside of the hollow. As soon as a suitable companion was found, they would return to the hollow with their new companion. They would then be allowed a den simply for them and their companion, and soon enough they too would have kits. It was a cycle that ensured that the number of inhabitants could only grow, and with more cats they had been able to make the hollow bigger. They were all counting on this continuing to happen, for their power would simply grow, and they would remain untouched by others.
As dusk fell the cats returned from hunting, carrying enough prey to feed twice as many cats as there were present. Mothers settled in their young kits for a warm night's sleep on this warm greenleaf's night, the elderly cats sat down outside of their dens to watch the stars and companions lay together to enjoy the night.
But this night would not be the same as every other night. This night would be seem much longer.
On this night, as every family settled in to relax before sleeping, a certain family was doing so just as the rest. This family consisted of Sun, a young she-cat who belonged to the sandy hollow by blood, Rain, a tom who had become Sun's companion when she had decided to find a companion outside of her home and their three small kits, Storm, Acorn and Cherry.
Sun and Rain shared a den that was very different from the others. Most dens simply had an entrance which led to the main body of the den, and usually that was all there was. Sun and Rain, however, had two tunnels leading away from the main body of their den. This led to two separate chambers, each small but still comfortable. Each was home to one of them, though each was very different.
For Sun, the ground was covered in soft feathers, which mounted up in the back, where she slept. Her kits were free to sleep wherever they pleased, as the feathers made comfortable beds for them all. There was also a hole in the wall above the ground, which was a good place to store prey.
Rain, however, there was only a soft moss bed at the back of the chamber. The chamber itself was quite a bit smaller, as it would never hold kits. However on top of having a compartment for holding prey just as Sun did, he also had a second compartment for holding moss beds. Some were used, and some were perfectly clean. The used ones were washed after each use, some waiting to be washed and others waiting to be used.
This night, however, things were different, though neither cat knew so yet. As dusk fell, Sun knew she needed to bring her kits in to settle in for the night, therefore she bid Rain farewell.
Licking him lovingly on the shoulder, Sun spoke gently to Rain. "I'll see you in the morning," she murmured. "Have a good sleep, and be sure to visit your sister soon. She needs a little cheering up," Sun meowed thoughtfully, before picking up her kits and heading off to her own small chamber.
Rain nodded, sighing heavily. His sister had lost her two kits shortly after they were born, and had slipped into depression. But Rain had little time to think about his sister.
Shortly after Sun went to go to sleep, it began.
It started out as only a minor disturbance, a bump in the night. But soon it was much more than this.
At first, a stray cat had entered the camp. The cats of the hollow often had to deal with such cats, but this one put up a strong fight. He was surprisingly skilled, and soon several of the cats were working on getting him out. Rain was not among them, as he had stayed in the main body of the den, lingering near his companion's chamber. Strays made him feel uneasy while he had two young kits, and whenever one showed up he didn't leave his family's side.
If the master of this hollow had found any uneasiness in this stray's visit, however, he would have posted a guard outside of the den. Sun was his daughter, his youngest kit. He was especially protective of her, and never took any chances with her or her kits. It was rumored that she was his favourite kit.
Finally, the noise died down, and Rain was able to relax. He returned to his own chamber, but he knew he could not be able to sleep. The worry for his fragile family would keep him awake.
But he could not rest in the chamber for long. A new disturbance began, though this one seemed much louder. Rain did not move, but Sun decided to have a look at what was going on.
She poked her head out of the den, but no sooner was she thrust from the protection of her den. It was raining now, extremely hard, and her fur was soon soaked through. The cat who had pulled her from the den was a scrawny black tom, with dangerous green eyes. Fear pulled at Sun's heart but she forced herself to be brave, though she knew she was this cat's prisoner. She looked around to see fighting all over. The hollow was being over run by scrawny strays, and they were winning.
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