Destiny of the Alley Cats || A Destiny Series || Book 1

- CHAPTER ONE: A Glowing Heart In The Alley -

Ten Weeks Later..........

Heartily stared out of the Queen's Den, glancing around the dark, chilly Alley with wide green eyes. She was a little more than ten weeks old, and it had been exciting, for last week, her mother's milk dried up and she started to eat rats! Her sisters, Blossom and Skyler, had started eating rats before her and confirmed that they were gross. But for Heartily, they weren't all that bad. She had only just gotten permission to wander by herself around the main part of the Alley, without any watchful eyes on her the entire time.

Heartily bolted to the fallen trash can that her father had pushed over to make an easy way to get to his den on top of a large thick ledge. She jumped up, her paws almost slipping on the cold, slippery metal, but she managed to regain her balance, her tail sticking straight up. She took in a deep breath, positive she would make the last jump to her father's Box-Den. She bunched her muscles, taking a huge leap, but just as she jumped, her front paw slipped and she fell over.

She grunted as sharp teeth snagged her scruff and pulled her up. She got put down onto the rough surface of cardboard. Heartily looked up to see her father looking down at her, with a grin spread across his face. She immediately lowered herself, nervous of addressing the Chief -or as she liked to say it proudly, her father- the wrong way.

"What are you doing up here, Heartily?" Her father asked her with worry edging his meow, as he checked her over for any injuries. She pulled her paw away as he sniffed it, shaking her head side to side.

"I'm fine, I promise." She fluffed up her fur, walking into his den, and pulling her tail to one side. "Just wanted to see you, that's all." She sat down with a thump, lifting up her paw to examine it, relieved to see it wasn't twisted. She began gently washing her long, ginger fur with rapid strokes of her tongue.

"Why aren't you playing with your sisters?" He said in a softhearted voice. She sighed, laying down and resting her head on her paws.

"They're so mean. . .plus so boring!" She groaned.

"Oh, you've decided that, have you now?" Ticker chuckled.

"No! It's the truth!" Heartily protested. She felt like whining, like small tiny kittens begging for their mother's milk. But she caught herself just before breaking out. She felt fur brush her flank as Ticker laid down beside her, giving her a quick groom between the ears. She was glad he didn't push the argument any further. Arguing with her father was the absolute worst thing ever. It hurt her even more than Skyler's teeth gripping her tail.

Suddenly her father nudged her shoulder with his muzzle. "Go play with them." He meowed gently, yet his eyes were stern. 

She grumbled below her breath, exiting the den and jumping down to the hard surface of the ground, which was usually cold under her soft paws. She glanced over her shoulder to see Ticker blinking after her. She grunted and glanced forward again, trotting off to where her sisters played in the deeper parts of the Alley, Scout and Echo, the other kittens, watching them. 

The two brothers, son's of Kayla, another Queen, were watching with intense focus. As Heartily could see it, her two sisters were having a staring contest, as they liked to say it. She'd sit down, not that far away, pricking her ears. She realized Echo had instantly sensed her presence and was now staring at her with a grin. She felt shy just nodding and then facing her sisters again with curiosity.

"HEY! What are you doing out here?!" Blossom yowled at her. 

"Does MAMA know that YOU'RE out here!" Skyler joined in, raising her voice on different words. Heartily gritted her teeth in frustration. She felt like cuffing them around the ear! Skyler leaped beside her, grinning and her tail lashing. Their whiskers were twitching with amusement, their eyes glowing up like tiny green sea turtles.