Underpaw

Chapter Eight

Marigold's nights were filled with the fighting cats, and at the end of each nightmare she would hear that cat she never saw call out her name. She was beginning to think that if she closed her eyes she would see the groups of cat fighting with claw and teeth. She shook it off, it would stop. Eventually.
Marigold felt a paw poke at her side, it was soft. It reminded her of when she was smaller and her mother would stroke her fur until she fell asleep. Her eyes opened, light from an unknown opening shine onto her, laughing her tortoiseshell and white pelt like a kindle of fire. As dark as a shadow a figure loomed over her, his smell was familiar.
"Lightning? Why are you up so early?" Marigold asked.
Lightning backed away from her morning-breath-mouth. "We are going on a tax patrol" he meowed looking at his paws as if it was the last thing would want to do. Marigold was about to do her signature move of cocking her head and asking questions but decided to just go along with it. Besides, it wasn't her favourite thing either.
"Okay, who's coming?" She asked.
"You, me, Sparrow and Venus. Sparrow and Venus have their own route they take, so we'll have one side and they'll have one side I guess..." He replied. Marigold nodded and followed him and they padded into the main entrance when a tortoiseshell she-cat and a dark brown and white tom waited, Venus and Sparrow. They bowed as Marigold passed, she wished they didn't, all she was was a little kitten from the city, but she just assumed that Snow had that dream for a reason.
Lighting led the three cats out onto the surface, warmth floated in the spring air, it had been so long since Marigold felt fresh grass beneath her paw pads.
Venus and Sparrow waved their tails and started to run along the forest line, then they vanished out of sight leaving Lightning and Marigold alone.
Lightning led Marigold into a part of the city she'd never seen before, it had flowery gardens and was very sunny.
"I'll go this way.." Lightning started as he pointed his tail to the left. "And you will check the roads here" he finished.
Marigold nodded and turned to face large gray house, a brown tuxedo she-cat was perched on the fence in front of it.
Okay, here goes nothing, she thought.
"Hey! You!" The small tortoiseshell and white cat yowled.
The brown tuxedo looked down, clearly unamused by some kitten ruining her nap in the sun.
"I'm here for taxes!"
The she-cat looked confused for a second and then realization and humour glinted in her eyes.
"You must be one of those underground dwelling tribe cats" the she-cat snorted. "Don't you know that you don't get 'taxes' from house-cats like me? You should really know how to do your job before you pretend your the best at it."
Marigold felt her neck fur bristle. "You have no reason for me to believe you. For all I know you could be hiding your taxes from me!" She growled. The house-cat rolled her eyes.
"I'm a house-cat! That means I don't hunt! Even the dumbest of kits know this" the tuxedo cat hissed.
Oh no! She's right! Marigold sighed, "sorry" she mumbled.
"Huh, I didn't know that word was in you underground cats' vocabulary seeing as who you let become your leader" the cat meowed looking off to the side.
"What do you mean?! Snow's a great queen!" Marigold meowed. Maybe it's just some stereotype that the house-cats made...
The brown tuxedo gave her a unreadable glare and then jumped down from the fence and into her house.
Confusion whirled in Marigold's head, she pushed it away, what could possibly wrong with Snow?
"Hey Marigold!" A voice spoke behind her. She turned.
Lightning was carrying two mice and a thin, puny squirrel, but his black pelt had a flash of light painted across it that made it hard to look at him, he took notice of this and moved into the shade of a willow tree.
"Where are the taxes you were supposed to get?" He meowed.
"Uh..." Marigold started. I totally forgot! Talking to that house-cat really distracted me!
Lightning sighed and passed her the squirrel, "here, say that you got this".
Marigold nodded thankfully and the two started walking back to where they would meet Sparrow and Venus, but what the cat said about Snow was still lurking in the back of her mind.