A Snowball's Chance In Hell

[Fireflake]

Debris shook and crouched to the ground, her breath coming in thin and ragged clouds. Her fur was soaked and everything had stung a while ago but now it had gone numb. A false sense of peace tried to lull her into giving up. A short rest would clear her mind and let her get home, she was sure. Right now her head was as foggy as the snow that a cutting breeze carried in front of her. She wanted to go home. But how did she get here..?

It had been early morning. The sun was just up in the sky, bouncing beams of light off of the glittering white that covered the alleys. Snowflakes danced softly to the ground and Debris danced, considerably less softly, across the ice. She had been up before the sun skating and slipping, but it was only when the sun had risen above the houses that she thought it was a good time to explore.

Explore she did. The raid of a poorly-secured trash can had yielded a greasy pizza box; empty, but perfect for lying on as she whizzed down the icy slope into the place where housecats could be found. She carried it up and slid down until she lost count and paused when the sun was at its highest to share some pellets with one of her friends. They tried to convince her to stay a bit longer, but the season was falling away rapidly now and she had to get her fun in where she could. And so, it was on to exploring the fences and greeting the snowfolk. Some had fabric around their necks. Some had hats. Lots had carrots sticking out of their faces. All but one had twigs sticking out at the sides, and Debris thought they were adorable.

There's only so long a cat can spectate before her paws itch to do something herself. On she went to build her very own snowfolk with two snowballs and a pawful of pebbles she dotted randomly across it. Satisfied with her work, she flopped down in the snow to make shapes. Her very favourite, where a cat pretended to be running then flipped on her side and did it again, was a shape she had dubbed 'the butterfly'. Usually when she stood back it was remarkably similar to its namesake, but this time her tail had flicked accidentally and it ended up as more of a flower. Of course she had to try again, soaking her pelt with snow.

It was all great fun until dusk had crashed down and she found herself with nowhere to go. The streets seemed unfamiliar. The lights glowed harshly on their odd sticks, one of which had caught her tail in weather like this when she was just a kit. Her mother had helped her along with her lovely littermates, if memory served her right. But they weren't here now. Debris stumbled forward as it finally struck her. She was out here, cold, alone, and lost in the middle of the snowy season. She wished that she could just call out and have her littermates run to her but she didn't think that would work. Now it was just her. She caught sight of the glittery bag around her neck through the darkness rapidly closing in on her. Just her and Stink. A wail escaped her and rose up into the empty air.

[Dragon]

Aluminum foil was getting quite plump and round now. And though she knew her kits were due soon she just had to get out of the den and stretch her legs for a bit. She was away to slow to do any of her normal hunting but maybe she could scavenge for something good like the others did. She waddled through the allies in the freezing cold sniffing for something good to take back for her and the others. When she got to this one building with the double yellow arch (McDonald's) she sniffed around. Alu found comes driving around the building and handing things to twolegs inside the building and then move up and they got something in a brown bag. She made her way there and made sure to time this perfectly. A car came up and the window above her opened and at that moment she opened her mouth and yowled as loud as she could. The twoleg handing the bag jumped and dropped it. The bag landed next to her which Alu quickly grabbed and turned tail running as fast as she could. She heard twolegs screaming at her but she didn't stop she kept running then slipped into a small alley to lose them. Once she was sure they had given up their chase she came out and began to make her way home again.

Al had barely set paw outside the alley when she heard a wail of distress. "Debris?" She mumbled around the bag in her mouth and turned tail and ran towards the sound of the cry. She spotted a cat in the distance who looked very upset and scared. She couldn't tell who they were over the strong smell of the twoleg food. But as she got closer she knew it was Debris. As Alu reached her she set the bag on her paws to keep it from getting wet. "Are you ok Debris?"

[Mama]

After putting on her usual show and heading from restaurant to restaurant, she finished with a nice full belly and a little brown bag of scraps, like some hot pot pie and sweet ham pieces. Moonshine trotted along, her neat and luxurious fur ploomed out as the giant feline trotted along. However, her return was suddenly interrupted when a yowl for help echoed out. Turning her head with a curious blink, the cream and white feline started to make her way to the noise in a brisk trot.

Her motherly sense took off as she could see the odd spot that this cat was stuck in, and putting her bag on a bench to keep it warmer then in snow, she leaped up and next to this new cat. They had a giant bloated belly and she knew that distinct sweet smell of milk. Moonshine towered over her, however, and her thick pelt flicked slightly against Aluminum Foil while she peeked down the little gap.

"Are you stuck, dearie?" The shecat mewed with a deep, heavy voice, that had a sweet tone, like a long drink of honey or sweet syrup. Her blue eyes flickered as she craned her neck, before she looked to the cat next to her. "Do you know her?" Moonshine asked, with a small head turn. 

[Fireflake]

Debris felt bursts of warmth inexplicably return to her just before a cat called her name. She squinted through the fog. It was becoming clear to her, and would now be clear to any other cat, that she was not okay. Her nose was nearly as white as the snow itself and he'd taken to licking her paws, trying to keep them warm so they could keep her standing. Ideas of fun had gone. Panic kept her awake. She nodded jerkily anyway.

"Al-Alimunu- Foil?" she stuttered. The loner relaxed a bit at the sight of her brother's mate and looked to the other cat, blinking in confusion. "Uhhh... Box? S-socket..?"
Her lower lip trembled along with her, a combination of cold and fear finally crumbling her expression.
"I- I- I can't find h-h-home! And it's... c-cold!"
She sniffled ineffectively.

[Dragon]

Alu noticed her friend was shivering and there was a look of fear in her eyes. She quickly wrapped her body around Debris. As she did she realized she was soaking wet. Fear filled her this wasn't good she had to get Debris dried up quickly. Another cat appeared and she looked to her. "Yes she's my family. They're my mate's sister." Alu started to lick Debris fur the wrong way trying to get some of it to dry. "I know sweetie but everything is going to be just fine. I'll take care of you I promise." Turning to look at the stranger her eyes filled with worry. "Do you know a place we can take shelter until morning? I need to get Debris dry and warm." There as nothing more she wanted than to go straight home but she wasn't sure if Debris could make it there in her condition.

Alu grabbed her bag and opened it up and pulled something wrapped up. It was still nice and warm. "Here eat this it will fill your belly and help warm your insides up." She wasn't sure what kind of sandwich it was from the bag but there were two more wrapped sandwiches and two bags of fries. This really was a nice hoard.


(Mama I don't believe Debris is trapped anywhere she's just wet, cold, and lost)

[Mama]

(ah- sorry!)

Moonshine turned her head on it's side as she looked over the two younger cats. "My den is nearby, it's in a nice spot under a bridge and has plenty of blankets and stuffed things to keep you both warm and comfortable." The feline kindly offered, before taking a step fowards to the freezing feline. 

Suddenly, she pressed against Debris's side, her absolutely giant body extremely warm and her heavy, white and cream pelt helping heat her back up. For a solo cat, it was surprisingly clean and smelled faintly of strawberries. Her tongue softly rasped over her fur backwards, and to help get her to hopefully calm down a bit more, she started to softly purr and sing a gentle lullaby. This cat seemed small enough for her to carry, and if she was calmed down, then the risk of her going into shock would drop.

[Fireflake]

Debris's fog of confusion settled into gentle bewilderment as both cats began to lick her fur rhythmically the wrong way. She leaned first into Aluminum Foil and then into the stranger, choking out a purr at the soft fur. A memory drifted back to her of some tongue rasping over her the same way when she was younger and tried to follow her sister Socket into puddles. The thing is, she could tell now that the other cat beside her wasn't Socks, and she wasn't Cardboard Box either. She wondered if her two saviors were really there at all, or if she was just leaning further into the fluffy snow.

A gust of warm food saved her mind from such dark thoughts and she reached out a feeble paw to touch it. Shifting snow on a rooftop nearby, which would usually be met by at least a glance with pricked ears, failed to catch her attention. "I'm warm... I'm warm..." she tried blearily to reassure Alu, "I'm way warmer now."
Her eyes opened fully again as her kind-of-sister-now pulled the food from the bag and offered it to Debris. "Aww, thanks!"

The ruddy brown she-cat dug in to the meal as she watched the two quickly meow to each other. Now she'd been lulled out of her own frantic desperation, she couldn't comprehend what they were so worked up over. It was like she was just watching now, and not at all aware that she was really experiencing the situation. She was feeling warmer and eating the best thing she'd had all day, and now this nice stranger was offering to let her stay in her den. There was nothing to worry about, really. She'd only been out there for... for... Debris's eyes drifted to the darkening sky and the gleam of confusion returned to them.

She snapped back to reality, and least half the way back, at the sound of the unfamiliar cat's purr. A quiet purr tumbled from her own throat and she entirely forgot about the food grasped in her paws.

[Dragon]

The large unknown cat soon curled herself around Debris and her. It was the first time she had realized just how big the she-cat was. What kind of cat was she? Alu had never seen such a large cat before. Even though she seemed nice enough her large size scared her and made her wonder if she might be a part of the rogue group she had left. Thinking of the group made her chest throb where the scars were from when she left the clan and received them so everyone who saw her would know she had left the rogue group.

Debris mews saying she was warm snapped her out of her dark thoughts. Alu blinked and pressed her nose into her kind of sisters fur and realized she wasn't shivering anymore. "Good, that should mean we can safely move you." The large she-cat stated her den was nearby. Alu looked up at her and gave a nod of her head. "Thank you I would appreciate it if you could allow us to stay the night." Alu's eyes filled with worry. She knew PT and Snippet would be worried about them if they didn't get home soon. But the weather was getting worse and soon they may not be able to find their way the large she-cats den let alone home. She needed to think of the safety of her family and her unborn kits. "Lead the way please." She turned to debris and nuzzled her. "Do you want to save your sandwich for when we get to the den?" She crinkled her bag up closing the opening before picking it up and getting ready to follow the large she-cat.