They practiced the move until night fell and it was dark. The clearing was emptier than usual, since lots of animals were either sleeping or doing the night patrols. A few animals still guarded the Base, though.

Maud, Arall, and Diggs were all enjoying some prey they'd gotten off of the prey-stock. One-eye was also eating, but he lay further away, his barely-eaten rabbit at his front paws.

Maud swallowed a part of her squirrel. "Well, that was one tough training session. We've been training until it's dark and I still barely get the hang of that move!"

"I don't know. You at least came close--I can't even make that stupid turn! I'm built too sturdily! Even Quasi over there can do it!," Diggs mumbled.

One-eye looked up. Quasi, he thought sadly. Because I just needed another nickname to remind me of something I can't even help! Why, oh why, did I have to be born a hunchback?!

Arall tried to cheer up Diggs. "I'm sure you'll learn it eventually! I guess we'll have to, anyway, otherwise Arrow will...you know." She pointed hesitantly at her torn ear.

"Yeah...I suppose," Maud said. "I miss my parents. I wonder where they are right now. Are they searching for me? It feels like it's been centuries since I last saw them..."

Arall dropped her ear. "I miss mine, too."

"I...I never really had parents. They died before I was old enough to know them. I got raised by my grandparents...but I miss them, as well," Diggs stated.

One-eye sniffed and pushed away his rabbit. "I miss you, too...Mom...Laika...Dad..." he whispered faintly.

He didn't feel hungry anymore, so he got up and walked away. He just felt like he had to be alone for a while.

His ears perked up when he heard Maud almost choke on her food as she spat, "Hey, Frick, where are you going? We're supposed to stick together! Arrow will punish us all if you don't—"

One-eye didn't stop. "What does it matter...?" His voice cracked and he paced on. Just leave me be, please...

Diggs barked, frustrated. "It matters a lot! We want to keep our ears and eyes intact. Wouldn't want to end up like you!

"Oh.. .no offense, Arall. There's nothing wrong with having one ear less than the rest of us. But there is with an eye!"

"Yeah...alright," Arall said, clearly uncertain.

One-eye didn't listen and moved on. Leave...me...alone...

Maud raised her voice. "HEY! Get back here, Two Claws! Now!"

No response.

Diggs got up, snarling. "Won't listen? Maybe he'll feel!"

One-eye heard him approach with a loud growl. He was too sad and miserable to defend himself. The pale wolf-dog pushed him over, pinned him to the ground with his claws, and bit One-eye's hump.

The grey wolf yelped in pain and tried to roll over like he'd done with Maud, but she'd been small and lithe, while Diggs had strong and sturdy legs, broad shoulders, and was overall just bigger than him. It didn't work.

Diggs released One-eye and bit down into his humpback again, this time drawing blood. One-eye kept moving, however, so he got gashes of Diggs's teeth in it.

"AAH! OUCH! AARGH! THAT HURTS! HELP ME!" he begged.

Arall got up and approached Diggs. "Diggs! Don't! It's not necessary!"

Maud rolled her eyes. "Oh, shut up, Arall. You know just as well as any Lone One that Fricks don't even deserve to live."

Arall snorted. "Yes, I know! But this is not the way to handle it! If we get too aggressive, who knows what Arrow will do? Remember what you told me? Eyes!" she pointed out.

Diggs was about to respond, but a sudden cry sounded from a few meters away.

"HEY!"

Diggs looked up. "Huh? What?"

"You! Stupid idiot! What are you doing?"

"Eh...who do you mean? Me?"

One-eye saw a small silhouette approach them, until it stepped out of the shadows. In front of him stood the cub that had been with Arrow when they'd infiltrated his territory. The spots on her coat had faded some more, and her eyes were losing their blue kitten-color, but it was obviously her.

What was her name again? He knew he'd heard it a couple of times before, but right now couldn't remember. He was just too astonished. Why was she helping him?

"Do you see any other idiots around, besides that black she-wolf there?" the cub responded.

Diggs stepped off of One-eye's back, growling. "Who do you think who you are to call me an idiot?"

One-eye saw Arall put her tail between her hind legs, cowering. "Diggs...she is..."

Maud pushed her. "Tell that oversized housecat, Diggs!"

The wolf-dog took a deep breath, and was about to scold the cub that was standing in front of him, frowning. Then, One-eye saw him smile.

"Hey...would you look at that? Another Frick!" he said.

Maud wagged her tail, but the cougar wouldn't take any of it. With a rapid movement, she snarled and threw herself at Diggs, knocking him off of his feet. She jumped on top of him, digging her claws slowly but painfully into his chest.

"Get off!" Diggs shouted.

The cub snarled. "Listen to me, dog! Listen to me, carefully! Do you know who my mother is? Do you?"

One-eye was very confused by everything. Trying to ignore the pain from the gashes in his hump, he stared at the cub pinning down the wolf-dog. "Huh."

"Grrrr, how am I supposed to know? Some kind of random wall-eyed cougar just walked up on me, and now I'm supposed to know who her mom is?"

The catamount dug her claws deeper into his fur, until she drew some blood.

"ARGH! Let me go!" Diggs exclaimed, "Maud, do something!"

Maud just looked perplexed.

The cub looked him in the eyes.

"You do exactly as I say! Look to your left! Look to your left, you mutt! See that scarred wolf? Yes? The guy with only one eye and two missing claws? See him?"

One-eye saw how Diggs looked at a wolf near the Prey Stock. It was indeed a gray wolf, and he clearly lacked one eye, and one of his front paws missed the two claws in the middle, which made it look almost as awkward as One-eye's strange front paw. His scars weren't quite as bad-looking, though.

"Ouch! Yes, I see him! Now what?"

"He made fun of me when I was just a cub...well...cubbier! Guess who tore out his eye and bit his claws off? My mother, Arrow Jones! So you'd better watch your step, or you'll end up like him or worse!"

Diggs kept struggling, but each time he moved, he made the wounds on his chest worse. "Alright, alright, I get it! Now let me go!"

The cub stepped back, grinning. "That's it."

Maud blinked one more time, and then retrieved the usual frown she had. "But he wasn't making fun of you in the first place! He was talking to the Frick! The hunchback!"

The catamount ignored her and approached One-eye. She held out her right front paw. "Hey there," she said. "Need some help?"

One-eye looked at her. I can't trust her, she's the daughter of the one that maimed me! And she hates me just as much as Arrow does! She went along with everything her mother did!

He pushed himself to the ground, whimpering.

"Hey, it's okay! I won't hurt you." She sounded friendly.

I cannot trust her! One-eye knew he'd never forgive her for what she'd done.

The cub turned to the other three wolves. Arall was helping Diggs get up. "What are you looking at? Get out of here or I'll go get my Mum!" the catamount snarled.

The three of them hesitated, but after some words of Arall, they left, looking livid and uncertain.

One-eye pushed himself to the ground as he saw them vanish in the sleeping den, slowly but surely.

He looked at the cub. She smiled at him.

Go away.

She kept staring, and then stuck out her paw. "Silkey," she said.

One-eye pricked up his ears. "What?" he mumbled, hesitating.

"That's my name. Silkey. You don't have to be so shy... It's okay."

You were there when she—your mother—took me from my family and scarred me. You approved of it! Do you really think I'll trust you?

Silkey kept gazing at him. One-eye noticed that her ears were unnaturally held down, as opposed to all other catamounts' ears around there.

He shook his head and got up, teeth bared. "You...you were there! On the day Arrow took me away! Don't think I will forget that!"

He stared into her eyes. She lashed her tail, but then looked at her big paws.

"Yeah...I know. I wanted to apologize for my behavior that day...I just wanted to...never mind."

One-eye growled. He kept glaring at her, but she did genuinely seem to feel sorry for him, looking almost sad.

Then, she looked up, her eyes avoiding him. "Just come with me. We need to get you something to stop the bleeding of your wounds."

The gray wolf rolled his eye. No... But then he realized how much his hump was actually hurting. Even if this is a trap and she kills me...it's not like I care...not like anyone cares.

He followed the golden cougar until they reached the border of the Main Base. "Eh...Lone One assassin trainees are not supposed to leave the clearing," he stuttered. Arrow will have my other eye if she finds out what I'm doing...but then again, I am apparently with her daughter.

Silkey didn't say a thing, but kept moving until she vanished into the woods.

One-eye looked over his shoulder. It wasn't very busy in the clearing. No one seemed to be looking at him. With a quick movement, he bolted into the bushes until he found Silkey again.

She had a few red autumn leaves in her paws.

"Don't move, you'll only hurt yourself," she said, as she gently put them on his wounds.

"OW!" One-eye instantly turned around and growled at her.

She grabbed the leaves, which had fallen off of his hump. "I said that you shouldn't move!"

One-eye groaned, but didn't move as she pushed the leaves on his hump again.

He snarled. "Why are you doing this? You're Arrows daughter, and Arrow hates Lone Ones. Why do you suddenly feel like helping me?"

"Just...because..."

"'Just because' is no reason! Tell me why you are suddenly being so nice to me!"

He felt Silkey stiffen, and she got her paws off of the leaves. "Because I feel sorry for you! Alright? I can...feel your pain..."

One-eye looked around, only to see her staring at the ground, ears and tail low. He blurted out, "That makes no sense. Are you some kind of psychic?"

The cub looked up quickly. "NO! I...I just know what it's like to be picked on just because you look a bit different. That's what I mean, okay?"

He raised an eyebrow. "I don't think there's anything wrong with you. You seem pretty normal to me," he pointed out.

She frowned. "But I am not! I have strabismus," she said bitterly.

"Stra-whatnow?"

She sighed. "I have a lazy eye! See?" She brought her face close to his until he felt uncomfortable, and he slowly backed away. "Look!" she said.

One-eye then noticed that her right eye was off in comparison to her left. It looked into a different direction.

He shrugged, but instantly regretted that as he felt the pain in his hump return. "I wouldn't have noticed if you hadn't told me, really."

Silkey didn't meet his eyes. "Just...Just go. Your wounds should stop bleeding sooner or later with those leaves covering them. They will be scars...but..."

One-eye tried to look over his shoulder, but he couldn't see his hump. He definitely felt the wounds sting, though.

He mumbled, "Eh...yes... Thanks, I guess?"

Silkey got up, ears twitching. "Hurry! Go!"

One-eye nodded and quickly bolted back to the clearing. No one saw him enter.

Good.

He looked left and right. Just a few animals hanging around and talking. Nothing much. The rest were either patrolling or sleeping.

No Arrow, either, he noticed. He'd hardly seen the reddish catamount after the day Jera had instructed them. She was apparently really busy, and that made him feel a little safer. As long as she was focusing on her job, she wasn't focusing on him.

He walked over to the cave-den that was for all assassin-trainees. It was a smaller and less comfortable den than all the others, but they didn't have a choice.

He sighed as he saw Maud and Arall fighting over a stick in front of it. Maud pulled one end, but Arall was stronger and pulled back, making the black she-wolf release the small branch and fall over. Diggs was nowhere to be seen, possibly sleeping already.

Maud shook her head, confused, and then looked up as she saw One-eye. The usual disapproving smirk on her face returned. "It was about time you came back!"

Arall spat out the stick and looked at Maud. "Please, don't..."

One-eye ignored them. Don't cry, don't cry, just go into the den and forget them.

He heard Maud's voice as he entered the cave. "Hey! I'm talking to you, monster!"

One-eye whimpered softly and stepped over several trainees, including Diggs. Ignore them. Ignore them.

He faintly heard Maud and Arall bicker outside. Arall kept stating that it was best to ignore him, that maybe he'd leave them alone if they stopped giving him attention, but Maud disagreed, saying that putting him in his place was the right thing to do.

One-eye rolled himself up into a grey, hairy ball and tried to ignore the pain in his head and hump. Hello, new life. I hope you can't get any worse from here on.