Not Exactly to Code (Apprentice x Leader) [Bacon]

The she-cat tried to get up and move once they were set down, but she was so weak she couldn't even raise her head, blood dripping off her fur.

Birchwing sat by the door and meowed constantly, wanting out of the confined space. He didn't know what the twoleg planned for them now, but hoped he would still help them.

The she-cat was soon unable to keep herself awake, her eyes closing completely and she barely moved, when the twoleg noticed it he rushed, ending up at his home fast and he set both cats down in a small room and he closed the door to keep them inside.

"I don't know how to fix you, love. But maybe he does." He mewed in an attempt to encourage her, even as he himself worried about the detour.

Lavenderstar whined softly and tried to get closer to her mate, her ears back and her body tense in fear, the hunter started walking away once he was holding both cats, planning to take them home.

Birchwing let out a soft mew of protest when he was picked up, but didn't struggle, using the newfound position to groom his mate reassuringly.

The she-cat was breathing hard and squirming off and on, her eyes started drooping when she slowly stopped struggling. The hunter leaned down and tried to pick the tom up, hoping he'd let him.

Realizing he had basically zero choice now, Birchwing met the twoleg's gaze and waited for him to move first, intent on following closely. "Lavenderstar, stop."

The she-cat tensed and whined when the twoleg came over faster after hearing a cat, the Hunter saw the she-cat trapped in the snare and quickly helped, grabbing wore cutters and snipping the wire, it instantly loosening around her, Lavenderstar gave a defensive hiss and tried to stumble out of the bushes, but she couldn't use her back end at the moment, unable to feel her legs, the twoleg noticed this and picked up the feline, wrapping her in something then looking to the other cat.

Birchwing took a deep breath, faced with two options. One, to finish digging and quickly hide before the twoleg arrived, which was unlikely given his mate's condition. The second, to trust that the twoleg wasn't hunting cats - they typically weren't - and see if it would help him free her. Sighing, Birchwing opted for the second, meowing loudly to draw the hunter's attention.

The she-cat coughed and whined as the snare got tighter from her stuggling, her blood starting to stain her fur and she breathed hard, "Birchwing.. L-look out, t-twol-leg" She rasped out, the bells ringing drawing the twoleg closer faster.

Pinning his ears back as the bells rang, Birchwing carefully stepped into the bush, spotting the wire and staying well clear of it. Following the wire's path, he found the stake that held it in the ground and started to furiously dig around the base, growling softly as he worked.

Lavenderstar was breathing heavily and mewling in pain, the snare starting to cut into her flesh it was so tight, as she squirmed, it rang bells to alert the twoleg it caught something.

"Lavenderstar!?" Birchwing stopped at the edge of the bush, careful not to dive in thoughtlessly and get caught in the same trap. Seeing the twoleg's metal wire wrapped around her made him hiss loudly, and he stared at it silently, working out a way to free her while touching her shoulder with a forepaw, trying to prevent his mate from trapping herself even more.

"Go" She mewed and made a run for it, bolting to the bushes and disappearing into the foliage, the leaves stopped moving as she moved slowly, then suddenly started moving again and she thrashed within the bushes, zhe hadn't realized she went through a snare, and the snare tightened around her hips and stomach, making her yowl in pain.

"Fair enough." Birchwing replied, tensing his muscles in preparation to sprint.

"Lets make a break for those bushes, we'll climb a tree near there and see what everything looks like" She mewed softly and glanced back to him.

"So do I." He replied softly, more than a little on edge as they waded through the shallows beneath the bridge.

"I smell cats" She murmured, slowly moving out of the darkness.

Birchwing watched their backs, noticing a faint cat scent yet again.

She padded under the bridge quickly, her tail flicking and she stopped at the edge of the darkness, poking her head out and looking around.

Birchwing nodded, confident that the dogs wouldn't venture into such a dark place, and quickly followed behind her.

"Under, we'll move through the darkness" She mewed as she walked toward the bridge.

"Under or over?" Birchwing asked with a quiet hiss, keeping his ears pinned back to listen behind them.

Her tail lashed and she continued to sniff the ground, her fur on end slightly as they walked, her ears pinning back as they walked toward a bridge.