The dimming sun loomed over the dark solemn city of Chicago, as the last of its light slowly drew away from the tall yet archaic stone buildings, the light reflecting upon the puddles left behind by the afternoon rain earlier that evening. Even in the light that was left, the towers above were dark, covered in years of dirt and grime. The wind whistled through the few trees that dotted the street, shaking rain drops off its leaves. The stores that lined the sides of the street were filled with pitch blackness, some boarded up by rotting wood, covered in scarlet graffiti. 

This particular street was empty, excluding for a few civilians that dashed on the sidewalk, hoping to be able to get home before dark. One however, walked slowly and somewhat casually, occasionally looking over their shoulder, with what seemed like a black cat creeping with around their legs, and it could have been a stray, if it weren't for the fact that the cat wore a bright orange bandanna. 

They had their hands in the pockets of their black hoodie that was partially shredded on the sleeve, revealing slightly tan skin beneath, and wore dark leggings and boots, most of which were covered in a thin layer of mud. A black beanie covered most of their hair, as the brown-golden strands only reached to the top of their shoulders. The figure stopped in front of an alley in between another abandoned door and a shabby bar, the rusted sign no longer readable, and the cat then proceeded to rub it’s cheek against their leg.

 “Oh, for christ’s sake, stop it, would you? I swear, that plastered fool was here!” She shoved the black cat away angrily, and the cat stepped back, annoyed. Readjusting her beanie, she brushed her hair behind her ear, revealing a thin scar on her right cheek, a glint of green in her eyes reflecting from the streetlights. She looked upwards, and took a deep breath through her nose, then looked down the alley. 

The alley seemed endless, with darkness eating up the end of it, if there even was one. Multicolored graffiti splattered the dark red brick walls, with trash lying in heaps on the asphalt by the rusted metal trash cans, as if no effort was made to put them inside the cans. Puddles streaked and followed down to the end like a small river, with dim colors swirling along. It reeked of alcohol and fish, as well as blood. She squinted into the alley, as the black cat sniffed, then recoiling with disgust. 

“Ayup, he’s this way,” she said with a sigh. Taking a quick glance around the street, she walked into the alley, black cat reluctantly following behind her.

    As she entered the lovely grim alley, she realized it did not look as bad as it smelled. The stench hit her, making her slightly stumble, almost hitting the dirty graffiti-ed walls. It was unbearable, as she put her sleeve to her mouth, creating a makeshift gas mask of sorts. The black cat did not fare as well either. They instantly doubled over, as the cat did their best not to vomit the day's earlier lunch. 

“Suck it up buddy, we've smelled worse, ‘aven’t we lad?” He immediately gave her a dirty look and she smirked in response. “Put the bandanna over your nose ya idiot,” she replied, cautiously stepping around the colorful river of rainwater. Sitting on his hind legs, he gently lifted the bandanna over his nose with his front paws, and his bright green eyes shined with the relief of the bit of somewhat fresh air. “You look like a bandit,” she shouted from way farther down. He rolled his eyes and jumped over the water to follow her. 

The corridor was littered with bottles, with only a surprisingly few broken. The smell of vomit was faint as they passed by, a single light lit over an ashen door, supposedly the bar's, reflecting a glimmer in the surrounding bottles. Rusted pipes criss-crossed along the walls, stretching down along with the two. As they went further, the alley was no longer drenched in graffiti, but with spatters of blood, as the smell of iron began to reek in the air. Trash and bottles no longer laid on the ground, but instead unknown lumps dotted the area here and there, and seeing this, she beckoned to the cat, who willingly jumped into her arms. 

Seeing a turn in the small corridor up ahead, she began to jog towards it, wincing as she heard the occasional squish beneath her feet. Coming closer, she saw shadows of figures down the bend, dancing up and down. 

“Come on, hobo! What's wrong, don't got it in ya, huh!?” 

“P-Please-” Four shadowed men were kicking someone, and even though they blocked her view of whom it was, she already knew. The corridor was quite small, opening up to another empty street. The wall behind the figure had a steel staircase that led upwards, rusted and littered with bottles and trash. 

One of the men was incredibly tall with his long overcoat, towering over the other three, the two of them were short, wearing collared shirts, their pants scuffed with dirt, and were yet muscled, and the fourth man looked, well, scrawny. He wore a ridiculous looking navy blue suit and a fedora, and was thin. Letting the cat jump to the ground, she trudged in behind the four men, her eyes smiling. 

“There you are, ya moron!” she yelled out, as the four men turned around to face her.

“Who the hell are you?” shouted the man in the fedora. She simply shrugged in response. 

“Listen, it’s mighty kind of you to watch over that fella for me, I’ll just take him home now if ya don’t mind, alright?” The fedora man grinned. 

“I’m afraid we’re not done with him yet, but you can join him if you want, little lady.” She cringed slightly at the word little. The four men all looked at her now, the menacing smiles on their faces overshadowed by an unknown light source, making them blend in perfectly with the grim outlook of the alley. 

Compared to the big three fellows in front of her, she looked incredibly scrawny, her puffy hoodie giving the impression that she was almost as thin as the fedora man. She looked away from them and glanced at the man on the ground, and he looked up at her with pleading eyes. 

His face was caked with blood like paint on his cheeks, sticking onto his unshaven beard. His clothes were brown with mud, his torn, blood covered pants providing no protection except for the over-sized coat he had on, fabricating the notion that he was much smaller than he looked. The black cat whined, and jumped up onto the steel staircase on the side of them. She raised her arms in front of the four men as if in surrender. 

“I don’t want any trouble, so if you could just leave him alone-” Without any good reason to do so, the biggest one lunged at her, his right hand swinging towards her with a fist. She swiftly ducked under it, and jumping towards him, proceeded to sock the big fellow in the jaw with her own right, cracking his face on impact. He staggered backwards, clutching his jaw, as the other three looked at her, shocked. 

“GO AFTER HER!” the fedora man screamed, and the other two began to dash towards her. One, however, was halted in his assault, as the black cat leaped from above, landing on his face. The other charged at her, as she rolled out of his way, landing into a muddy puddle. He smashed his head into the wall behind her. As he turned around to face her, a trickle of blood slowly inched down his forehead. She jumped back up, and looking at her dirtied hoodie, cursed under her breath. 

“God dammit, I just cleaned this thing!” He charged at her, as she nonchalantly moved to the side without even looking at him, with her leg sticking in front of him, and he tripped, face-planting into the asphalt. He lay still, the blood from his forehead oozing onto the ground. “Oooh, that must've hurt,” she spoke, looking a bit smug. 

Meanwhile, the black cat sat on the ground, casually licking its paw, and the man on whom he leaped on laid on the ground, crumpled. He looked quite pleased with himself. It seemed like the biggest fellow was the only one left, excluding the shrimpy fedora man. The big man growled at the two, the black cat responding with his own growl, tail swishing slowly. 

“I told ya, I didn't wanna fight, didn’t I?” she said, shrugging at them. Her cheek had a small drop of blood on it, her waist wet and muddy, but other than that, was unscathed. “Now leave, before I change my mind.” The two survivors looked at her, ready for a fight, even the fedora man stood posed, his tiny fists raised in the air. 

“SCRAM!” She shouted, as they threw up their arms and ran away into the dark street, leaving their two unfortunate cohorts behind. Scowling, she looked at the muddied man on the ground, as he stood up slowly, putting his hand on the wall for support. Even though he was beaten up just a few moments ago, his movements were clearly that of a drunk man. He wobbled ridiculously as he attempted to walk. 

“I knew it, you were out drinking again, weren't ya!? F***ing Ms.Bitz BEGGED me to go find your sorry arse, but if it was my choice, I would have just left ya there, you arsehole- are you even listening to me?” Apparently, he had not word a single word, standing before her with a big goofy grin. He stumbled towards her, laughing, and she caught him, looking worriedly into his eyes. 

They were a dull brown, glimmered with layers with liquor, but in this very moment, they sparkled with amazement. The black cat looked up at him with confusion. And even in his current state, he managed to shout, 

“That… th-that was… just AMAZING Smokes!”