Hey everyone! This is the second story I'm writing. I wrote it just today and within 4-5 hours of publishing my first FanFic! As always, reviews are greatly appreciated. Ok, this text is distracting you. READ :D

Disclaimer: Blinx and all related concepts(location,characters etc) are owned by Artoon and Microsoft. Any other material are mine, including names of characters e.g Picaro's last name because I thought of it!

Picaro slapped a gloved hand across Pelon's mouth. He chanced a glance around the corner, checking to see if the way was clear. The corridor was empty, except for a few crates, boxes and Sweepers turning in for the evening. He twitched his whiskers, unsure on whether he should risk going out at this moment. Pelon, on the other hand, was more than itching to move.

"Mmm! Mmph-hmm-mm-mmp!" Pelon's cries were muffled by his friend's hand.

The black-and-white tom released his hand, and Pelon scoffed.

"Can we get a move on? Why are you so nervous?"
"Because," Picaro whispered sternly, "he'll slaughter me if I'm spotted!"
"What? Picaro, this is-"Pelon stopped at a gesture from Picaro.

Immediately he swivelled his ear forward, having heard soft footsteps somewhere along the corridor. He peeked along the wall again. No one was in view. Heaving a sigh of relief, Picaro motioned Pelon to follow him. The two Sweepers crept along the floor, crouching as low as possible to avoid detection. They managed to reach the next corridor without much disturbance, but the next corridor proved to be a bit more challenging. It was more active here, and there was significantly less cover. Picaro sat in the shadows, thinking.

"Well? You're always one for the plans. That is, when Necoji's here to wallop you!" Pelon hissed playfully. A gleeful grin flickered across his lips. Picaro shot him a glare before fastening his eyes to the ground as he resumed his thinking. They badly needed to avoid being spotted by the other cats or suspicions would rise. And rising suspicions was not on their 'Want List'. His tail began swishing about, brushing against the wall and the ever-so-ticklish Pelon, who restrained himself from giggling too loud. Picaro ignored his tail, still deep in thought on how to get through this corridor. Nothing was forming up. He silently cursed, wishing that their smart friend Necoji was around. But no~, Necoji was busy with errands for Catherine! Pah! He tilted his head upwards, hoping an inspiration would come to him.

There it was. A loosely screwed air vent. His yellow eyes lit up as an idea began morphing inside his head. Air vents were like a sort of network around the Time Factory; this was another way to get to their next destination. Smiling rather foolishly, he nudged Pelon and pointed to the air vent. Pelon's eyes widened in dismay.

"Hell, no! Not in any of your nine lives, buck-foot!" he objected.

"Catnip's gonna be for dessert," Picaro replied slyly.

Pelon groaned. He hated it when catnip was mentioned. "Alright, Santerino. I'll come". (A/N: Santerino is the last name of Picaro that I thought up. It rhymes with his name ^^)

Carefully using his claw to turn the screws, Picaro worked his way to open the shaft, supported underneath by Pelon who was grumbling to himself. "Do you mind, buddy? I'm trying to work here!" Picaro muttered as a screw went loose and hit the light-brown tom's nose. That made him growl in his throat. They were halfway done with unscrewing the cover, but Picaro picked up footsteps echoing down the corridor they were in. He quickened his pace, undoing one screw and working on the last one. The last screw was old and rusty, and it hurt his claw to turn it as hard as he can. No matter how much he tried, it wouldn't budge. His heart raced, cold sweat turning him into a cold shower. The footsteps were getting louder now. His friend was panicking underneath. "Hurry up, pal! They're gonna- YEOW!" he screeched. The cover was open, but it had landed on the ground with a loud CLANG!

The footsteps became faster; whoever it was had heard the noise and were now running towards them. Picaro had climbed into the vent shaft.

"Grab my hand!" Picaro urged the groaning Sweeper. Pelon grabbed his hand and was pulled up into the shaft. Both Sweepers pressed themselves against the vent walls, hiding themselves as much as possible. They dropped in on the conversation that was happening below.

"I swear I heard something!" one gruff voice shouted. "Someone pried that cover open!"
"There's a glove too! Is it an intruder?" another light-toned voice commented.

Picaro shot an accusing glare at Pelon, who could only shrug nervously.

"I'll alert Control Centre," the gruff voice said again.

"Ben, no! Look! Those screws are from the air vent, and they're old and rusted. Maybe it was too loose until it dropped. Someone must have been here, got hit and must've gone to fix himself up. AND dropped his glove," the other cat explained. There was a grunt of agreement from the first cat, before both walked back down the way they came from. Picaro and Pelon let out the breath they were holding.

"That was a close call," Pelon sighed.

"You dropped my glove, mind. Now they took it, and I've no spares for my left hand!" Picaro snarled.

He decided not to waste time on screaming at his friend about something they narrowly escaped by luck. He went on all fours, crawling along the shafts as they tried to find their way to their destination. They turned left at the first junction, and then right and right again, before turning left. Everything looked the same. As they crawled further on, a lump formed in Pelon's throat. "P-Picaro? Y-You sure where w-we're going?" he inquired nervously. The black-and-white tom glanced over his shoulder, catching sight of his friend before moving onward again.

"'Course I'm sure. We just have to know," he tried to sound confident, but anxiety caught up to him and his words faltered. He was lying to himself. He didn't know which way to go in these shafts. Not at all…

Why is Picaro being so secretive? Why and what is he hiding from all the other Sweepers? What will happen to both of them now that they are lost in the air vents? Read the next chapter to find out! R&R please thx!

Preview for next chapter: Pelon jabbed Picaro in the ribs, giving a worried look as they realise that the air vent was high up. "What now?" he whispered. Picaro patted his shoulder, assuring him that everything'd be find. All reassurance felt was lost as the door creaked open...