"BEEP BEEP BEEP" the loud buzzing from the communicator awakened Kitty, with her fur all frizzled and still in her jammies, she groggily got up from her comfy bed and grabbed the device with disdain, she tried to read the screen but her eyes were still adjusting to the brightness so she rubbed them and tried again.

DPIP had sent her a message; something about investigating a nearby fungal forest for high toxicity levels. Great she thought, Kitty really didn't want to get up right now, especially with the loud buzz interrupting her sleep, at least she was glad she wasn't doing all these tasks herself and had her colonists to help.

She hosted a special meeting and specified only adults would be able to attend as it was a potentially dangerous mission, no one wants the youngins' around toxic matter, soon the tent was filled with many shadowy figures inside, indistinguishable in the dimly lit environment. Kitty laid out the details and kindly asked if anyone would be willing to take this investigation, it would make DPIP proud and they would be rewarded with many soft serve treats afterwards, courtesy of Kitty of course. The tent was dark with the only light coming from a hanging bulb which shone a harsh yellow light onto a table with the communicator below it, among the many faces hidden in the dark, one of them dared to show itself in the light, it was Macchiato with her snout being touched by the bulb's gaze.

Recently she had reached an age where they considered her able to go out on missions, she got antsy about going out as Macchiato felt she worked much better in a group than by herself, but the thought of adventure did cheer her up. She did not say anything and just flashed a smile to indicate her interest. After a while, Lavender decided to join in by putting one of her paws on the table. A flash of light caught all of them off guard and everyone inside the tent turned around to it's source, it was Latte, out of breath and apologizing for the dramatic entrance.

"Sorry I'm late! I was looking for more huldah.." she said in between breaths with the same happy tone as usual.

As the light poured in, the figures finally gained shape, inside the researcher's tent was Meuphyr, Macchiato, Lavender and Midnight. Latte quickly squeezed herself between Macchiato and Lavender and shyly asked for a recap, still a little ashamed of arriving late. Kitty explained the new mission from DPIP and how they would investigate a forest's high toxicity levels and as soon as she was done explaining, Latte threw her paws in the air and landed them on the table, shaking her head up and down frantically. Meuphyr became a little sheepish to speak and explained that he would love to go but sadly would have to stay and care for Midnight, ever since they became parents Meuphyr never left her side, he worries about her a lot and just wants her to feel well. Everyone easily noticed he really didn't want to go but wanted to sound polite, Kitty understood however, and let them go, presuming Midnight wasn't going either, she hasn't said a single word until now and just looked at her partner and nodded, slowly rising and backing out of the tent, Meuphyr followed after her like a lost puppy.

"Ok," Kitty exclaimed, "you three should be enough to uncover whatever's going on in that forest." She concluded, retrieving the communicator and retreating further inside her living space, coming back a few minutes later with some supplies in hand, promptly dropping them on the table. "And no clowning around, you hear?" She spit in a playful yet authoritarian tone, knowing damn well this little group liked to be more loose and laxed.

"Aye aye captain!" Latte replied, saluting with the same excitement of a little kid after school.

"Don't worry, we'll take things seriously, promise!" Macchiato tried to put herself in front of Latte and did her best to seem more mature and responsible, they all had to adopt a better posture if they wanted to be chosen for missions again.

Now out of the tent, the sun shone brightly and temporarily blinded the three girls whose eyes had been accustomed to the dim lighting. Macchiato and Lavender assisted in strapping a vest to Latte, which had a communicator in the back they could use to report their findings, Macchiato was equipped with a digital map strapped to her arm, and all of them were given respirator masks if the situation became dire, all those and a few more gadgets were stuffed inside neat little pockets on Latte's vest. The small group started venturing outside the safe borders of their colony and headed directly towards the Mushroom Forest, Macchiato was obviously in the lead as she had a map – which showed a holographic mini map with their route drawn out –, Latte followed behind her with Lavender in last place.

Macchiato was focused on the map and ensuring they got to their destination, she had been very assertive and responsible this morning and a feeling of maturity washed over her, meanwhile Latte was having a hearty discussion with Lavender, their words not even close to reaching Macchiato's ears. They had entered an area with high vegetation and were walking for a good couple of minutes until a rustling sound alerted the party, this moment dawned on them that they weren't given any defensive equipment and none of them thought to bring any, if a real predator was stalking them in the grass, they would surely be in trouble.

Lavender carefully shuffled to be on top of Latte, taking a protective stance over her, Macchiato instinctively backed up to be with the two girls and startled herself when her rump came in contact with them. All of them huddled together and assumed defensive positions, with Lavender in between the belemoids since she was the biggest. Their anxious minds made their surroundings darken and all sound was cut off, eyes were looking around frantically, ears were trying to catch any sound cues, the air was still and cold and the tall grass was static. Suddenly another rustling sound broke the silence and the vegetation gained life again, a brown and light cream arm appeared out of the bushes and a familiar face peeked out, it was Annie.

"Sorry! It's just us, we didn't mean to scare you, really sorry.." She fully showed herself and explained that she and Lumme followed them in secret because they wanted to explore the Mushroom Forest. Lumme showed her snout through the grass while Annie explained and awkwardly waved to the girls, she was clearly very embarrassed she got caught. After Annie finished, Latte collapsed to the ground, shocking everyone, she let out a huge sigh of exhaustion after all the anxiety built up. Everyone let out a hearty laugh.

After patching Latte up, Macchiato, once again in her new mature persona, alerted the whelps.

"You two can come with us but stay close! It's a dangerous mission and you can get hurt if you're not careful." She warned, gesturing them to enter the line behind her, Annie and Lumme obeyed and stayed behind Macchiato, they walked by each other's side instead of in a line like the two other party members behind them. At once they entered an area with regular sized grass, everyone felt relieved – Latte especially – that they wouldn't be caught off guard again. Macchiato checked the route on the holographic map with more detail and became excited to know they would reach their destination soon enough, she informed the rest of the party, who collectively expressed their content.

At long last, all of them were stepping in the Mushroom Forest's grounds. Macchiato sat down and reiterated to the youngins' that they shouldn't stray off as there was potentially toxic matter around. Lumme and Annie nodded obediently again and Macchiato turned to the digital map.

"Ok, we're already here so I have to upscale the map.." she pinched her claws on the screen "and follow the coordinates to the exact spot." She continued rambling to herself some more and examining the details until eventually breaking out of her trance and getting up almost instantly, leading the investigating party forward once more. Latte complained about being hungry and that she couldn't walk anymore or else she'd starve, Lavender offered her a ride which she promptly accepted. Seeing them like that, Macchiato suggested for the two whelps to walk alongside her, Annie and Lumme hesitated at first as they liked walking together but seeing Macchiato as authority they decided to adhere and took their places on her left and right side, they tried to at least touch their tails behind Macchiato but it didn't work, they were too far apart.

As they trudged through the forest, they noticed the effects of whatever was happening nearby; usually vibrant and spotty mushrooms now looked like they were covered in ink and had a droopy appearance, there was a funny stench in the environment and there were no signs of any other species nearby. The corruption of the forest increased the closer they got to it's source, eventually they discovered what 'was causing the high toxicity levels': a garbage dump. In the middle of the Mushroom Forest. It wasn't a pile of old and dead plants, no destruction from a fight between species, not even carcasses hoarded by a predator, just regular old industrial trash, there were pieces that clearly only could have come from a colony. Witnessing the giant mountain of trash, all the xunari were disappointed and unfortunately had to report their findings. Macchiato ordered Latte to hop down from Lavender's back so she could use the communicator on her vest, who climbed down uninterested, Macchiato tapped the screen and it lit up, she pressed the call button and spoke.

"Hello? Hello hello? Anyone back at base?" She waited for a response before laying out the details.

"Hello! Found anything?" Kitty replied on the other side with a staticy voice.

"Yes! But.. It's nothing special. Someone just keeps dumping their trash in here, the pollution must be turning the environment toxic." Macchiato explained.

"Oh, well that's disgusting. I will inform DPIP so they can do something about it. Congrats on your first mission girls! There will be some sweet chocolate sundaes waiting for you three at home!" Kitty ended the message but remembered she had something else to say "Ah! Can you girls come back quickly? Lumme and Annie have gone missing for a while and we're pulling our fur out looking for them" Macchiato after hearing this, turned to look at them with a troubled expression, silently asking if she should tell or not. The two 'missing' tsabhuas gave her a pleading look and shook their heads, Lumme held Annie's hand and inched closer to her. Macchiato turned back to the communicator without giving them a single word and they were certain their fate was sealed.

"Ok! We'll be back as soon as possible!" She said, giving them a reassuring smile when she finished. Latte was whispering with Lavender this whole to not interfere in the transmission, they were so deep in their conversation that Macchiato had to whack Latte's shoulder to get her attention. After getting back to their feet, everyone got ready to head home, Macchiato began taking the lead again until she felt a tug on the fur of her arm, she looked to her side and saw Lumme, shyly hiding half of her face and asking if they could explore a bit before going home. Behind her, Annie was looking from the side, trying to pretend she wasn't listening to their conversation. Macchiato was hesitant at first but then she imagined if this was her and if it was she'd love to be let loose, so she told them to only go where she could see them.

The two salties exploded in happiness and began trotting nearby. The party chose to move at a slower pace to let the whelps enjoy their surroundings, Annie would often engage with anything in front of her, admiring the scenery and playing amongst the foliage, while Lumme mostly stayed around, looking at her friend and imagining song lyrics in her head, sometimes even humming them. From time to time, they'd both start running after each other and stopped when their caretakers complained about them running too far. Overall, they were having a grand ol' time.

The party was now less than a mile from their colony and they had broken the line, everyone was walking alongside each other and chatting about how well their investigation went, until Macchiato stopped abruptly as if she stepped on something sharp, making Latte bump into her. She turned to the tsabhua pair and remembered they had gone 'missing', quickly thinking of a plan so the girls wouldn't get in trouble and so she wouldn't be called a liar. Her eyes lit up like two light bulbs and she got an idea; she told them to hide somewhere and stealthily make their way inside the colony.

The investigation party finally arrived home, only to find a panicking Kitty trying to shake Midnight's arms – which stayed as still as a rock –, she was trying to get her to help look for Lumme and Annie and was losing her mind rambling about how she was a bad researcher, how they might be dead and rotting at the bottom of a ravine, how DPIP will surely jail her for child neglect and other absurdities. But then Lumme's voice gets heard throughout the clearing and Kitty dramatically turns around and gasps, dashing for the whelps who appear from behind some crates and hugs Lumme's arm while crying saying how much she missed them. Annie tried to calm her down and explained that they just wanted to go out for a walk. Later in the evening, everyone had eaten dinner and Kitty was in a much better state and was handing tall glasses of chocolate sundae topped with whipped cream and cherries to the three girls who completed the mission.