Two-Faced
"You don't understand anything about me! Not one bit!"
I've lived with this for the greater part of my life and I absolutely hate it! I don't even know who the real me is anymore. All of these acts I put up on request of my leader have taken a toll on me. My instincts that indicate what's right and wrong have finally snapped after bending all these moons.
And now, no one will stop me for getting what I want; revenge.
The stars twinkled faintly in the black velvet sky above their heads as they traversed the rocky mountain side. They both seemed to dissolve into the rock before them, but that was just a trick of the eye.
"How much longer?" A feminine voice sighed heavily.
"Stop complaining, Pebblewing." A gruff growl responded to her complaint.
"I'm sorry for not being a fan of these rocks I was named for." She kicked some pebbles away, almost losing her balance in the process.
The tom grunted in reply as he pulled himself up onto a ledge before disappearing from Pebblewing's amber gaze. She flattened her darker gray ears on her head as she scrambled up, her shorter legs not proving to help much.
"Hurry up, shortlegs!" He called after her, glancing back with a sharp blue stare.
"Shut your trap, Stormfrost!" She sounded offended as she bounded after him.
His shoulder twitched with silent laughter, but he didn't respond. They padded towards a dark cave that loomed ahead like the mouth of a giant predator, swallowing them whole. Pebblewing blinked to let her eyes adjust to the lack of light in the small tunnel. Stormfrost's tail brushing against her whiskers where the only thing leading her along.
Once it disappeared, the tunnel opened up into a cavern, light tumbling through a series of cracks in the so-called ceiling. It would be breathtaking sight, but it got old after seeing it so many times.
"Pebblewing!" She looked in the direction of the voice to see it belonged to Shrewwhisker, her brother. "I don't know if Stormfrost told you, but Palestar needs to see you."
"Oh, what a pleasant surprise!" She huffed, glaring at the gray tom.
"You should hurry. He seemed impatient." Shrewwhisker nudged her in the direction of the den which sat atop a rock-pile.
Pebblewing took a deep breath before making her way up, stopping at the entrance to signal her arrival.
"Come in, come in." Palestar beckoned, turning to face her.
"You needed me?" She asked, sitting at a respectful distance.
"I need you to spy again for me." He started to pace as if this decision was stressing him greatly.
"What?" Pebblewing stood, fur bristling. "I almost got caught last time!"
"Keep your voice down." Palestar snapped, shooting fiery daggers at her.
"I'm sorry, Palestar, but I can't risk it again." She pleaded, desperately trying to get him to rethink his already thought out decision.
"No, Pebblewing. This is an order!" His tail lashed as he stalked forward menacingly.
"B-But..." She couldn't find her words, fear and anger jumbling her thoughts.
"Now. Listen to my instructions," Palestar murmured in a strong tone. "You are to be a loner, looking for a place to stay while you recover from your wounds. You are to not to mention anything about CaveClan, family, friends, or anything else from Pebblewing's memories. You have never been to this place before. Understand?"
Pebblewing nodded, on the verge of crying out on how unfair this was.
"Excellent. Now walk with me." Palestar brushed passed roughly.
The startled she-cat followed without a word, staring in front of her blankly. Her thoughts were racing like a monster's paws. I could die! I could get caught and tortured! I could be a prisoner for the rest of my life! Why did I ever have to tell him? StarClan, why have you forsaken me?!
"Pebblewing!" Palestar hissed, annoyance flaring in his eyes. "Get ready for a world of hurt." He suddenly sprung, barreling her over.
Rocks jabbed into her skin as claws racked down belly. She yowled out in pain, squirming to get away.
"Very good. Putting up a fight will make this seem more real." Palestar smiled sadistically.
"Please stop! I don't want to do this anymore!" She cried, weakly pushing on him as his claws made their way to her face.
"My deepest apologizes." He murmured before slamming her head against a dull rock.
The world was spinning. Why is everything turning? Pebblewing thought before catching the glimpse of rage flaming in sharp blue eyes as blackness replaced the spinning.
"Oh my StarClan!" Someone gasped, waking the pale ginger she-cat from her sleep.
She turned her head to see what was wrong, but pain shook her senseless. She yowled out as it continued to get worse when someone draped her over their shoulders.
"Don't worry, sweetness. We'll take care of you." A kind and gentle voice cut through the haze hanging around her head.
Only a grunt escaped her mouth as she tried to keep the pain under control, amber eyes squeezed tight. Luckily, the she-cat wasn't far from the strange cats' camp when she realized she was being laid down on soft moss.
"Icebird! Where is that crazy tom?" Another voice mumbled.
"I'm here! What's- Oh, dear."
"Help her, you fish-brain!"
The pale ginger she-cat strained to keep her vision clear of the spots, but they were in her line of sight, slowly annoying her. A white tom was scrambling around and she assumed that was Icebird when he turned towards her with leaves in her mouth. Black fur stood out among the green vines and she assumed it was the one that carried her here.
"Sorry for the stringing." Icebird broke her thoughts as she flinched away from his touch when it did indeed string.
"I'll go get Vixenstar." The black-furred tom spoke before leaving.
"Do you know who did this to you?" The medicine cat asked with interest.
"Large tom." She croaked out, throat sore from yowling.
"We have a lot of them around here," He tried to relieve the awkward tension. "W-What's your name?"
"P-" She stopped herself, confused on why her name would be Pebblewing when she was a loner.
"What was that?" Icebird asked as he laid cobwebs over her wounds.
"Poppy is my name." The light ginger she-cat murmured.
"Lovely. You don't seem to have any amnesia so maybe you can pick out who attacked you if they are here in MeadowClan." The white tom looked up when a bright ginger she-cat rushed in.
"Is this her?" She asked quickly, glancing Poppy over with intense green eyes.
Icebird nodded, "She doesn't have amnesia so you can ask her all the question you need."
"What's your name?" Vixenstar asked.
"Poppy." She said weakly.
"Where did you come from?"
"The forest."
Vixenstar nodded, thinking briefly before exiting the den. She heard some unclear calls before two cats sat in front of the den.
"Am I in trouble?" Poppy asked, concerned.
"Of course not. Just a safety precaution," Icebird shook his head. "Our rival Clan, CaveClan, is very ambition. We don't want you to be a spy." He smiled then turned to put away the rest of leaves.
Poppy laid her head back down on the moss and sighed. I do have some amnesia, because who's Pebblewing? What's CaveClan and MeadowClan? And these names are so odd?
A/N: This is a multi-chapter challenge for RayClan. It shouldn't be too long, I hope. xD Enjoy!
-Odd