Disclaimer: I do not own Warriors. I do, however, own a pickle, of which I am eating now.
When Falene opened her eyes, everything looked different, yet exactly the same. Things seemed sharper, colors more vivid. Her sight wasn't even hindered by the pink hair that covered her left eye.
"Ugh, my head is killing me…" She muttered. My voice sounds different. She went to put her hand on her forehead, but froze. In front of her eyes was a chocolate-brown cat paw. She tried wiggling her fingers and the toes on the paw moved.
"W-What the hell?" She tried pushing herself to her feet to find that 'standing up' meant wobbling on four paws and being considerably lower to the ground. She twisted in a circle to try to see herself, only to fall over. A long striped tail twitched next to her. A horrible feeling settled in her stomach when she realized that she could feel that tail. She waved it back and forth. What kind of sick trick is this?!
She made her way to the puddle from earlier, stumbling the whole time. She shrieked when she saw the creature reflected back to her.
A cat.
The cat was a rich chocolate with slightly lighter stripes. It's ears were long and pointed with tufts of fur at the tips. A swath of pink fur fell over the cat's left eye. The one eye that was clearly visible was a striking magenta. All in all, not a normal looking cat.
And that cat was Falene.
"No, no, no, no, no! This cannot be happening! I don't want to be some stupid cat!"
"You will remain one until you're lesson is learned." Falene wheeled in the direction of the voice, tripping over her new paws and landing in the dirt.
In front of her was the blue-gray she-cat, sitting tall with her tail-tip resting on her front paws.
"Who the hell are you and what did you do to me?!" The cat simply blinked her eyes as Falene seethed.
"Calm yourself." She ordered sternly. "You have brought this upon yourself, StarClan merely aided the process."
"Bullshit!" Falene's fur was standing on end, and she wasn't sure whether to be angry or scared of the cat in front of her. The cat practically gave off waves of 'listen to me or you'll regret it'.
The starry cat's eyes narrowed. "My name is Bluestar. I am speaking for the whole of StarClan when I say you have much to learn."
"What is this StarClan anyway?!" Fear, she decided. That was one scary cat.
"StarClan is where all Clan cats go when they die." She answered plainly. Falene's breath caught in her throat. "You will be a cat until you learn that cats feel what twolegs feel, and understand that you cannot categorize all cats with the cats that you have met."
"Yeah right!" Falene's anger boiled above her fear of the she-cat. "All cats are the same! They attack anything and everything for no reason! They're filthy, vicious, evil!" Bluestar looked over her shoulder, ignoring the insults to her species.
"I suggest you be polite to Leafpool and Jaypaw." Bluestar faded.
"Get back here you stupid cat!" She yowled. How could this happen to her? How was any of this even possible?! She was still on the ground, not wanting another fail attempt at walking.
A rustling in the bushes brought Falene's thoughts away from the gray she-cat. Two cats stepped out of the bushes, both bristling with hostility.
Falene's ears flattened to her head when she recognized them as the same ones from earlier. A startled look came from the silver tabby as he backed away a few steps. The brown tabby, who Falene now realized was a she-cat, sent a fleeting look to the younger cat.
"Are you alright, Jaypaw?" If Falene had been standing, she would've fallen over. Did that cat just talk? Then she mentally hit herself. The non-starry cats talking had her freaked, but she had been fine with Bluestar! …Sorta.
The young tom shook himself. "I'm fine."
Obviously not satisfied with the answer, but deciding not to push, the tabby turned her attention back to Falene.
"What are you doing on ThunderClan territory?" The serious look in the she-cat's eyes told Falene this was no time to be hateful, despite the disgust she felt.
"I'm lost. I didn't realize this was anyone's territory." She did her level best to keep her voice calm.
"Can't you smell the markers?" The silver tom's condescending tone grated on the little tolerance Falene had left. She narrowed her eyes. An English lesson popped into her head.
"That's a logical fallacy, a loaded question , specifically. If I say no, than you doubt my ability. I say yes, and it means I was ignoring your precious scent markers." Best English class ever.
The best part was it seemed to throw both cats in for a loop.
"'Logical fallacy' or not, you're in our territory." The she-cat responded while the tom's tail lashed back and forth.
"And what if I decide to stay right here?"
"Then we'll have to force you out." There was a tiny, barely audible sound as the she-cat's claws unsheathed. The tom's quickly followed. This isn't good.
Falene tried to push herself to her paws and only succeeded in falling down again.
"Damn it all!" She growled in frustration. Her ears pricked up as she heard claws sheath again. Falene tensed as the she-cat padded up to her. Falene scooted away on the ground, not willing to give standing another attempt. The she-cat came closer, sniffing and really creeping Falene out.
"Can't you walk?" The she-cat sounded confused.
"Evidently not."
"How did you get here if you can't walk?"
"Wonderful question, really." There were a few seconds of silence.
The she-cat seemed to be puzzling something in her head. Her amber stare made Falene shift uncomfortably. She didn't know how much longer she could stand being around these cats. Her tail twitched with irritation, and that only served to irritate her more. Stay still you stupid tail!
"Jaypaw, help me bring her to camp."
"But-"
"Jaypaw, help me bring her to camp." The tone of the she-cat's voice halted the tom's objection instantly, though he continued to mutter under his breath. The tabby forced her up.
"Wh-What are you doing?!" Falene hissed. She didn't want any help, let alone some cat's!
"Helping you, mouse-brain…" the tom muttered. Falene wobbled and the two cats pressed their sides to hers.
"Lean on us." The she-cat ordered. "My name's Leafpool, and this is my apprentice, Jaypaw."
"…Falene." She was hesitant to tell these cats her name, but she figured it would prevent a grilling later.
Grumbling the whole time, the two cats and one human-turned-feline worked their way through the forest. Falene seemed to trip over anything and everything in her path; most memorably Jaypaw's paws. When they made it to a well–made thorn barrier, it took several minutes to get Falene through. What was on the other side made her drop straight to the ground. Cats everywhere.
"Oh come on…" Falene breathed. Every set of eyes turned to stare at the spectacle that was Falene.
Leafpool stepped up behind her and bent down, whispering, "I'm going to speak to Firestar. Don't try to walk until I get back." Falene's ear twitched in response. Leafpool bounded away, up a few rocks, and into a crevice on the side of the stone hollow. Falene was forced to sit in the dirt, being stared at by feral felines. To most people, merely uncomfortable. To her, torture. One cat, a dark tabby tom, stepped up to her.
"Jaypaw, who is she and what is she doing here?"
"Beats me. Ask Leafpool, she's the one who insisted we bring her here." Jaypaw didn't look at the tom as he spoke, and this confused Falene. The tom was obviously a sort of authority figure, so why didn't Jaypaw look at him?
She shook her head. It wasn't that important right now. She looked up at the dark tom. His amber eyes sparkled with curiosity, though Falene refused to accept she could see it. Because that would be accepting seeing a human emotion in cat. Besides, she was being stared at by cats. And it was ticking her off.
"Take a picture, it'll last longer." She growled.
"A what?" the cat's confusion was plain to see; And Falene was very happy about it.
"Nevermind."
The sound of a few loose pebbles clattering to the ground pulled both the tom and Falene's attention to the ginger cat hopping down the ledge. Leafpool was close at his heels, as well as another pale ginger she-cat.
…
…
Do cats even have heels? …Whatever, not important. Falene dismissed the thought with a flick of her ear.
The tom padded straight up to her. She felt a small growl rise in her throat, but she swallowed it. He looked almost exactly like one of her parents' cats. The one that knocked her favorite, signed by the author book in the toilet.
"I am Firestar, leader of ThunderClan. Leafpool tells me you are unable to walk, yet she found you within ThunderClan territory. Care to explain?"
"Would if I could, ginger. Why don't you ask Miss Sparkle-fur next time she shows?"
"Sparkle fur?" the dark tabby questioned.
"Called herself Bluestar or something like that." That caused an uproar from the cats watching, something akin to shock on their faces. But of course it couldn't be shock. They were merely cats!
"What did this cat look like?"
"Tch. Blue-gray fur, all glittery. Gray fur around her muzzle, blue eyes." My parents would sell me to get a cat that looked like her.
The cats nearest to Falene shared a look. The sound of the brush behind her rustling made her fur stand on end. She twisted to look at the cats emerging from the tunnel. First came a golden-brown tabby tom, who was followed by a slightly smaller black she-cat. Then a pale gray tom and a golden tabby tom. Their ears were back, hackles risen.
And there are more cats. Falene rolled her eyes.
When she got her hands on those sparkle-furs…
There was going to some serious hell to pay.
*Crunch* So, what do you think? I think you should review and tell me!
Yeah, so I'm gonna try to make this one a bi-weekly update, because my main focus is my Fullmetal Alchemist fanfiction, Tears of Flame. (- Notice the shameless self-advertising!)
Tschüß, Auf Wiedresehen and Adios! FRA out!
