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Chapter 2

I woke up to the sound of chirping birds and rushing water. I could feel fuzzy green grass beneath me, and the sun that poked out of the trees warmed me with its gentle rays.

I immediately jumped up and looked around, my heart beating rapidly in my chest. I realized that I was in a forest, and there was a flowing stream running right next to my feet. No, not feet. Paws.

I gazed at my new body in horror. Light ginger fur covered my body from head to toe, except for my feet-turned-paws, which were white. I looked back and saw a white-tipped tail hanging limply on the ground. I tried to wiggle it and watched in shock as it actually responded.

Wait... Am I...?

I was a cat.

The first thing that came to my mind was to scream and freak out, but I forced herself to calm down and take deep breaths. Billions of questions were running through my panicking mind, and I knew that I would probably never find the answer to any of them.

Where am I? How did this happen? Is this a dream? Why am I am cat?

I took another deep breath to calm me down. Can I still talk and walk like a human?

I opened my mouth, determined to say "Is anybody there?" but all that came out was a soft kitten mewl. I hung my head in shame.

Then I crawled over to the nearest tree and dug my front kitten-claws into its soft bark. I placed myself in a good standing up position, but when I let go of the tree I fell flat on my back.

I felt a wail rise up to my throat, and I let it all out. What was I supposed to do?

After a couple minutes, I dried up my tears and awkwardly padded towards the stream. I was definitely not used to walking as a cat.

I looked down into the moving water of the stream. Through the ripples and small waves, I could make out the form of a tiny ginger face looking back at me. One thing that reassured me, however, were my eyes; they were green, just like my human self.

I looked more closely at the churning water. I looked about three, maybe four months old. I looked a little younger than I thought I would, but hey; I wasn't supposed to be a cat anyway.

My belly rumbled, and I noticed the sky starting to grow darker. I scratched some pieces of moss off a nearby tree and placed them on the ground. I lay down on top of it and watched the sun fully disappear. When the moon and stars rose, I lay my furry little head down and closed my eyes, breathing in the smell of the forest.

Maybe this is all a dream, I murmured in my mind. When I wake up, I'll be in a hospital bed where I belong. Or maybe, hopefully, that was a dream too...

I sighed dreamily as I drift off to sleep.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

My heart sank when I opened my eyes to the sound of the running stream beside me. Devastated, I brought myself to my feet- err, paws and closed my eyes again. The strong scent of the forest filled my nostrils as I breathed in and out, trying to calm myself down all over again. But I knew that nothing I could do would bring me back to my original state.

Well, the best I can do is look for my home and hope that someone rescues me, I thought plainly. But then I shook my head. I was in the middle of an unknown forest; there must be nothing around for miles.

I open my eyes and look around. My eyes linger on the stream next to me, and I faintly smile. This stream could lead me to a lake, and I could search for help there!

My heart beats faster as I get to my paws. I could be on my way home!

I awkwardly start to pad beside the stream, heading south. I really should get used to this feline body.

I walk for a few more minutes, thinking about the reaction of my family if (and when) they see me as a cat when a different smell reaches my cat nose. I turn around and spot a squirrel nibbling under a tree root.

Unexpectedly, my stomach gives a humongous growl that makes me realize how hungry I was. I stand there, confused, just staring at the squirrel. It stares right back at me.

All of a sudden, a crazy thought flashes into my mind. Maybe I can try to hunt it... Just like the Warrior cats did!

Then I shook my head in disgust, trying to clear away those thoughts. Come on, Rachel! You are not a real cat! That is disgusting! Humans don't eat raw squirrel meat...

The cat part of me argued with the human part of me. If you don't hunt that squirrel, you will probably starve and never see your family again. Think! My human side surrendered.

I try to remember what tips they had said about hunting in the books. Your weight in your haunches... Tail straight... Smart and stealthy...

I quietly start to stalk the squirrel. It had gone back to nibbling its nuts, so it would be distracted when I pounce. Unfortunately, My belly gave another mighty rumble and the squirrel took off. Without thinking, I chased it the way I was heading, still next to the stream.

It was a little weird at first; running like a cat, chasing a squirrel, but in the end I had no choice. Still not used to my new feline body, the squirrel started to run farther and farther away. I kept chasing it, until I tripped on a tree root and was flung into the air.

Time seemed to slow down as I was in the air. I was pushed down into the stream beside me, landing with a big sploosh!

The stream was icy cold.

Rushing water crashed around me, roaring in my delicate ears. I tried to stand up, but the current was too strong and I was uselessly carried downstream.

My fluffy kitten fur was weighing me down. I tried thrashing my paws in the cold water, trying to keep my head up, but it was no use. I was flipping and flailing in the stream, and all I could do was try to call for help.

Suddenly, I was launched into the air again, and I quickly gulped for breath as I crash back down into another body of water.

This wet place was very calm, compared to the stream that I almost died in. I realized that I was in a lake, and that I was slowly sinking to the bottom.

Panicking, I tried to swim to the surface of the water, but my already wet fur was weighting a ton. I frantically tried to wiggle like a tadpole, but the harder I tried, the more I would sink. And I was sinking fast.

My lungs were now on fire. A few more seconds of my head under these waters will cause my lungs to burst. I gave up trying to save myself and waited for the everlasting darkness to come and claim me. Everything that has happened these past couple days had been enough for a 13 year-old girl/four month-old cat.

As I sunk deeper and deeper, a voice that wasn't mine seemed to whisper in my ear. Don't give up now, you still have a life to live... the voice murmured.

No I don't, I shot back. My life is over and everything around me has crumbled. Look at what happened when I acted like a real cat! I chased a squirrel, I fell into the stream and now I'm drowning in a lake.

Don't give up now, the voice repeated. Think of your mother... Your brother... What would they want you to do?

Thinking about my family gave me a newfound strength. I gave a mighty kick and I paddled to the surface of the water as fast as I could. When my face broke through the water, gasping for air, the voice whispered, We shall meet again.

"Wait! Don't leave!" I mewed aloud, but I felt the presence of the voice leaving my side. Determined to find my family again, I paddled strongly back to shore.

When my feet touch the soft sand of the bank, I collapse. Barely conscious, I close my eyes to help with the dizziness. The world started to spin around me. Laying my head on the grass, I wonder where and who the weird voice was in my head. It had given me newfound strength, and for that, I am grateful. Maybe I can continue the search for my family now...

But somewhere in my heart, I could tell that the car crash that happened two days ago was the last time I'd ever see my family again.

I sniffed and lay my head on my paws as the world seemed to stop twirling around me. I open my tear-stained eyes and look around. It was a beautiful sight.

To my left, there was a vast moor with the faint outline of mountains in the distance. The was a farm and pastures a little to the side, with great galloping horses trotting around.

Right in front of me across the lake, there was a place similar to the moor, but it looked more wet. It looked like there were dunes and reeds almost everywhere, and there was a small island beside it. There were a couple of docks here and there, which led me to believe that there was a human city somewhere not too far away.

Next to me, on my right, there was a vast pine forest with just a couple marshes here and there. It looked like a shadowy place, and I hoped that I would never have to go in there.

Lastly, there was a leafy forest in back of me, full of the pitter-patter of tiny beings scurrying around in the undergrowth. The sweet scent of the forest made my stomach growl again, reminding me that I hadn't eaten in a whole day.

I made up my mind. I would journey to the farm in the moor, and maybe the farmer will like to have a cat like me living with him, keeping the mice away from the barn. I sighed, knowing that it was my only hope in surviving. At least I would have a shelter and a roof over my head...

I stood up, but almost immediately a wave of lightheadedness crashed into me and I toppled over with a squeak. My head spun, and I knew that I was still very weak from my little water excursion. My vision went fuzzy and I groaned. Why me? I silently asked.

Suddenly, I feel myself being lifted off the ground with a squeak. Something had picked me up by the scruff of my neck. I hoped that it was a human that came to help me, but after everything today, you can never be too sure.

I then felt myself swinging side to side a little bit, which meant that the thing that was holding me was carrying me somewhere else. A few moments pass and I feel myself place back onto the ground.

My 'saviour' had placed me back in the leafy forest. I was in a little clearing, a little way from the stream that I got washed away in earlier. I turn around to look at whatever had picked me up, and I let out a shocked squeal when I figured out what it was.

Its jaws drooled with saliva. His dark russet fur was fluffed out to make him look twice as big as he already was. His eyes gleamed hungrily as he licked his lips, already imagining how good I would taste down its throat. I wanted to flee, but the menacing gaze of that creature had rooted me to the spot.

Fox.

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