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Chapter 32, Burning Emotions
Iceshadow stared in wide eyed amazement at the tiny creature before her. "Wolfsong," she breathed again.
"I decided to call her Wolfkit," Mudsplash offered, seeing where Iceshadow's eyes were looking.
Sleetflash's blue eyes followed Iceshadow's every movement, until the younger cat was forced to brusquely depart, wishing Mudsplash well. The medicine cat padded out of the den into the cold morning air, and touched Iceshadow's shoulder with her tail.
"This is amazing," Iceshadow said, almost in a whisper. Her eyes were full of wonder, and Sleetflash felt a rush of satisfaction that the wonder had returned. She could remember Iceshadow as an apprentice, those same eyes glowing with emotion.
You taught me how to feel.
Before, Sleetflash would have brushed out of the nursery without caring for the newborn kits, without kind words - but this apprentice, so full of emotion and wonder had changed her, touched her. The feeling had gone out of those eyes recently, become the dull misery of grief.
Now it was back, in all of it's energy, wonder, and love. "Sometimes there are no words," Sleetflash whispered softly. There were no adequate words to describe the emotion in her eyes, there were no words to describe life in all of it's sorrow and glory.
Word paint a pretty picture - but a pale one, compared to the imagination that makes them shine.
*.*
"Hollyfire is sick!" Iceshadow slowly blinked open her eyes, sleep skimming away from her with a fleeting glance. It was Moonshine who had spoken, yellow gaze conveying concern.
"Hollyfire!" The white shecat realized what was going on. "Is it greencough?" Iceshadow asked quickly - Hollyfire was their deputy!
"Whitecough, but Sleetflash says it will be a long case from the slow start on symptoms," Silverheart told her Clanmate quicly.
"Will there be a stand in deputy?" Snakeclaw asked eagerly.
At that moment, the customary call rang out. Iceshadow felt at thrill of anticipation as she rushed into the clearing. She had finally found where she belonged.
"Cats of ShadowClan," Petalstar's eyes were kind as she looked down at them. "As you know, Hollyfire has contracted whitecough. We need a temporary deputy while she recovers. The cat I have chosen will not be a full deputy, and will be heavily advised by senior warriors. Therefore I have elected in my best judgement to choose a warrior who has not mentored an apprentice." Murmurs swept through the crowd at this, but Iceshadow couldn't take her eyes of Petalstar's.
"Iceshadow... of ShadowClan."
Iceshadow felt a surge of emotion too strong to describe, like the flames from a fire sweeping across her heart.
It might only be temporary...
but this was her dream.
*.*
"Thunder to Shadow, dust to dust, ashes to ashes, ice to shadow. Daughter of Thunder and Son of Shadow bring upon themselves the greatest pain the Clans have known. Bloom of the Night cannot hide it, but the face that shows nothing will be the undoing of both."
"Shadow on ice is doubly wrong, for ice is cold-hearted and shadow casts all the others into shadow. The wrongs of the past and present cannot be righted, because of the daughter of Thunder.
The forest will tremble, for the coming of the shadow on ice. Lies will be spread, and it will be thought that the wrong was righted.
The wrong cannot be righted.
The forest will be frozen, and lie under shadow."
"What does it mean?" She sat in a dark forest, starlight shining over her.
"You will feel the greatest pain the Clans have known... but you will shake the forest with love." The voice came from nowhere, empty and full at the same time.
"I don't understand."
"Do you know you'll never have the happy ending, do you know you'll never have your dreams?" It asked, showing nothing.
"I have my dream," Iceshadow smiled.
"You'll never have his kits."
The sentence took her breath away, and the fire was back. It was the burning fire, not of ambition, sorrow, not of joy, but of anger.
Why did you do this to me, StarClan? How can you just tell me that I'll never have what I dreamed of?
Emotions are like the sky - sometimes cold snowflakes drifting down and giving a frozen beauty of sorrow, sometimes quiet, sad, forgotten raindrops, sometimes as bright as the sunshine...
But sometimes they burn you worse than fire.
This is the second to last chapter... Please visit my forum, Iceshadow of ShadowClan's forum after it's over to help me decide on the plot for my next story if you liked this one!
~Iceshadow...
of ShadowClan~