Chapter 9

Hey, guys! I am very, UBER sorry for the, like, two month wait for this chapter! But I can explain! I wanted to update ALLLL of my fan fictions at the same time, and, well, it took longer than expected! My deepest, warmest, biggest apologies, you guys!

Well, here's the chapter! I really hope you like it!

Bubblepaw tried to work things out in her head. Okay, so a tom that looks like me, and a she-cat that looks like Coyotepaw, in the time of Riverstar…? She lay her head down on the ground, frustrated. None of this made sense!

Bubblepaw stood up and shook her pelt. "I'll just have to ask Coyotepaw, I guess," she muttered to herself.

As she was going over to the fresh-kill pile, Runningpaw trotted up to her. "How's it going, Bubblepaw?"

Bubblepaw sighed. "Good, I guess. Right now, I'm just confused…"

Runningpaw's ears flicked. "Confused? About what?"

"Nothing, just a dream. I don't know why I'm getting so worked up about it," Bubblepaw meowed, not wanting to get Runningpaw involved. Somehow, he'd work out a way to hate Coyotepaw even more. "It's nothing, really," she repeated.

"Okay." Runningpaw took a sparrow off the top of the pile and ran off to Badgerpaw and Sheeppaw. Bubblepaw sighed and took the smallest mouse. She wasn't in the mood to eat, but if she planned on going to WindClan for Coyotepaw, then she had to.

She gulped it down quickly, but half-heartedly, and ended up giving some of it to Cloudpaw.

Bubblepaw slipped to the edge of camp, and looked around to see if anyone was watching her. When she saw that the coast was clear, she dashed out and into the forest.

She lifted her nose to see if she could scent anything. All that was there was the scent of…what is that…? Bubblepaw looked around to see if she could spot the source of the strange, horrid smell. That was when she realized that it was still fresh.

Her body tensed and her fur stood on end. She couldn't move when she realized that the scent got stronger every moment. Whatever it was, it was moving towards her. And it was something she'd never seen before.

Her ear twitched when she heard leaves crunching to her right. She forced her head to look at it.

When she saw it, her eyes widened and her claws dug deep into the earth. It was hideous; it had a long, long tail—but at the front of it's face! It had fur on his back end, but less fur, if any, on it's front end. Little eyes sat on either side of it's face-tail, and ears poked out of it, too.

Bubblepaw was frozen where she stood. When the face-tail started moving forward, her fur bristled. She managed to bare her teeth in a weak hiss, but it still kept coming forward. What am I gunna do…? Bubblepaw thought, panicked. Move, Bubblepaw, move!

It was only a few mouse-lengths away now. Bubblepaw cringed and grit her teeth, looking away from the ugly creature.

Suddenly, five familiar voices called her name out simultaneously. "Bubblepaw!"

Her eyes flew open, and she saw Skyfoot and Beartooth leaping at the face-tail. Beartooth bit its head and Skyfoot dug her claws into its back. Mistypaw rammed into her, bringing her back to her senses.

"Bubblepaw!" she exclaimed, worry clouding her eyes. "Are you okay?"

Bubblepaw nodded. "I'm fine," she choked out. She looked back at the battle; it was then that she noticed Dragonheart, the warrior from WindClan, had also joined in, clenching on to the face-tail's [furry] tail.

Then there was a flash of silver, and suddenly Coyotepaw was there. He scratched the face-tail's flank twice, then jumped to where its heart might be. He scratched at it vigorously, then bit fiercely once, sinking his teeth deeply into the fountain of blood and scratches.

The face-tail's eyes rolled back, and it fell over, dead.

Coyotepaw spat out blood and glared at it. "Don't ever mess with Bubblepaw," he growled. Bubblepaw's face felt kind of hot, but she got over it quickly and ran over to her friends.

"Thank you guys so much! I don't know what happened, I just froze when I saw it! Thank you!" Bubblepaw crowed, bowing her head and flicking her tail.

Coyotepaw looked at her sternly, and walked over to her, inspecting her for any flaws. "You weren't hurt, were you? You're okay?"

Bubblepaw blinked. "I'm fine, thanks." She decided she'd tease her friend a little bit. "But I didn't think you were that protective of me!" she meowed, purring.

Coyotepaw's eyes went wide, and his face heated up. "Uh, yeah, that was…" Coyotepaw stammered, failing to explain his actions. His mouth opened again, but he closed it and stood there, embarrassed. Bubblepaw closed her eyes and licked his cheek, still purring with amusement while Coyotepaw watched her with glimmering eyes full of admiration. (to put it lightly…eheheh…)

Mistypaw caught onto this and her ear twitched with annoyance. Didn't her sister realize that she was seducing her friend—from WindClan? And then what would happen when he confessed to her and she didn't have the heart to turn him down—if she even wanted to—and it turned into a whole, big mess for both Clans?

She waited for the WindClan cats to leave, and then caught up with Bubblepaw. "Bubblepaw…" She didn't know how to start the conversation. She changed the subject hastily. "…Are you all right?"

Bubblepaw sighed. "How many times do I have to tell you guys—I'm fine! Coyotepaw killed it before it got too close." Her tail flicked, and she smiled brightly. "Isn't he great? He's always there to save me, and never fails…"

Mistypaw dug her claws into the soil, frustration boiling up inside her. I can't believe this…! "Bubblepaw, you—"

"Oh!" she burst out, cutting Mistypaw off. "I forgot to ask Coyotepaw about…! Mistypaw, don't tell anyone where I'm going, because I might have to cross the WindClan border."

"But, I—" Mistypaw started, but Bubblepaw flicked her tail and dashed back into the woods. She sighed. She was going to have to consult Nightpaw about this…

Mistypaw found him eating with Badgerpaw. "Sorry, Badgerpaw, but this is important." She dragged Nightpaw away, under the shade of a tree where no cat could hear them.

"What's the big idea? I was having a juicyvole just now!" Nightpaw meowed.

"It's about Bubblepaw," Mistypaw meowed, her eyes meeting her brother's. "You know that tom from WindClan, the pretty one named Coyotepaw?" Nightpaw nodded slowly. "I think…" She inhaled deeply. She cared a lot about her sister. "…I think that…Coyotepaw is in love with Bubblepaw."

Bubblepaw was now approaching the WindClan border. She didn't want to cross it, but she was dying to see if Coyotepaw knew anything about the cats in her dream.

She was walking hastily about, trying to focus on where she was stepping, but she was too paranoid that some cat from WindClan would spot her and tear her to pieces. Suddenly, she heard a crunch of leaves, and it almost scared her fur off. She whipped around, looking for the source, but soon realized that she was the one that stepped on the leaves. She sighed. "Why am I so scared?" she muttered to herself.

Soon, she approached a steep hill with jagged rocks at the bottom. Her heart fluttered at the sight. If she fell down there…

A mouse scuttled behind her, and she jumped once again. She turned around swiftly and killed it, breathing hard. She tried to bury it, but lost her balance and fell down the slope. She attempted to yowl, but nothing came out of her mouth.

"Bubblepaw!" Coyotepaw's voice rang out, and suddenly she was on safe, steady ground again. And, she was on Coyotepaw's back. He put her down, lying her on her side. He licked her ruffled fur down gently for a few moments. Then he seemed to realize what he was doing. "Wah!" he meowed, jumping back. "I-I'm sorry! I-I-I just…." He licked his chest fur, speechless and embarrassed.

Bubblepaw was red under her fur, but purred. She walked over to her friend and licked his cheek once before resting her head on his back. "That was amazing, that you rescued me again," she purred. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," he purred back.

They sat like that for a while, enjoying each other's comfort. Then Bubblepaw remembered why she was there in the first place. "Oh, that's right! Coyotepaw, I had a dream. It was in the time of Riverstar, and there was a tom there that looked just like me, and then, near the end, a she-cat appeared and she looked just like you! Do you know anything about that?"

Coyotepaw was hesitant. He pondered on what exactly to say, but Bubblepaw waited patiently. "Well…yes," he sighed. "But not all of it. For example, I don't know who exactly it was and everything, but…the she-cat in your dream was Silvertail. The tom was her master, but I don't know who he was. And yes, it was in the time of Riverstar; the first time, in fact, that 'the Phantom Duo' were ever needed. Only two other times were they required…until now."

Bubblepaw was dumbstruck. "…What…?"

Coyotepaw sighed again. This was going to be a long story. "Well…legend has it that a long, long time ago, a terrible fate awaited the forest. StarClan knew this, and so they sent a she-cat down from Silverpelt. She was beautiful, with amazing eyes and a silver pelt so stunning that every cat respected her. The pelt probably came from coming down from Silverpelt, but…anyway, she called herself Silvertail, and her eyes immediately locked on a tom—that looked exactly like you— and she announced her reason. The fate came, and Silvertail and the tom found a way to stop it. And so, whenever they were needed, the Phantom Duo were reincarnated, in a way—,"

"Wait, wait, wait. Are you trying to tell me that I'm some reincarnation of a tom from the time of Riverstar?" Bubblepaw asked incredulously. "And you are, too?"

"Well, I come from Silvertail's family, so I'm not really reincarnated, but I do have more charm than my father, and I was told to accept the job, so I guess StarClan sent a message to Cheetahspots or something saying about—,"

"What's going on here?" a deep voice sounded from behind them, and Bubblepaw knew it. It was Beavertooth, probably the strictest cat in the entire forest. "I'm reporting this affair to Sapphirestar, and she can deal with you two. Clan cross breeding is strictly off limits. Shame on you both."

Coyotepaw stood up, baring his teeth. "Maybe we just wanted to play together or something. Who said our relationship was romantic?" he growled. Bubblepaw's ear flicked and she almost saddened, but caught herself. He was right, after all!

"Then you can wait until the next Gathering that you are both at," Beavertooth meowed firmly. "You are also a trespasser on RiverClan territory."

Bubblepaw decided to step in. "You know, he saved my life." Beavertooth eyed her suspiciously. "I was off hunting a plump mouse when I fell down onto those rocks down there—almost. Coyotepaw was on patrol and saw me falling, so he came and saved me, and then he stuck around for a few moments to make sure I was fine, and then we started goofing around a little. He was actually going to go home now, weren't you, Coyotepaw?" Bubblepaw stared at her friend pointedly.

He nodded. "Is it so strange that a cat's friend doesn't want to watch her fall and impale herself five times over, but decides to help them? Anyway, as I was saying, I have to go, Bubblepaw. See you later!" he flicked his tail at Bubblepaw, but gave Beavertooth a stunning smile to try and soften him up a little.

"Bye, Coyotepaw!" Bubblepaw called after him.

"So where's your fresh-kill?" Beavertooth asked in a growl.

Bubblepaw snickered under her breath. "Right over there, if you want proof," she meowed, jabbing her nose over to the dead mouse.

Beavertooth glared at her as he picked it up and started back to camp. "I'm still reporting it," he muttered.

"Go ahead," Bubblepaw meowed back. Her mind was set on the story that Coyotepaw had been telling her.

So…I have something to do with the Phantom Cat…and I'm, like, reincarnated, or from that unknown warrior's lineage or…gah, I'm confused!

Bubblepaw cursed under her breath at Beavertooth for interrupting them.

Then she stopped dead in her tracks as she realized something she was surprised she hadn't earlier.

Coyotepaw—or Cheetahspots—might know where she came from.

:O So...who is Bubblepaw, really? Will the WindClan cats have the answer? Find out in the next chapter! Please review! And sorry again!