Sorry for the long update! School and stuff. Apologies. But here's this chapter. If you haven't read the Warriors series, no problem you should be able to catch on all you really need to know is it's about cats (although you should read some of the books cause their good and I love cats). Also, I poke fun at the book, but it's all in good sport. I think it's a great series and please don't be offended. So read and review!
My hands and legs feel strange. Sort of tingly and I'm a little freaked out about it. I open my eyes and peer around at the new world I entered into. I gaze around. I'm in a forest. Whoop-dee-freaking-do. Except I realize however that this is a giant forest. The trees tower over me, like the redwood trees in California, expect for the fact that they're clearly not redwood trees. So I guess I'm in a giant forest. That makes this an enchanted forest. Yawn. Been there, done that, moving on.
I start to walk forward to explore the forest. Walking feels weird though, but I can't put my finger on it.
"Ouch!" I whimper as I step on a thorn. I peer down at my hand to inspect the damage. I freeze. I just stare at my hand in shock, because it is not a hand I'm staring at, it's a paw. I blink a few times to be sure I'm not just seeing things. Then I move the paw to be sure it belongs to me. It moves with me. A sinking feelings swells in my stomach.
"No. No. No. NO. NO. THIS IS NOT HAPPENING!" I panic and start to run, as if I could chase away my new shape. I see a small stream through the trees and make for it. I pause as I stare at my reflection in the water. Staring back at me is a cat. A shabby dark-gray cat with orange eyes glared at me.
"AHAHHHAHHA!" I scream (along with some other choice words). "I am NOT A CAT. THIS CANNOT BE HAPPENING." I continue with my panic attack until I trip over a stick and fall face first into the ground.
"Even when I'm a cat I can't land on my feet!" I whimper. "This sucks."
Suddenly a strong force leaps on me, and plants me to the ground. The creature's claws dig into my back. I hiss, and then realize that I just hissed and curse at myself. None of it helps me though because I'm still pinned to the ground.
"You're in ThunderClan's hunting ground. Move on!" The voice of the creature that jumped on me commands. I wiggle my way around to face him. It's another cat. I clear my throat.
"P-Please don't hurt me." I whimper. "I wasn't hunting. I was just, uhh, lost."
"Don't try to trick me, ShadowClan cat. I am not as dull as you think." The cat hisses at me.
"I'm not trying to trick you! And I'm sure you're very smart. Now if we're both agreed how about you let me go, and I'll move on and-"
"I am warning you. Enough trickery!"
"I am NOT tricking you!" I yell back at him, baring my fangs. Before I could try to wiggle my way free, the sound of soft paw-fall on the leaf litter and the sound of fur swishing through branches alerts me to the arrival of more cats. Great. Now I'm surrounded.
"Hi, Firepaw!" One of the voices calls out. It sounds friendly, so I assume he was talking to the cat on top of me, who must be Firepaw.
"Silence!" Another voice growls.
"Firepaw?" A third voice joined in. This one sounded feminine and authoritative. "What have we here? An enemy warrior?"
I hear some argument between the cats. I don't really care enough to listen, I just want to get out of here. The cat, Firepaw, had finally gotten off of me to speak with the other cats. I start to slip away.
"Where do you think you're going?" The angry looking cat growls at me. He blocks my exit. I glare at him.
"Calm yourself, Tigerclaw." The female commands. "I know this cat. You are ShadowClan's medicine cat, Yellowfang, aren't you?" She asks me. I shrug my shoulders at her.
"I guess."
"Yellowfang!" Tigerclaw meows mockingly at me. "It looks like you have fallen on hard times if you can be beaten by an apprentice!"
"He caught me by surprise." I exclaim, irritated by this "Tigerclaw".
"Come. We'll take her back to camp. Then we'll decide what to do with her." The female cat, who I assume is the leader declares.
"Do I any get input?" I ask.
"How about this. You could try to fight or outrun all of us and probably die trying, or you can come peacefully to our camp, ShadowClan." Tigerclaw hisses at me. I can smell the mouse on his breath and it makes me flinch.
"Fine. But do me a favor, and get some breath mints."
"What is a breath mints?" Tigerclaw asks. I blink at him, forgetting that cats don't use breath mints.
"It's a ShadowClan thing, you wouldn't get it." I say, and move on, following the cats to their camp.
As we pass the sentries who guard the camp entrance, the rest of ThunderClan comes to greet the cats returning home. As they notice me, they start to gape. Some of them start to jeer at me. I don't care enough to deal with them though, because I'm still trying to figure out where I am/whatthefudgeisgoingon. I know there are two cat clans, ThunderClan and ShadowClan, which I assume are enemies. And I'm in ThunderClan camp as a ShadowClan cat. Even I know that's not good.
We reach a corner and the leader nods at the dusty ground, motioning for me to sit down.
"You want me to just sit on the dirt? Do you know how dirty I'll get?" They ignore me. I suck it up, take a deep breath, and lower myself onto the ground. Ugh. It's very uncomfortable. Then another cat approaches me. She bandages my wounds with spiderwebs. Eww. I look on in shock.
"For a medicine cat you look as if you have never seen someone bandage a wound before." The cat says. I freeze. I can't blow my cover this soon in the story.
"I-um. It's just very different to have some else bandage my wounds." I lie. The cat leaves. No one else approaches me. They all go about their daily chores (although I do get a few stares). I wonder what the chances are that I could try to escape. As I analyze my surroundings, I realize that it's probably less than zero. I'm surrounded by enemies and I don't even know where the exit is.
I lay my head down and let out a sigh of frustration. This sucks. This is worse than Gossip Girl. Hmm. That gets me thinking…I was able to jump out of Gossip Girl quickly, could I do it again? My heart leaps at the hope of being human again.
I stand up and mentally prepare myself to jump. I imagine the wooden door in front of me with a shiny golden door handle that's a little rusty around the edges. I reach my hand out to open it. Then I remember that I no longer have a hand, but a paw. My paw slides past the door handle. I reach back up with both my paws but they get no traction. I lose my concentration, the door disappears, and I fall forward on my face into the dirt.
"Owww." I complain through a mouthful of dirt. "Stupid No-Opposable Thumb Paws!" I yell in frustration. This elicits more stares from the cats. I turn around so I don't have to face them. This is going to be hard to get through. Firepaw appears next to me.
"Are you okay?" He sounds concerned.
"Yeah. It's just a- um ShadowClan ritual." I lie. He buys it.
"You should get some rest. We're having a meeting later." He says. I nod and he walks away. I lower my head down to rest. Maybe if I'm lucky I'll dream about being a human again.
"Yellowfang!" Firepaw jumps in front of me, scaring me from my peaceful nap. I jump about ten feet in the air.
"Don't do that!" I reprimand him. He looks down sadly. He looks like he's fighting back tears. No matter how angry I am, I feel bad.
"Chin up, kid. Don't worry about it." I awkwardly pat him on the back trying to be comforting. I guess it helps. He looks up eagerly.
"So what did you wake me from my peaceful slumber for?"
"We're having a meeting!" He reminds me.
"Oh right…" I remember. I gaze around, still hazy from sleep. All the ThunderClan cats are gathering together to listen to their leader. Firepaw sits next to me, and another of his friends, Graypaw joins us.
"Bluestar's about to start." Grawpaw mews at him. Bluestar. That must be the female leader from before. I raise my head to listen to her speak.
"I'm sure you have all heard about the prisoner we brought back with us today." Hm, that must be me.
"But there is something else you need to know." Bluestar glances down at me.
"Can you hear me from there?" She asks.
"I'm like five feet away." I mumble.
"What?" She asks.
"Yeah! All communications clear." I joke. No one else gets it. Okay then.
"I'm afraid I have some very grave news. Today I traveled with a patrol into WindClan territory. The air was filled with the scent of ShadowClan." I get some nasty stares from some nearby cats. "Almost every tree had been sprayed by ShadowClan warriors. And we met no WindClan cats even though we journeyed deep into their heartland." Her words are met with silence.
"Do you mean ShadowClan has chased them out?" Called a cat from the back.
"We can't be sure. Certainly the scent of ShadowClan was everywhere. We found blood, too, and fur. There must have been a battle, though we found no bodies from either Clan." There's a tumult of disgruntled comments and groans, etc. Finally Bluestar takes control again.
"I don't know the answers to any of your questions. It is well known that ShadowClan has recently appointed a new leader, following the death of Raggedstar. Their new leader, Brokenstar, gave no hint of any threat when we met him at the last Gathering." His name is Brokenstar? Looks like I found the villain.
"Perhaps Yellowfang has answers? After all, she is of ShadowClan!" A cat snarls. I turn to give him a death glare for bringing attention to me. More arguments break out.
"That's enough!" Bluestar growls. "This situation is too serious for us to be fighting among ourselves. ThunderClan must prepare itself. From this moonrise onward, warriors will travel in larger groups. Other Clan members will remain close to the camp. Patrols will travel the boundary edges more frequently, and all the kits must stay in the nursery." Bluestar continues to give leadership, and it doesn't really seem to concern me, so I start to blank out. I'm brought back by the mention of my name.
"Yellowfang will be allowed to stay here until she has recovered her strength. We are warriors, not savages. She is to be treated with respect and courtesy." Bluestar says.
"But the Clan cannot support Yellowfang. We have too many mouths to feed already." A cat complains.
"I don't want to be 'that guy' but if food is so scarce, then how come all the clans aren't working together to hunt food? Or have you ever thought of mooching off humans until the food comes back? Or maybe start farming? Really anything would be more practical than this." I point out.
"The clans working together?" Tigerclaw hisses in shock.
"Humans?" Grawpaw asks Firepaw next to him.
"Twolegs." Firepaw explains.
"Farming?" Another background cat asks.
"Surely Yellowfang has lost her mind. We should put her out of her misery now." Tigerclaw suggests.
"Hey!" I yell. "I have not lost my mind, I'm just thinking practically!"
"It is clear Yellowfang is very injured and physically drained. We will not take her life. She just needs some rest."
"You people just need some logic." I hiss under my breath.
"Firepaw it will be your responsibility to hunt and care for Yellowfang." Bluestar says.
"Yes, Bluestar." Firepaw agrees, but he doesn't look too happy. I'm not too happy to be stuck with him either, believe me.
"The meeting is over. I would like to speak to my senior warriors alone now." Bluestar says, ending the meeting. Firepaw and Graypaw leave me. No one else approaches me. I'm tired, even though I just woke up from a nap. There's nothing else to do, so I guess I'll go to sleep again.
Just as I start to lay my head down, something soft brushes against my face. A feather floats down to the ground. I freeze. Oh my god...I thought this couldn't get weirder but I come to the realization that I still have the wings from Maximum Ride. I squeeze them against my back. I guess they blend into my fur because no one seems to notice anything. Does this make me a griffin? Or a sphinx? Or GodKnowsWhat? What am I going to do?
I take deep breaths. I can do this. It's only wings. On a cat. I am a cat with wings. I never thought that sentence would apply to me. All I can do now is try to get some sleep.
Of course nothing is that simple.
I get about 15 minutes of sleep before the nightmare starts. I'm stuck in an elevator. The lights start flashing. Then they completely black out. My heart starts pounding. The doors open and I'm on the Empire State Building again. My favorite. A light drizzle starts, and lightning flashes across the sky, remnant of the flashing lights from the elevator. Then an Editor appears, towersing above me. He seems to grow taller and more intimidating. My hands wrap around the electric rod that appeared out of nowhere in my hand. As I electrocute him, his face begins to morph. At first I see Fang's face, then the Phantom's, Jace's, Nemo's, and then it stops on a disfigured combination of the different faces I've had. I stumble back in shock (no pun intended). The railings disappear, and my foot slips off. I start falling. This time my wings don't work, and I can't jump. I can only see the disfigured face growing smaller as the ground below me gets closer.
I couldn't have done it better myself, the Editor's voice mocks me.
That's when I bolt awake. I'm hyperventilating. My paws are shaking. I glance around out of paranoia to be sure there are no Editors. That dream freaked me out more than I care to admit. It's not even real! I know its cliché, but it felt so real. I thought I was going to die…
I guess sometimes it's easy to forget that just because this is a story doesn't mean I can't get hurt. My eyes blur for a moment. Am I crying? I brush away the moisture. I'm still shaking. I just need to calm down. I don't think I'm going to go back to bed.
I force myself to stay awake as the sun rises. The cats around me start to stir. Firepaw trots up to me.
"Good morning."
"Hmm." I mumble.
"You look tired." He observes.
"You could say that." I sigh. I try to reposition my leg to get more comfortable. I cringe as a sharp pain spikes up my leg.
"Looks like your leg is still hurting. I'll go get some herbs from Spottedleaf for that. And maybe some poppy seeds to chew on." Firepaw sprinted away. My mind is still stuck on the nightmare when he returns. He drops the bundle in front of me.
"Thanks." I tell him. He turns to leave.
"Wait a second. Firepaw. Can I ask you something?" He looks back at me, questioningly, but he remains.
"You were owned by humans right? A, what did you call it? A-"
"A kittypet?"
"Yeah. And you were given the choice to either be a kittypet or a warrior. You chose warrior."
"Yeah." Firepaw sits there expectantly.
"Do you ever...regret your decision? Wish you could go back home?" I ask. Firepaw looks down. He doesn't answer. Then he looks back up.
"I don't think so. I'm part of ThunderClan now." He says, but I can detect a hint of hesitation.
"Thanks. I was just wondering." I nod. He looks a little confused, but goes on his way. I'm left again with only myself and my thoughts. This is really getting old. I'm so bored, I don't even notice when I fall asleep. Did you know cats sleep 20 hours a day? I can now verify that is true.
When I wake up from my catnap, I have some of Yellowfang's memories. I learn that Yellowfang was framed for the death of ShadowClan kits by a different cat. I can't remember the cat's name, but his scarred, dark brown tabby fur sticks in my mind and stirs a feeling of contempt. Obviously my first instinct is to tell the ThunderClan cats about this, because not telling anyone about this horrifying deed would be silly. As I wander around looking for Firepaw I find that my leg is better.
"Firepaw!" I call urgently once I find him. "I didn't kill any kits! It was the scarred ShadowClan cat!"
"What kits?" He asks.
"I was framed by this cat for killing kits, which I didn't do, and I was exiled from my clan and we need to do something!" Firepaw gives me a dumbfounded look.
"What do you want to do?" He asks. Now it's my turn to be dumbfounded. I didn't think this far ahead. Luckily an idea pops into my head.
"We should tell Bluestar!" I suggest. Firepaw cringes.
"She left for the Gathering." He says. "I was about to go but you called me."
"How long was I asleep for?! Come on, let's go." I command. He follows after me. I'm determined and I keep walking. Then I stop.
"Um…So where is this Gathering?" I ask, a little embarrassed.
"Oh, I'll show you." Firepaw leads the way. Not ideal, but oh well. A few minutes later we come upon the so-called "Gathering". It looks like Bluestar is giving an important speech. I spot the cat from my memory. Bluestar can finish her speech later. I pounce into the glade. All the other cats gasp in shock. I'm starting to enjoy that. Before I can begin my dramatic, intense speech, the cat from my memory interrupts me.
"Yellowfang!" He hisses. The cats around him start to close around me, menacingly.
"You!" I reply dramatically (and also cause I don't know his name). "Warriors of all the clans! This cat is a liar and a murderer! He killed the ShadowClan kits and then blamed me for it. You cannot trust him and he must be punished."
I give him a smug smile. For a second he looks worried, and then his expression changes. That's not good.
"Me? Kill kits from my own clan? Impossible." He says, manipulating the other cats into believing him.
"It's true!" I exclaim. The other cats don't seem to believe me. Bluestar intervenes.
"Yellowfang, are you trying to say Brokenstar killed ShadowClan's own kits?" She asked. Brokenstar! That was his name!
"Yes."
"What proof do you have?"
"…eyewitness proof?" They're not buying it. "And I pinky promise with a cherry on top?"
Bluestar shrugs. "That's good enough for me."
I breathe a sigh of relief at this. Brokenstar looks enraged. I shoot him another smug smile because I'm soaking in my victory. And then he pounces on me.
"Oh shi-" I start to run away, but his claws dig into my shoulders. I hiss in pain and my fur stands on end. I roll around and crush him underneath me. I feel his claws release. Blood soaks my fur.
"Ouch." I murmur.
"It seems Yellowfang was telling the truth." Bluestar proclaims, and the other cats encircle Brokenstar.
"That was easy." That seems like the climax of the plot to me. Time to get out of here before I fall asleep again.
"Oh look, something in the trees over there. I'll be right back." That's the best excuse I can come up with, but they buy it. They discuss what to do with Brokenstar while I steal away. I picture the door in front of me.
"Yellowfang?" I hear behind me. My concentration is broken. I turn to find Firepaw.
"Firepaw?"
"I thought about what you asked earlier today. And I want you to know that I'm part of ThunderClan now. At times I may wish that I stayed a kittypet, but then I remember how bored and pointless that felt. If I were given the choice again, I would chose ThunderClan everytime."
"Wow…um. I don't really know what to say."
"Well. I hope I answered your question." Firepaw says and then bounds away. I think about what he said for a moment. I guess being a hero is more exciting than having a mundane routine life. Then I remember the Editors. Is that excitement worth having to face them? I shove the thoughts away and focus on getting out of this story so I can be human again.
Once more I picture the door. Last time I couldn't turn the handle. But I remember my cats opening doors by pushing on the bottom with their paws, although I can't remember their names or even what color fur they had. But the point is it's worth a shot to try that. I push at the bottom and by some miracle it swings open. I could have done that the entire time. Sometimes I really hate myself. I fall forward and pray to God I won't be a cat in the next story.
There you go! I hope you liked it! I'll try to update more often, but please don't hate me if I can't:'(…and Please review!