Foxgaze's Haunting

Chapter 14

(Cat above is Brightmoon)
"How could this be possible!" Foxgaze hissed in annoyance and confusion. Nothing made sense to her right now.

The cat continued "My name is not Brightmoon. I stole the name and this fur from some pathetic medicine cat from generations before you were born. To start, I am not a cat even. I am actually nothing but an emotion".

Foxgaze glared at her in silence from the shock.

With her emtionless eyes, Brightmoon glared back. The spirit hissed "You probably are wondering with your pathetic little mind at what emtion I am. To make it simple, I am everything you ever hated and fear, like foxes".

"I don't believe any of this!" Foxgaze narrowed her eyes "How did you manage to attack me and cut me?"

"No time for explaining you fool. Will you let me finish?" Brightmoon hissed. Foxgaze flattened her ears and gave a halfhearted nod.

Unsheathing her claws and flexing them in the moonlight, Brightmoon continued "I am a shapeshifter and I can be anything I want..." her voice trailed off and her fur started to darken and change. Foxgaze's fur bristled on end as she took a step back.

The shapeshifter's white fur began to ink over with stripes of dark brown. Her yellowish eyes began to change color and after a few moments she turned back to Foxgaze. Foxgaze gasped at the cat she had appeared as.

Adderpaw's green eyes glinted in the moonlight as he hissed in Brightmoon's voice "I can be anything and everything". Foxgaze was shaking as the fake Adderpaw began to step towards her. This can't be happening she thought.

Foxgaze screeched half in fear and half in fury "Go away!"

The fake Adderpaw chuckled and in his own voice meowed "Good night sister".

"Foxgaze. Are you okay?" a worried voice snapped her out of sleep. Foxgaze blinked open her eyes and saw only the mossy floor of the warrior's den.

She looked around for the source of the voice but saw only the darkness of the den. A paw prodded her side and nearly made her jump from surprise. Two green eyes were as wide as moons as the voice meowed again "It's only me Foxgaze".

The deputy flinched "Adderpaw?"

"No. It's Leafpaw...well actually you should call me Leafshade now because I just got my name a little earlier" the medicine cat apprentice purred.

Foxgaze looked at her paws and she asked quietly "Can we talk outside?" Leafshade nodded and disappeared outside, his white tail tip leaving last.

Leafshade narrowed his leafy green eyes as she stepped outside. Looking up at the half moon he explained "Lakeheart and I got back just a little while ago. I got my medicine cat name while we were at the Moonstone. Lakeheart is sacked out asleep but I couldn't rest. I was watching the camp but when I heard you tossing and turning, I couldn't help but investigate. You looked like you were really distressed".

"Believe me I was" Foxgaze said curtly.

The two cats stared at the half moon. The dark side of it was barely visible against the night sky. We all have our dark side Foxgaze thought gloomily.

The handsome medicine cat got to his paws. His tail pointed towards the medicine cat den "I think you might need some poppy seeds to help you fall asleep" Leafshade meowed.

"You're the medicine cat" Foxgaze sighed. She got to her paws and stumbled listlessly to the medicine cat den. Once she arrived to the cool stone cave, the scents of herbs flooded her senses and made her relax.

Leafshade disappeared in a corner of the den to look for the small black seeds. Foxgaxe sighed and looked at her paws. She had been chilled to the bone from her meeting with Brightmoon or...whatever she was called. In all the time she had been alive, she had never heard of a cat meeting their own emotion. Perhaps it was a rare case that no cat talked about.

Leafshade gently set an ivy leaf by Foxgaze's paws. The black seeds glinted like the eyes of mice in the moonlight. She lapped them up and almost immediately felt her muscles begin to relax.

"You'll be fine in the morning" Leafshade said in muffled tone from behind some other leaves he was carrying "If you need anything else, just ask Lakeheart or me".

Foxgaze shrugged "I think I'll be fine". As she padded pack to the warrior's den she couldn't help but feel Leafshade's gaze on her pelt. Her ears felt hot and she flinched It's not meant to be Leafshade. I hope you notice that before you hurt yourself.