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| - Something is watching me. I can hear shifting in the bushes. I'm slowly adapting to my new home, but I think I'm being watched. "Who...Who's there?" And cold nights make staying alert so hard The rustling stops, but I'm still on-edge. I can't trust anyone out here, not in this forest. I continue exploring my new environment, but my mind is already anxious. What's waiting for me? Is there a predator? Am I being watched? I don't know what to trust: my mind, my instinct, or neither. In my environment, there's never any peace. Birds are always chattering, there's always a squirrel screeching, and on occasion, scents. The scents are strange. Some of it smells like the water - a lake. It's actually a wonderful scent to me - I've always heard of the water, and how there are places of endless blue water. I can recall early memories of my real mother telling me how she had seen that water, and how much I reminded her of the water. Such a memory will only remain a memory - she's dead. And I don't know how to reach the water. From what I know, I never will. Going back to my scent recalling. Other scents in the area include the scent of my adopted family - only one, but they keep coming back - and a large amount of pine. A group, maybe? Small town hearts of the New Year One day, there's a visitor. They're dark brown, like cattail, and they've got these piercing yellow-green eyes. I can't pinpoint their scent. "Name's Amazon." They merely stare at me. "You...?" "Lapis." "Nice name." I'm pretty sure that Amazon is female. She shrugs and sniffs my fur. "New 'round here?" "Y-Yeah...." City fog and brave dialogue converge on the frontier Make haste, I feel your heartbeat Amazon's actually really nice to me. She hangs around for a while, asking me about my family and past life. She doesn't force anything out of me, which is good - I trust those who'll let me explain what I want to explain. As she's talking about her own home, I feel a longing towards my wantings. How much I'd like to see that huge body of water. "Amazon." She stares at me, paused. "Amazon, do you know of a large body of water around here?" She bends her head to one side. "No...?" She blinks a few times, clearly confused. "Why are you asking?" Find a road to a humble abode where both of our routes meet The silver sound is all around and the colors fall like snow "I-I've heard of water around here..." She stares at me, confused. "I haven't heard of a body of water anywhere." She sighs. "But, if you want to go, I'll help you find it." A pang of shock hits me, both because she's willing to help and because she's my friend, honestly. Maybe Amazon will help me find the water. ~ Cheer up and dry your damp eyes and tell me when it rains The first thing we do is head towards the pine-scented group. "I know they've got a cat that can talk with the stars - it truly impresses me, honestly." Amazon leads, but she's constantly glancing back at me, as if she's worried about something. "It's a squad of fierce warriors - yet it's all a competition to be on top. At least, that's what I've heard." "What about your family?" "Oh, them? Split up ages ago. My father, Plymouth, set off when me and my siblings were only kits. My brother, Nile, he was gone six moons afterward. Thames, my sister, left not too long afterward. And my mother..." She sighs. "They called her Venus. She died after my birth." 'Cause your heart has a lack of color and we should've known That we'd grow up sooner or later "Oh...okay..." I feel a stab of guilt as I ask her, and she glances back at me. "Hey." She stares into my eyes, her gaze intent. It's surprisingly nerve-wracking, and I feel sweat run down my hind legs. "Don't be upset. I've been fine without my family for over a year and a half." She sighs and twitches an ear. "Although I think I might run into one of my siblings at some point." She keeps walking, but I feel a sense of doubt in the air. Your nerves gather with the altitude We approach the border. Amazon looks a bit fearful. She flicks her tail as she spots a tom. He's light gray, his eyes dark blue. He greets her calmly. "Heya." "Yo, Rocko." The tom flattens his ears and she starts giggling. "Just kidding. You're overreacting, Millibar." He shrugs. "I guess I did overreact a little bit." His gaze shifts to me. "Yo, Amz, who's this?" "Name's Lapis. She's looking for something." She blinks a few times. "Take us to Star Sky. Please, Mill." Somewhere there is a happy affair, a ghost of a good mood Millibar takes us to the camp of the group. I'm somewhat scared - all of these cats are scaring me. Amazon is, however, a good support, and she calmly protects me from any of the nasty ones. I thank her and head towards the one called Star Sky. It's a mackerel tabby she-cat, her eyes looking beyond me. The one thing that's getting on my nerves is the cloud in her eyes. She doesn't meet my gaze or Millibar's, and the tom's tail fluffs up. She murmurs things quietly, and Millibar dips his head. I assume I have to do the same, so I bow my head beside him, but my eyes remain open, unlike his. The high tide could take me so far away Suddenly her gaze flies towards us, causing me to flinch in surprise. "There is a stirring." She must be crazy. This cat - I don't have any trust in her. "Something is coming." She stares at me for a long moment. "It's you." She wobbles towards me. "You are the one who's going to turn everything upside down. You- You and your savage tricks!" Then she falls, and she is still. She doesn't stand, she doesn't breathe. A cat just died in front of my eyes. A popular gauge will measure the rage of the new Post-Modern Age Millibar yowls, and Amazon's fur flares. All around us, cats are staring, most angered, some shocked, and some who are screaming for the stars to spare them. Amazon shifts closer towards me, but she meets my gaze with only fear in her green eyes. "The group was in turmoil before you two came." A dark russet tom stands in front of my friend and I. "Amazon, you weren't a part of us, but you kept your ties here. What is your reaction to what has happened today?" ~ We were the crashing whitecaps On the ocean "I-I..." She stammers for a moment, glancing around us, her eyes locking with a silver tabby's gaze for a few seconds before she meets my gaze. Her green eyes grow confident, and she stares into the tom's eyes. "I accept the full blame of this, Foxtrot." Gasps ring in around her. The tom's eyes narrow. "Very well then. Due to the actions caused by your friend and your claimed responsibility, you will both be driven out. Both of you are not to be seen here ever again, and if one of us does find either of you, we'll kill you on the spot." He flicks his tail at two of the toms in the crowd. "Cumulus, Billow, take them away." A palm tree in Christmas lights My emotion Struck a sparkling tone like a xylophone And that's it for that group. Amazon and I are immediately thrown out by the two toms. She looks quite upset about the situation. "Lapis, we found nothing. They'll probably think you're a chaotic psychopath." She turns her gaze to mine. "Even though I know you're not." She sighs. "And...And I'm sorry too. Star Sky was old, I knew, but I didn't know she was that close to dying. And she died at your paws." "There are stories told, you know..." She flicks her tail. "About the stars, about cats like Star Sky, about everything." She closes her eyes. "And there's one I'll always remember - beware of the cat who causes others to die." "I don't believe in those things, but it's a chilling tale." I listen quietly as she explains. "I have also heard of one that tells of the one who killed the star speaker. It's said that if any cat has one die at their paws, they are forever cursed." I let her tail brush my flank. "Hey, Amazon." She meets my gaze again. "Don't think of me that way, okay?" She chuckles. "Of course I won't. I'm your friend, and probably the only one that'll be there for you for a while." She and I sit in silence, but there is dread in my stomach. ~ Cheer up and dry your damp eyes and tell me when it rains And I'll blend up that rainbow above you and shoot it through your veins
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