Haunted (Miracle/Open/Needle)

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Watching Me

Ice had kept running away from Mothermouth. What he had just seen was still floating around in his mind. Cats long-since gone fighting even in death, and the cold eyes of the cat who looked so much like himself. Miraclefur had made the whole thing sound so promising and wonderful, but he was afraid. Afraid of what he'd seen, yes, but also afraid of what he had promised Needleheart he'd one day accomplish. His sixth moon must have pasted by then, and only now was he beginning to understand. The battle had shown him that much.

But Froststorm had also told him to keep his promise. The powerful tom's spirit would no doubt keep him to it, whatever he thought. The tom shuddered, looking into the river at his own reflection, but seeing Froststorm's.
"Do I even have a choice?" he muttered quietly, lost in thought.

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MiracleFur soon followed Ice's scent, and tapped his shoulder gently with her tail tip.

"Ice, you do. By the way, I think you should head back to RiverClan with me, without Needleheart knowing."

She said in a hushed voice, and licked his cheek gently.

"I don't want to leave you with Needleheart alone, not now anyways. You deserve to choose, and I want you to see how clan life is first, and then you choose what you would like to do."

She said in a motherly tone, trying to be reasoning. She loved this tom, as a mother to a son, she could see him as her own.

She purred sympathetically in his ear, trying to reassure him.

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Go On Breathing

Ice whipped his head around at Miraclefur's touch, but relaxed when he saw her face. She, at least, could make him feel at ease. But the words she said made his eyes widen in shock. "What? But, Needleheart..." He couldn't find the right words. When she licked his cheek, he looked back at her with a lost look. "But how can we just leave her? All alone?" The kit was fond of the she-cat who'd taken him to raise and train. She'd given him a purpose. But now that he understood more, did he still want it? To go back to RiverClan... I've wanted to, so that I would learn like a warrior. But Needleheart could teach me too. But she can't make me a warrior.

Ice felt torn. But Miraclefur was offering him a choice, in the end. Maybe this would help him place his paws in which life he wanted to follow. His ears fell back as he looked back into the water of the creek and sighed. "Needleheart is a good cat. Why don't you want me to be with her?" The tom had almost gone back to the badger set first, straight to the cream colored she-cat, but he'd ended up beside the creek instead.

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She sighed, and licked his ear slightly. She settled herself down beside him, staring straight into the creek. She saw the form of NeedleHeart, thrashing her paws at another cats throat, who she guessed was hers.

When she saw that, she jumped back a bit, looking back in to only see her reflection. Maybe it was a sign, maybe not.

"She's not a good cat.. she is to you because.. Ice.. I gotta come clean with you."

She sat down, staring at him, sighing.

"You look like FrostStorm, correct? Most of us believe that you are the reincarnation of him, that you will do harm to the forest. I don't believe that. Not anymore, not since I have seen the real you-- but as for NeedleHeart, she still believes that..."

She looked away, ears drooping.

"NeedleHeart still wants to kill all the cats in the forest, no matter the cost..."

She scuffled her paws, hoping that the young tom believed her.

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Please Help Me

Ice looked at her strangely as she jumped away from the water. Tempted, he glanced into the clear stream to see if anything was down there he had missed. But there was nothing. Had she imagined something? He shrugged away the thought, guessing it had just been a shadow over the water.

But as he listened, the pale tabby was only more confused. How could Miraclefur say that the she-cat who was so kind to him was a bad cat? She was always praising him, even when he messed up in the training, and had always seemed to care for him. He wanted to protest, but when she said she needed to 'come clean', a ball of new emotion fell to his belly. There were so many secrets, already. Could there possibly be more?

Somehow, Ice wasn't shocked when Miraclefur came out and said it. The young tom felt more dread and defeated knowing than anything else. Everything that other cats had said about him, how he looked like the ghostly tom, and the dreams he'd had- they all had piled up to this point. But how do I feel? he wondered. He didn't even know that much, if he was scared, curious, or even happy. There was a solid barrier around his heart, not letting emotions out, just coded mysteries. He hated it.

The tom didn't know what to say. Instead, he looked into the water, wishing he could understand and make sense of everything. "Needleheart told me she wanted to do that... But I said I didn't care, I just wanted to learn from her, and help her get the revenge Froststorm didn't." He shook his head. "Doesn't Froststorm deserve justice? If I am Froststorm by some higher power, then shouldn't I do what he wanted?"

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MiracleFur;;

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The she-cat was paying attention to the tom's facial expressions. She saw nothing, not even a twitch. She was confused by this, but then again, she expected that.

She sighed, and licked his ear, trying to comfort him. She didn't know what to say, but the first thing that came to mind, she said it.

"Ice, we have other warriors in RiverClan, or just about anywhere. They are just as good as her and FrostStorm-- If not, better."

She closed her eyes for a moment, then opened them once more, staring at the little tom.

"If you want to do something, then do it. Don't ask questions, just tell me. I'm willing to do anything, because Ice, it is my duty to make sure you are okay. I don't need StarClan to tell me that, I just know it. Ice, Ever since I saw you, I knew I would have to do something with you."

She let out a laugh, at the next part that she was going to say-

"Ice, you are like a son I will never have."

She gave a soft smile, sitting down next to him, her tail gently wrapped around the tom's back, but barely.

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Put My Trust In You

Ice tried to smile as he rested against Miraclefur's flank. He knew she meant well, and that she probably meant what she said, but that wasn't what the tom needed to hear. But what was that? He was too confused. Everything seemed wrong. What had happened seemed to have messed with his mind, making it foggy. It was hard to explain, but he did know that Miraclefur was trying to help him, and that it was the best way to go.

"Thanks," he mewed, his eyes still watching the light reflect off the surface of the water. "I really don't know what's going on right now, but I trust you." But I still kinda trust Needleheart, too. He glanced back up at the she-cat, a small smile setting in. If he just went with it, maybe everything would end up all right. It had been a while since he'd seen Moonlight and Bluejay. Moonlight must have had her kits, by then. It would be nice to see them. "So when are we going back to RiverClan? Now?"

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MiracleFur;;

The she-cat sighed. She knew she wasn't helping; she was horrible with comfort.

She got up, and gave the little tom a brief nod. She wondered what she was going to see, she wondered what they would do.

Her ears flickered, and looked around.

"Yes, Ice, follow me."

She slowly crept away, although she felt like she was being followed, which was true, NeedleHeart was eyeing her closely.[/center]

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Faint Memories

Ice yawned, then stood to follow the medicine cat. He was still tired, but he kept himself going all the same. He really did want to get back to RiverClan, now that his paws were set on the path towards the Clan territory. But as he turned to go, he paused. There was the faintest trace of a familiar scent in the air. It smelled of someone he knew he should be able to name. Unfortunately, he was too tired to concentrate on using his scent glands properly. As soon as he had caught the scent, it seemed to slip away. He twitched his whiskers and bounded to catch up with Miraclefur.

"So what's going to happen when we get back? Are they just gonna let us back in? I guess Firestar wouldn't be happy, since we just left without telling her or anything."