Twilight examined the scene that was in front of her. She recognized Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie; their pelts gave them away. She didn't recognize the cat that was beside her. She was a cream tabby she-cat, and she was staring at Twilight with wide eyes.
"I'm glad we made it here!" Pinkie's mew focused her attention onto her. She tried not to remain marveling at the communication. She and the other cats didn't use words, but rather meows that her brain translated into language. She was used to it now, and was surprised that talking came so naturally to her.
"Me too, but I feel we owe her an explanation." Twilight gestured toward the unfamiliar tabby next to her. "Though, do mind introducing yourself?" The tabby nodded.
"Well, my name is Petalpaw," Petalpaw meowed shakily. Why was she so spooked by Twilight? "I'm a medicine cat apprentice for ShadowClan. I've been in training for about 5 moons, and-" Petalpaw was cut off by Pinkie Pie.
"I'm confused," Pinkie Pie mewed while raising a paw like a school filly asking a question. "From what Rainbow has said, ShadowClan is the evil Clan and ThunderClan is the good Clan, right?" Twilight was stunned at Pinkie's foolishness.
What a smart thing to say to a ShadowClan cat, Pinkie! Twilight glanced at Petalpaw, expecting her to claw her into next week, but Petalpaw simply looked confused and, once again, very spooked. Seriously! Twilight thought to herself, Why is she so frightened by the sight of me?
"How do you two know about ThunderClan?" Petalpaw queried. "I haven't mentioned them." Twilight bit her lip. She couldn't lie to Petalpaw anymore; she had to come forward She did say that an explanation was in order. She opened her mouth to speak, but before she could, Rainbow Dash spoke up.
"Well... um, we've lived around this area for a while as loners. We know about the four clans because we've lived in this area since we were kits. You cats were legends to us. While other loners stopping by for food would purposefully avoid the borders, us three have dreamed about becoming clan cats ourselves." Twilight was impressed with Rainbow's storytelling; it sounded believable. She was obviously giving Petalpaw a backstory that would explain everything. Rainbow continued, "We devised a plan to sneak through the treetops to try and find a patrol of cats. We wanted to ask them about more Clan traditions and maybe ask to join. Unfortunately, Twilight here fell from a branch and dragged Pinkie down with her, leading to this mess."
Twilight was satisfied. That seemed to explain everything. Then she realized the motive Rainbow explained. I only see one flaw with her fake explanation, Twilight thought to herself. How in the name of Celestia are we supposed to explain that we came from another world?! If their story was proven wrong or they came forward with the truth, other Clan cats would probably not trust them anymore. Twilight never intended to join the clans, but it seems that they would have to in order to remain faithful to the story. Rainbow had put them in quite a position. She wasn't sure how well Petalpaw would buy it, but she nodded slowly.
Petalpaw sighed. "I'll be honest so you'd better do the same with me," she mewed. "I assume you know of StarClan, so I have to confess that a StarClan warrior, my old leader Sproutstar, came to me a prophesied that three cats would help the clans somehow. He showed me the silhouettes of three cats that were the colors of pink, violet, and blue. They're you three, right?" When no one said anything, Petalpaw added, "Can you at least tell me why your pelts match my dream?"
Twilight didn't know what to say. She glanced at Rainbow for another fake explanation, but she was looking just as worried as Twilight did. Petalpaw was still looking at Twilight for an answer. She opened her mouth for an impromptu response, but she heard a yowl coming from a few trees away before she could reply.
"Petalpaw?" The voice meowed. "Are you done with your nap? Duskpelt got whitecough from Cloudfern; I need your help!"
"Mouse-dung," Petalpaw cursed. She turned to Twilight, Rainbow, And Pinkie. "I need to go and help Flingtail; he's calling." Twilight assumed that he was probably another medicine cat. "Promise me you'll be here when I get back?" The three nodded, and Petalpaw breathed a sigh of relief as she gestured to a frog on the edge of the clearing. "You all look starved; have that."
Petalpaw bounded off into the forest. Her assumption was correct; Twilight did indeed have an appetite, but looking at the frog made her lose it faster than she could blink.
Rainbow grimaced. She turned to Twilight who was still staring at the frog. "We're not actually going to eat that, right? Please tell me we're not going to eat that!" Twilight bit her lip. On one hoof, she understood where Rainbow Dash was coming from; eating animals in Equestria was considered cannibalism. Only griffons ate meat, and even then, meat was found nowhere in Equestria, so Griffons could only eat it in the Griffon Kingdom. On the other hoof, Twilight was so hungry that she was getting desperate. She felt like could eat a whole cake without trouble. On the though of cake, Twilight glanced at Pinkie Pie. She was the only one out of them that had any experience in being a food connoisseur.
Pinkie was rolling around on the ground, happily purring. "Uh... Pinkie?"
Pinkie Pie looked up.
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"What do you need?" I look up from rolling on the ground. If the Element of Laughter is in a new body, you know I'm going to enjoy it! I get up, still purring. Purring was funny; not funny like avocados or tangerines--now THOSE were funny! No, purring happened involuntarily when I felt happy. So did laughing, I suppose. I guess I'm the Element of Purring now! I wonder what element Twilight or Rainbow are now; magic doesn't seem to exist, after all. I wonder how Twilight is coping with no horn, or how Rainbow is coping with no wings. Coping is a funny word! I realize my two friends are staring expectantly at me, obviously awaiting an answer of some sort. Oops! I forgot to listen!
I give my go-to response. "Duuuuh! Of course! Why think otherwise?" They seem to buy it, and I roll back over and happily stretch.
"Well," Rainbow says, "If Pinkie says so..."
"Yeah..." Twilight meows. "I guess she would know best..."
I wonder for a moment what they asked me, but my silent question is answered when I get up and see them walking over to the frog that Petalpaw pointed out. My eyes go wide with realization. I can't well go back on my word; I hate admitting that I don't listen sometimes!
Well, we're cats right? Cats digest meat just fine! They'll be fine; I'm sure of it.
I wonder how it tastes though...
I walk over to the dead frog as well and notice my two friends being hesitant. Shrugging, I unsheathe my claws. The sensation surprises me, and I would love to sheathe and unsheathe them in repetition but it seems that they don't work like that. I dig my claws into the frog's thigh and cut a leg off. I can only imagine this is what scissors feel!
Twilight and Rainbow both stare at me. I kneel down and sink my teeth into the fattest part of the leg, earning a gasp from Twilight. The warm tang of blood hits my tongue as I feel it slither down my throat. It didn't taste all that bad, and I start to purr as I realize how silly that sounds coming from a former pony! The meat is full of flavor and the texture is like nothing else I've ever eaten. The skin of the frog is rubbery but surprisingly doesn't have much flavor. I spit the skin out and take another bite. I feel my teeth crunch down on a small bone and I feel a wave of satisfaction. It's probably not morally sound, but I really start to relish at my place now in the food chain.
I look up and notice my two friends looking awfully queasy. Oh. I think to myself. They're probably disturbed by me purring while devouring a wild animal... I blush as I try to come up with an excuse. Weighing my options, I simply tell them,
"It's not that bad, girls!"
Rainbow Dash shares a look with Twilight and hesitantly leans in to follow my technique of cutting off a leg and biting in. I notice a surge of pleasure shoot into Rainbow's expression, while Twilight remains to stare in awe. Rainbow Dash takes another rapid bite followed by another swift one. I can't believe it myself. She seems to be enjoying this far more than I did. I take another bite as Twilight examines the scene and reluctantly speaks up.
"Is it really that good?"
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After we all eat, Twilight admits, "Celestia forgive me, but that was simply scrumptious."
"I know!" Rainbow Dash immediately adds. "I've never tasted anything like it! Salad can kiss my rump, I'll take a frog any day!"
What about when we go back? The thought pops into my head, but I dismiss it. Enjoy things while they last, right?
"Oh, and guess what?" Rainbow excitedly mews. "The books say that frogs are considered not as good as mice! I can't wait until we get to eat a mouse!" Twilight furrows her brow.
"Rainbow," She meows, "It was divine; I agree. But why are you so excited about cannibalism?"
This shuts Rainbow up as she stares at the ground. She opens her mouth several times to give a reply but no words ever come out. I break the awkward lull. "So!" I mew. "We're in a book now!"
Twilight's expression brightens as she says, "I know!" She sits up and licks one paw, then dabs it over one ear. "Isn't it amazing?"
I let out a loud mrrrow of amusement as my throat rumbles into a purr. "Twilight, you really enjoy being a cat don't you?"
"What do you-" Twilight stops as she realizes she's been licking her paw to clean herself. She stares me straight in the face. "I'm not sure why I did that..." She sits back down slowly, lost in thought. She shakes her head as if to clear her thoughts. "In any case, we need to come up with a game plan. We need to figure out two things: what to tell Petalpaw and how to approach the Clans."
Rainbow speaks up. "Well, I can offer a solution to the former: we lie." I raise my eyebrow hoping she elaborates. "Look; if we tell her, we lose our only ally at the moment due to her thinking that we're crazy. If she does believe us, we can't guarantee that we'll be able to join the clans."
"Join the clans?" I repeat in confusion. Rainbow Dash nods.
"The only way to save the clans is to be around them at all times; we need to learn what cats know and don't know and gain trust from important cats, like clan leaders and such. We can only ever come clean if we're in a corner or if we trust someone else enough."
I was stunned. Sure, Rainbow has led before, but this leadership came from a true passion. She obviously cared deeply about the fate of this world. I think of something. "Can't we stay loners? Not that we'd be lonely; we'd have each other, but why do we have to gain trust at all?"
"Because we can't have Petalpaw as our only ally," She explains. "If trouble arises and some war breaks out, we can't count on Petalpaw being able to find us and bring us to the battle, nor can we rely on being able to convince the cats that we're on their side. Plus, we wouldn't know how to fight if push comes to shove."
"How do you know that it will end in a battle?" Twilight queries.
"Because I've read the books," Rainbow Dash replies. "It always ends in a brawl betwixt the clans. We're in the book, right? So that applies here."
Twilight shakes her head. "No, I don't think we are." When me and Rainbow looked befuddled, she added, "I don't remember a Flingtail being mentioned in the books. I can recall all four medicine cats, and ShadowClan's medicine cat should be Mistcloud."
"So what does that mean?"
"Well," Twilight answers, "It means that the books are fiction, but we traveled to a dimension extremely similar, bur not the same. We're probably not in the same territory, either."
Rainbow considered this for a moment, and I spoke up. "That doesn't change anything, right?"
"No, but it is interesting when you consider that-"
"Hello!" A voice rang.
Petalpaw must be back, I mused. But the scent that hit my senses was male.
Wait, what!?
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Petalpaw trudged through the forest after the summoning voice. She met up with Flingtail as he purred.
"I was beginning to think you'd never wake up!" Flingtail beckoned her forward with his tail and began to pace back to camp. Petalpaw followed, wondering how real the explanation that Rainbow gave was. It seemed to check out, but she couldn't help but feel like something was off. She'd never heard of any loners as old as she was that evaded clan notice for their entire lives. Also, Petalpaw had to face the awful and confusing truth.
Twilight had died and come back to life.
Only clan leaders could do that! They had nine lives granted to them by their old clanmates; that made sense. How did this loner come back to life? She was dying to go back and talk to them more, but she was stuck going back to camp. Then she had an idea. An awful idea. Petalpaw knew, however, that she had to do it.
"Flingtail, do you trust me?"