Faustian | warrior cats

ii | the lake of fire

▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀

HIS green eyes were always effortless to stare at. The way the lines beneath his dark pupils began to look like lines of words in a chapter: Larkmoon could read that tom like an open book. A single glance into Beetleleap's eyes and she would know his each and every thought. Whether he was burning with anger or dancing around a joke: Larkmoon always knew.

This time was different. The tom's eyes were shielded with a sheen of uncertainty. There sparkled an emotion Larkmoon had never seen from Beetleleap before: irritation. His claws were lost deep into the damp soil and were occasionally pulling up strands of loose grass. His backbone was curled over into an arch as his long purple tail whipped back and forth. Back and forth. Larkmoon followed with her eyes, back and for-

"Don't be selfish, Larkmoon." Beetleleap, who had been quiet for much too long, finally spoke. His usually present humorous tone was now missing. His words no longer bounced and danced in the air as they had always done. Instead, they hailed from his jaws and fell heavy onto Larkmoon's heart.

"Since when have you ever considered the fact that you are not the only one who misses your old life?" Beetleleap's tone caught her off guard. He sounded as though he had just opened a bottle of suppressed feelings and was splashing them drunkenly along the ground.

Larkmoon contended at the taste of his feelings, "You've never told me that you're unhappy." The ginger she-cat thought Beetleleap was always happy. He was a creator, he could take any dark situation and make light out of it. Beetleleap would spring around StarClan as if his past didn't weigh him down, and he was always laughing. If Beetleleap was lost in a thousand stars, Larkmoon would find his smile easily.

"I'm not-" The purple cat's facade fell to crumbles. His posture loosened as he sucked in a deep breath. His claws unraveled around the earth, allowing the soil to breathe once again. Beetleleap began to slowly shake his face, the whiskers on his muzzle trembling lightly, "You make me unhappy when you do things like this."

Larkmoon winced as a thorn of guilt stabbed right into her chest. "Like what?" She spat back as waves of shame flooded over her soul. She fought tremendously to keep her head above the water, she did not want to drown in her consciousness so soon.

Beetleleap avoided her harsh confrontation by turning his striking green eyes to the side. "Like when you tell me you're in pain being here. Being with me."

The she-cat understood now what damage can come from speech; sometimes words were crueler than claws. Larkmoon wanted to cry back, that's not what I meant? But how could she take back words that have already stained the air?

The purplish tom proceeded, dropping his head as he said, "You make me feel like I have been a poor friend- to think you have no one to stay for."

Eager to detest, Larkmoon fell open but no words appeared. Her thoughts were suddenly interrupted when a whisper tickled the insides of her ears. It was the strangest feeling. She felt a thrumming in her chest as if her heart had grown wings and was trying to escape. Larkmoon's eyes drifted to the side as she tried to place her concentration on the sensation. The feeling was remarkable as it was scary. It swept the she-cat up with the wild winds and forced the long grasses to dance beside her legs. The whisper grew and began to call her name, Larkmoon, Larkmoon...

"Larkmoon!" Beetleleap's brash voice awoke her from the depths of her daze. Her head snapped back into reality, only to fall once again through Beetleleap's sad eyes. "Are you listening to me?"

The striped feline vigorously nodded her head, "Of course I am!" There it was again, the noise. It crept into the darkest corners of her head and melted the sanity from her mind. Where was it coming from? Larkmoon's bright eyes darted around, seeking between each branch and tree, searching for another set of eyes. There was nothing. Once she realized it was only her and Beetleleap, her red fur began to stand on its end. It didn't make any sense: two cats, three voices.

It was much louder now, screeching her name. Larkmoon swung her head sharply, wanting to shake away the strange feeling. As her eyes rocked with her head, she could see Beetleleap standing with a question mark covered in his expression. Larkmoon huffed, "Can't you hear that?"

"No. I don't- I don't hear anything." The tom flicked his ears back and forth. He waited a couple of silent moments, waiting to detect any sounds. But all the tom could hear was the faint wind whistling through the trees and the occasional splash of water as it met the barren banks. He wondered whether his companion was putting on an act, he knew she wasn't a fan of confrontations. "Larkmoon, if you're trying to avoid having this conversation-"

"I'm not!" As anger flared from her tongue, a blaze took hold of the lake. The ginger she-cat flew back, astonishment bright like fire in her eyes. The sight was hair-lifting, the once solemn pool had opened up with a blinding orange hue. The surge of sudden heat made Larkmoon's eyes burn, she had to look away.

But not even the blind could've missed it. Larkmoon finally turned back to Beetleleap and in an arrogant tone, she challenged, "Do you see that, Beetleleap?"

"See what?"

"The lake," Larkmoon crinkled in confusion. Her eyes flickered back and forth between the fiery lake and the purple cat. There was no way Beetleleap overlooked the sight, "It's on fire!"

On the lake stood towering flames that reached their arms for the sky, wanting to swallow Heaven whole. It was captivating in a horrific way. Such in the way they rocked dangerously with the wind, teasing the leaves on the trees. The fire was eerily hot and could stab out eyes with its radiant glow. How was Beetleleap not seeing this?

"Larkmoon, you're scaring me." Once again, Beetleleap's eyes opened up like a book and Larkmoon read between the lines. His green orbs were widened in terror and shivering as they studied the ginger she-cat. "Stop messing around!"

Larkmoon couldn't hear him. Her world fell to a serene silence: Beetleleap's mouth was moving but she couldn't hear a thing, the buzz of the flames didn't make a sound, and the forest fell still. It was as though she was dying all over again. She remembered this silence as if it ran in her blood; death lingered everywhere.

The lake captured her soul. She was mesmerized by its comforting form, the flames opened up as if they would embrace Larkmoon's exhausted soul and delivering her a soundless second death.

Larkmoon, There was her name again! It was louder now, calling her into the brilliant abyss. She began to slowly move her paws forward, hesitating before stepping into the shallow section of the lake. Larkmoon, don't be afraid. The voice summoned her deeper into the lake, where strangely, the water didn't sting. The heat from the fire comforted the she-cat's body, she decided she never wanted to leave this feeling so she kept going.

Beetleleap was losing his sanity on the shore. He ran up and down the bank, shouting at Larkmoon. But it was like she couldn't hear him. Panic built up in Beetleleap's bones- he would do anything for Larkmoon, chase her anywhere if that meant he could stay by her side. The tom was a paw-step from diving into the water when suddenly, he was blinded by a flash of bright light. A thousand stars shattered in front of his face. 

After a second or two, Beetleleap cracked open his eyes only to find the lake tranquil and back in its previous shape. The tom scanned the area swiftly and discovered that Larkmoon was nowhere to be found..."Larkmoon...?"

▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀