Mark of the Moon (MAGIC CAT ACADEMY STORY)

Puddles

The cover of dark tree trunks masked Dusk. The tree branches looked like shaded limbs, overhanging a path with marsh grasses underpaw. Dusk crept through clumps of damp bushes, cold to the fur after yesterday's frost. Black trails snaked through the ground, glowing as the moon shined on them through a lattice of leaves. Undergrowth was barely visible as little light glimmered from the cloud-flooded sky. Dusk settled onto her haunches, dewy leaves brushing her belly fur. She peered through a break in an oak. The sky was the color of a crow's wing, and the stars showed the arrival of her ancestors. Is Berry up there? Dusk wondered, opening her jaws to taste the air. The dryness in her throat clogged her senses, and she drew her tongue back into her mouth. Dusk continued trekking through the unknown forest. Tall pines stretched endlessly into the sky like arrows, their bushy leaves barely showing overhead. Dusk jumped as she heard the cracking of twigs. Was someone following her? Dusk started trotting, aware of grasses and weeds sliding against her legs. Her fur was slicked back, cowering against her skin. Dusk sped up a little more and grunted as she tripped over a root and landed face-first into the dirt. Her nose was hit with the overwhelming smell of rich earth and rotting leaves. Pine needles struck her fur with pain along with her foot. As Dusk stood up, thorns raked her pelt. Dusk curled up; the pain was no longer bearable.

"Where did I go wrong?" Dusk whispered to herself, disappointment biting her mew. 

"I'll lead you to safety." A breath stirred in her ear. Dusk forced herself up and tried to make out the cat she was facing. Its green eyes looked so calming, and its fur ripped across its body, burning like a flame. Tabby stripes glowed on the cat's back. "Follow me. We'll catch you a good meal and then bring you home." Dusk didn't argue. She leaned against the new cat as they led her to a clearing. A huge rock pointed toward the sky, and countless piles of bracken, decorated with moss, lay around it. An icy blue pool glimmered despite the little moonlight underneath it. The cat pushed Dusk into a nest. Dusk collapsed, panting as her thorn scratches bled out. Dusk wanted to close her eyes, but she couldn't manage it. Instead, she listened to the tabby speaking to someone else.

"My first patient! Am I ready? Minty doesn't let me treat wounds, only fevers and colds. If I'm lucky, she'll guide me through how to treat a nettle sting."

"Of course, you're ready, Puddles. This cat is flourishing in the alive world, just like you!" 

"Ok. I believe you, Sun."

A lithe gray tom padded over, rushing over to sniff Dusk's injuries as soon as he spotted her. He had a bundle of herbs in his jaws, and his paws were stained green. "Nothing too serious. Just a few thorn scratches. I'll put some poultice on it and then dress it with cobwebs." Puddles was struggling to keep his voice from quivering with excitement. Dusk closed her eyes and concentrated on Puddles. The tom was chewing herbs together and spat them onto Dusk's scratches. He pressed his paws onto Dusk and rubbed the juices in. Dusk sighed with relief when the stinging of her wounds stopped.

"Thank you, Puddles." The tom dipped his head embarrassingly as Dusk thanked him.

"No. Thank you! My teacher, Minty, only lets me treat wounds when it's minor, like when Spot tries to do an advanced trick and files into the rail or when Bracken tackles Thorn because he got away. Sometimes when one of Snowshoe's kits climbs too high up Climbing Mountain, I've scolded Winter often this week, but she never learns! At least Jax reasons with me." Puddles purred. Dusk's pelt prickled with curiosity.

"Where do you live?" Dusk asked him.

"An island called Champion Island. It only opened two weeks ago, but the place buzzes like flies!" Puddles's fur spiked up, and he glanced up at the sky. The stars twinkled in front of his eyes, and he looked like he was searching for something. "It's just something in the stars. It tells me of a cat who stands on a great rock, addressing other cats."

"And her name is Moonlight, Puddles." A voice grunted.

"I know that! But each cat's life glows brighter in the stars, and there's a spot without a star, streaked with red." Dusk raised her head. A red splash dotted the sky.

"Tell me more about Champion Island." Dusk interrupted his thoughts, still interested in this place.

"I'll tell you about our champions. There's Jax. He's a patchy dog, and he loves skateboarding. He'll never stop talking about the one husky that threw stones at his legs when he was a puppy."

"Shut up, Puddles! Stop nagging our visitor, or I'll tell Minty you don't care about your ancestors." A brown she-cat entered the dull camp with a sparrow in her jaws. Dusk's mouth watered as the delicious reek of prey entered her nostrils. Dusk was shocked when the cat dropped the bird next to her. "Eat up before you return. It'll be a long journey. And you, Puddles." She stopped to turn to the small cat. "Go home. The birds will soar the oceans before you know it, and Minty expects you to be up by then." Dusk noticed that rosy dawn light was creeping among the shadows. The trunks of trees shimmered as the morning chased the clouds away. Suddenly, the forest looked brighter. The once scary trees now had lush leaves; their branches were sturdy and would never fall. Orange spilled over the sky and dipped down until it hit the horizon. Dusk sank her teeth into the sparrow and chewed. The taste made her beam.

"Bye, Dusk." Puddles meowed, touching his pink nose to Dusk. Something in Dusk's heart betrayed her, saying; don't be sad. You'll see him again. But how? Dusk asked herself. Dusk couldn't answer. As the morning seeped into her eyes, she was overtaken by sleepiness.