Mistake

I am not quite awake. I'm not asleep either, though. I can hear what's going on, but I'm not ready to get up yet. I can only hear Loong and Forest talking.

"She'll be okay!" I hear Gingercat squeak, my mind clearing. I get myself to open my eyes. I'm back in the spot we were last night. Loong and Forest are sitting on the opposite side of the tunnel from me, talking quiet enough that I can't hear what they're saying. I move my head slightly as I spot Gingercat.

"Guys, she's awake," Gingercat says calmly, smiling.

"I thought you'd be more excited than that," I mumble, my voice raspy with tiredness.

"Oh, I am," Gingercat meows while nodding. "On the inside, I'm screeching with joy!"

Out from a tunnel to my left, I see Leona and Milo come back, but they aren't alone. Another pale orange tabby walks up to Gingercat, pressing her pink nose against the little tabbys' shoulder. She's one of Milo's biological daughters, I can tell by her attitude. I think her name's Amber, but I don't really remember. I feel a pounding in the back of my head, a lot more noticeable than earlier.

A male tuxedo cat shyly follows Amber, his green eyes on the young tabby. He likes her, I know it. Love isn't all about happy events, and I'm afraid they'll figure that out the hard way. But, they care about each other very much.

The pounding in my skull is getting worse. It's getting to a point where I can't concentrate on the world around me. I can tell someone's talking, but it sounds muffled. I lift my head, but it hurts to look around. For a moment, I can't see them.

Turning my head in a different direction, I make eye contact with someone. Something.

I feel trapped staring into those orbs of silver. It appears to have red slits, like pupils, holding my gaze intensely. I can't look away. This creature has horns of bone, tinged with grey, and giant bat-like ears with multiple tears in each.

And that smile. That devilish smile, full of razor teeth. Thick blood running down their chin. More blood flowing under the silver eyes too. Gas from the corners of those eyes. The green gas-like stuff begins flowing towards me, reaching for my chest… for my heart….

I'm hit with sudden anger, and the thing is gone. My head is clear, but I want others. They don't know how I feel. They never have. They never will.

They shouldn't be here.

They have to leave.

"Dark," Leona meows. "Are you okay?" I hear the fear in her voice. That's what I want to hear. I want to hear her cry out, I want her to leave. If she doesn't leave, I'll make her. I'll do whatever it takes. I want to challenge her. It's what I crave. It's what I need.

My eyes meet the bengal cat's emerald ones. I bare my teeth, feeling the urge to hurt her.

If I hurt her, she'll leave.

I can put an end to her. It wouldn't hurt anyone, would it? I unsheathed my sharp, silver claws. I want her blood on my paws.

Leona bares her teeth back at me, unsheathing her black claws as well. I can beat her.

"Show me how you fight," I hiss at my sister. Leona shifts her paws uncomfortably. I know she can fight. But I must be scaring her. I like giving a good scare sometimes. "I know you're an excellent fighter."

"But…" Leona crouches down, flattening her ears, green eyes wide with uncertainty. "I can't fight you." Oh, so she does have a soft side. Interesting.

"Why not?" I growl teasingly, tilting my head slightly to the side.

"Because I love you," Leona meows. "You're my sister. I don't want to hurt you!"

"Love isn't all that matters in this world of evil." Slowly, I walked closer to Leona, silver claws tapping on the cool stones. "Love can make you weaker until your heart is broken."

This is taking too long. Without thinking, I leap at Leona, my paws outstretched towards her. The bengal cat yelps as my body crashes into hers, sending us tumbling on the stone floor. Leona tries to get out from under me, hitting me in the head, like a kitten would in a play-fight. But I don't want to play-fight. I want a real fight.

I find myself losing control at this point, and I know it. But this is something out of my control to begin with. After that thing did something to me.

I stare down at Leona, and she's trying to wriggle away. She can't get away from me. Her green eyes meet with mine. Hers are full of fear and sadness, and for only a moment, I feel it with her.

I shake away the sadness before harshly pressing my paw down on her brown shoulder, claws digging in until I feel a warm liquid. Leona squeezes her eyes shut, gritting her teeth as her blood drips down her furry shoulder. I stare at my sister coldly as she shivers with discomfort.

"Stop it!" Leona yowls, her voice cracking as a tear threatens to roll down her cheek.

"What will your last words be?" I ask. Leona winces, her mouth shut tightly. Everyone around was dead silent, waiting. Unsure of what to do.

��No!" Leona growls, her jaws snapping. "Dark, you don't know what you're doing!" Her paws pushing up against my chest, claws still sheathed.

I can't take it anymore. Faster than I thought possible, my teeth clamp around the bengal cat's soft neck. Leona screeches in pain, raking her claws along my front legs. I hold on, sinking my teeth deeper into Leona's throat. Her striped legs go limp, and when I let go of her neck, Leona's head hits the stony floor lifelessly. The look of horror is still frozen on her face, and blood is now pouring from her throat.

What have I done?

The world seems to be in slow motion. Gingercat is running over to Leona, and Milo is running up to me. I get off of Leona and sit up against the wall, my black ears flat.

I can feel the spell wearing off, and I become weak from looking at my mistake. My breathing is heavy, and my head spins at the sight of my sister's blood on my claws, along with the irony taste in my mouth.

"Dark," Milo growls, standing ahead of me, golden eyes burning with both hatred and disappointment. "What were you thinking?"

"I don't know!" I snap, my eyes filling with tears. "I don't know." I stare down at my paws, shuddering as a tear rolls down my cheek.

"Get out of here," the big tabby hisses. "Stay out of my life until you can learn to control yourself!" But this wasn't my fault. If she wants me gone, I will leave. And I may never come back. That's one thing about me, once my mind is on something, there's almost no way of getting me out of it.

"Mom..." I whisper, taking a few steps to the side.

"What have you been hiding from me?" Milo asks, orange fur bristling.

"I am no ordinary cat," I growl in return. Turning sideways, I run towards the stony wall as fast as I can without hesitation. I'll show them.

"What is she doing?!" I hear Pepper ask from behind me. Focusing hard, I create purple waves of fog that flutter at my sides. As I get closer to the stone wall, the fog gathers ahead of me, creating a swirling oval of purple. Within heartbeats, the foggy oval becomes a portal, and I run through it. For a moment, I feel cold. But it doesn't last long. Soon enough, I am landing gracefully in soft green grass. There are no stones in sight, only Aspen Trees. A slight breeze runs gently through my thick black fur.

Before I feel too peaceful, I look back at my purple portal. I wonder if they'll come through or not. I'll be waiting for them, high up in a tree.