Bluestar's Reincarnation

Squirrelflight stood proudly as her Clanmates chanted her new name. It was the first warrior ceremony performed in their new territory, making her feel special. In fact, it was her and the others who had found this new territory after the Twolegs started chopping down the old forest.

She turned her gaze to her father and leader, Firestar, joy bursting in her heart when she saw his emerald green eyes shimmer with pride. Squirrelflight returned his smile. He had given her the best name she could ever have asked for, after all. But as she was looking his way, something happened.

Instead of the large fiery tom standing beside her, there was now a small, young kitten whose eyes glittered with anxiety and excitement at the same time. As he stepped toward her, she could see that around his neck there was a bright blue kittypet collar. Squirrelflight's eyes widened with shock and she stumbled backward.

Had her father turned back into a kit?

At the back of her mind she knew that was crazy, but that was the only explaination she could think of. *What's happeneing?*

"Squirrelflight?"

She blinked, and suddenly her vision was back to normal. The kittypet had disappeared, and in it's place was Firestar again. *I'm just imagining things,* Squirrelflight thought to herself, sucking in a shaky breath.

Firestar inched closer to her. "You can go back now," he whispered to her.

Dazed, Squirrelflight nodded and headed toward the crowd of cats. Many came to congratulate her, but there was only one she wanted to talk to. She scanned the cats for a dark brown tom, relieved when she saw him. Brambleclaw was right there. They had gotten close during their journey to the sun-drown place, and she knew she could confide in him. After that...

Vision?

Was it a vision?

Only medicine cats had visions. And Squirrelflight wasn't a medicine cat.

"Congratulations!" Brambleclaw purred as she approached, touching his nose to her muzzle affectionately.

"Thanks." Squirrelflight wasn't in the mood for congratulations. Brambleclaw must have picked up on that, because his expression turned from delighted to worried. "What's wrong? Aren't you happy? You're a warrior now."

Squirrelflight wanted to tell him what she had seen, but then...

A name flashed across her mind.

Oakheart.

Squirrelflight gasped, pelt spiking along her spine.

An image of a reddish-brown cat lying on Sunningrocks back in the old forest, sunning himself as she watched.

Squirrelflight had never seen that cat before, but yet he looked so familiar. Unable to speak, she just stared at Brambleclaw, whose frown deepened. "What is it, Squirrelflight?"

"I have to go," she blurted out, paws already shifting away.

Squirrelflight stopped in front of the medicine cat's den. If anyone knew about visions, it would be Cinderpelt. Plus, her sister Leafpaw was in there, and she knew she could confide in her. Squirrelflight headed in, comforted by the fact that they might be able to help her. But as soon as she stepped inside, Leafpaw pushed past her to the entrance. "Excuse me, Squirrelflight," she meowed. "I'm just going to gather some comfrey. Do you want to come?"

"Where?" she asked.

"Near the Thunderpath. There's a nice patch growing there."

Squirrelflight was about to agree when another memory surfaced in her mind. A snow-white she-cat running onto the Thunderpath and the dreadful sound of a monster roaring toward her. Terror stabbed at her heart as she remembered.

"No..." Squirrelflight whispered. "Snowfur..."

"Who?" Leafpaw looked confused.

Squirrelflight shook her head, clearing it. What was wrong with her today? And why had she known the name of that white cat?

"I've been having visions," Squirrelflight admitted. "Just now I saw Firestar when he was a kittypet, and I thought of Oakheart when I saw Brambleclaw, and there was a white cat..."

She expected Leafpaw to be as bewildered as her, but to her surprise, Leafpaw nodded calmly. "Let me go talk to Cinderpelt," she meowed. "Come with me."

As the two padded back into the den, Squirrelflight heaved a sigh of relief. If Leafpaw wasn't freaked out about this, there was no reason she should be. It was probably nothing.

"Cinderpelt!" Leafpaw called to the dark gray she-cat who was sorting herbs. Cinderpelt looked up. "Yes? Leafpaw, weren't you supposed to be collecting comfrey?"

"That can wait," Leafpaw mewed. She gestured to Squirrelflight with her tail. "She's been having memories," the light brown apprentice meowed, gazing at Cinderpelt with knowing eyes. "I think we should tell her."

"Tell me what?" Squirrelflight asked, surprised at how calm her sister was.

Cinderpelt nodded at her apprentice. "Okay, then," she mewed.

"What? Is it something bad?" Squirrelflight's bushy tail twitched anxiously. "Tell me! Tell me now!" She couldn't stand another moment of waiting.

Cinderpelt smiled warmly at her. "It's nothing bad," she soothed. "Do you know who Bluestar is?"

Squirrelflight nodded. "She was ThunderClan's leader before Firestar. He says she was a great leader."

"Yes, that's correct," Cinderpelt agreed. She took a deep breath. "And she's also you."

Squirrelflight tilted her head to one side. "What do you mean?" she demanded. Did Cinderpelt have bees in her brain? "I'm not Bluestar. I'm Squirrelflight. I was born after she died."

"Exactly," The gray medicine cat meowed. "You are her reincarnation. You lived a life as her before, and now she is living another as you."