TimeClan

Leader:

Badgerstar - Tall Black-and-White Tom

Deputy:

Duskheart - Dusky Brown Tom

Warriors:

Silverlight - Grey She-cat

Fernfur - Brown Tabby She-cat

Flowerpelt - Black-and-White She-cat

Wolfscar - Scarred Dark Grey Tom

Goldenflame - Golden Tom

Echosong - Light Grey She-cat

Tawnyfeather - Calico She-cat

Shademist - Black She-cat

Med Cats

Hollypetal - Ginger and White She-cat

Sparrowwing - Brown Tabby Tom

Apprentices

Darkpaw - Black Tom

Queens

Willowberry - White She-cat

Kits

Icekit - White She-cat

Honeykit - Golden She-cat

Shorekit - Tan Tom

Chapter One

Real Warriors

Frost glittered in the morning sun. It was clear that Snow-season was coming. Echoshine shivered as frost glittered on her whiskers. She glanced over at Tawnyfeather. Frost shone on her fur as the dawning sun hit her. Then she glanced to Shademist, who's fur looked like the night sky, glittered with stars of frost. The first cat to awaken was Sparrowpaw. He came bounding out to see Echosong. "Echosong, guess what! Hollypetal is taking me to the Cave of Whispering Stars to get my medicine cat name!" Echosong purred in delight for her friend. She remembered the Cave of Whispering Stars from her patrols. It was a cave that held a pool of water. After drinking from the pool, The Clan of Starry Cats will speak. Echosong had never been there, but she had heard tales from the elders. The next cats to wake up were Willowberry's three kits, who bounded over to Echosong. "Wow! A real warrior!" Exclaimed Icekit, a white she-cat. "I'm gonna be as good as her one day!" Said Shorekit, a tan tom

His sister, Honeykit, leapt onto him. "You have to learn to defend yourself first!" She giggled. The two of them tumbled across the ground. "Bye, Echosong!" Said Icekit, before bounding after her siblings. Echosong chuckled as the three kits pretended to be the clan leaders, and tussled over 'territories'. Badgerstar padded out of his den. "Good morning, you three" He said, acknowledging the three new warriors , "Snow-season is coming" He gave a chuckle, though unease flickered in his eyes.

More of the clan began to wake up, and soon everyone was awake. Badgerstar leapt onto the Tallstone. "I have two messages. First, our medicine cat, Hollypetal, will be taking Sparrowpaw to the Cave of Whispering Stars to recieve his medicine cat name. He has requested that Echosong and Tawnyfeather go with him. Second, it is the first day of Snow-season, which means there will be a meeting tonight. I will let every cat know who is coming by sunhigh. Clan dismissed" He leapt off the Tallstone and disappeared into his den.

Sparrowpaw padded over to Echosong, already seeming like a medicine cat. "We're ready to go, if you are" Echosong nodded, and padded over to where Hollypetal and Tawnyfeather were waiting. "Alright. Lets go" Hollypetal led the way through the territory.

They had reached the edge of the territory, on the border of both EarthClan and AirClan. Looming ahead of them on the hillside was a dark cave. Hollypetal leaped agilely up the side of the hill, and beckoned with her tail to join her. Sparrowpaw went first, agilely leaping up the cliff-face. Tawnyfeather leapt up next, as agilely as an AirClan cat. Echosong hesitated, glancing down at the covered wound on her shoulder, before leaping after them. With a wince, she made it the the mouth of the cave. Hollypetal led the way, and they were all swallowed by darkness.

The only thing visible was darkness. Echosong had to follow the scent and sound of Hollypetal's steps. They padded in the darkness for what seemed like eternity before they emerged into the

light. It was a huge cave, with just one hole in the roof. The sun beamed down through it, making an almost spotlight on the floor. "The sun is the almighty cat's spirit. The cat that created our island" Hollypetal explained, "Sparrowpaw, stand in the light" Sparrowpaw obediently padded into the sunlight, with his head raised and his eyes shut. The rays of sunlight light up his fur, making it shine blindingly. Suddenly, whispering filled the cave, each saying one word. Sparrowpaw. The sun grew brighter for moment, completely encasing Sparrowpaw in light. When it died down again, the voices were whispering a new name. Sparrowwing. Sparrowpaw's eyes flew open. He lowered his head to look at his mentor, who gave a small gesture with her head. Sparrowpaw padded over and they touched noses. "The Almighty Cat has approved of you as a medicine cat. Your new name will be Sparrowwing, as chosen by the Starry Cats" Hollypetal announced. Sparrowwing raised his head proudly as she continued, "They have entrusted in you the care of your clan. By coming to the cave today, you have promised to uphold it" She looked at the three young cats gather before her. "The ceremony is over. Let's go"

They arrived back at camp to find Badgerstar waiting. Hollypetal broke off from the group to talk to him, while the three young cats gathered together. "It was amazing!" Sparrowwing told them, "I saw the Almighty Cat. He was huge with golden fur that shone like the sun. He said, 'Sparrowpaw, you have proven yourself a worthy medicine cat. I will now take away your apprentice name and give you your medicine cat name, Sparrowwing. You have learned well from Hollypetal, and I trust you will look after your clan'. Then he disappeared and I heard cats whispering my new name!" Echosong licked Sparrowwing's ear, "Sounds amazing" She breathed. Before she could say anymore, Duskheart padded up to her. "Is your shoulder alright to go patrol?" He asked. Echosong nodded. "I want you to patrol the Upwalker border" Echosong nodded. Quickly farewelling her friends, she bounded out of camp.

She arrived on the boundary with WaterClan and the Upwalker camp. She padded along the edge of the Dark Path, barely flinching as creatures roared passed.

Echosong stopped. There was a black cat on the edge of the Dark Path. She crept up to it, padding silently through the grass. With a jolt, she realised the wind was blowing against her. The cat should've realised she was there. She stood up straight and padded out of the grass. "Who are you, and what are you doing on our territory?" She asked. The cat, compared to Echosong, was surprisingly small. Echosong was the runt of her litter, and therefore the smallest, however she was quite well muscled. This cat was slightly round, no hint of muscle beneath her soft, well-groomed fur. Its green eyes widened in fear when it saw Echosong. "I'm Kitty" It said nervously, "I'm not sure what you mean by 'territory'" Echosong raised a surprised eyebrow. Even rogues knew about the 5 territories and the Upwalker camp. "You're a kittypet" She realised. The cat tilted its head, confused. "I don't know that word, but if you mean housecat, then yes. You're obviously a stray, seeing as your so scrawny" Echosong unsheathed her claws, offended. But she looked down. Compared to Kitty, she was scrawny. "What do you mean, stray?" She asked, unsure of whether to be offended.

"A housecat that's been abandoned, or run away from it's housefolk" Kitty explained. "I'm no kittypet" Echosong growled, "I am a Clan cat" Kitty tilted her head once more. "Don't you know about the 5 clans that live on the island?" She asked impatiently. "I've never left the city" Kitty replied. This time it was Echosong's turn to tilt her head. "The city" Kitty flicked her tail to the Upwalker camp. Echosong nodded her head and continued. "There are 5 clans around the island. I'm in TimeClan. There are also WaterClan, EarthClan, AirClan, and LifeClan" Kitty's eyes widened, "You're a wildcat!" She realised, "Felix said that you're really fierce and eat whole rabbits!" Echosong thought back to her first hunting mission, when she'd caught a rabbit. "Sometimes. We eat what we catch, and every cat hunts to feed the clan" Kitty glanced at the cobwebs on Echosong's shoulder. "What's that?" She asked. "Cobwebs" She replied. "Why do you have them on your shoulder?" Kitty asked again. Echosong gripped the cobwebs between her teeth and pulled them off. Underneath was a gaping gash. Kitty squeaked in alarm. "How did you get that?" She asked. "There was a battle two nights ago" Echosong told her all about

the battle with DarkClan. "Why don't you just find some housefolk?" Kitty suggested when Echosong had fininshed. "I'm sure someone would take in a cat like you" Echosong scowled, "And leave my clan? I don't think so!" Echosong looked up. She'd been talking with Kitty for too long. "I have to get back to my clan" She told Kitty. "Wait, I never got your name" "Echosong" She replied. Kitty tilted her head, "What a strange name. Well, goodbye, Echosong"

Echosong quickly finished patrolling the border and returned to camp. Sparrowwing padded up to her. "We'd began to think you'd been attacked by DarkClan!" He teased. Then he noticed the gash in her shoulder. "You took the cobwebs.,,? Alright, lets go show Hollypetal" He padded to the medicine den, with Echosong close on his heels. Hollypetal looked up from the herbs she was sorting. "Oh" She looked at the gash. "Let me get some herbs" She quickly filed through her storage, pulling out a few leaves.

She chewed them into a poultice, and put them on her gash, making it sting. "Sparrowwing, can you grab some cobwebs?" Sparrowwing disappeared for a second, before returning with cobwebs dangling from his jaws. Hollypetal thanked him as she took them, and placed them gently over Echosong's shoulder. "There. You can go" She thanked Hollypetal and Sparrowwing and left, hearing Badgerstar call a meeting. "As you know, tonight there will be a meeting. I wish these cats to accompany me: Duskheart, Hollypetal, Sparrowwing, Echosong, Tawnyfeather, Shademist and Darkpaw. We will leave at sundown. Clan dismissed"

The sun cast an orange hue across the sky. The cats going to the Meeting gathered at the entrance to the camp. Badgerstar gave the signal, and all the cats followed him out of the camp Darkpaw walked alongside his sister, while Tawnyfeather, Echosong and Sparrowwing walked together.

The group of cats soon made it to the Meeting Place, which was alive with the buzz of cats from the other 4 clans. The cats plunged into the clearing on the border of their clan. Tawnyfeather wandered off to a group of young warriors, while Sparrowwing followed Hollypetal to a group of medicine cats. Echosong looked around the clearing. She spotted what she was looking for and padded over to her littermates. "Echo!" Storm purred. "My new name is Stormpaw" Echosong purred too. "Hi, Mousepaw" Echosong teased her sister, who gave Echosong a gentle headbutt. Wolf gave a chuckle. "I'm Wolfpaw now, and River is Riverpaw" Riverpaw padded up and rubbed her sisters cheek with her own. "Are you Echopaw now?" She asked, stepping back. "No, I'm Echosong, now" She replied proudly. She retold the tale of the battle with DarkClan. Each of her littermates gasped in turn. "I'm so glad you're still alive!" Mousepaw said, stroking Echosong's side with her tail. Before Echosong could reply, the leaders called every cat to attention. The leader of EarthClan, Mudstar, a brown tom, stepped forward.

"I will start. EarthClan is as strong as ever. We have two new apprentices since the last Meeting, Wolfpaw" He glanced at Wolfpaw, "And Sagepaw" A cheer arose for the two apprentices. Echosong gave Wolfpaw a lick on the cheek. "What about you, Rockstar?" The grey furred leader of AirClan stepped forward. "I too have a new apprentice in my clan. Stormpaw" Another cheer arose for Stormpaw. "Other than that, I have nothing to report. How is your clan, Minnowstar?" The white leader of WaterClan stepped forward. "We have one apprentice in the clan, Riverpaw, and two warriors, Mistfur and Tigerstripe" A cheer arose for the warriors and Riverpaw. "Your turn, Badgerstar" Badgerstar stepped into Minnowstar's place. "I have three new warriors and a new medicine cat. Echosong, Tawnyfeather, Shademist, and Sparrowwing" A cheer louder than that of the others sounded for all of the cats Badgerstar had said, "I also have a warning. We found a cat on our territory. When we asked him to leave, he attacked alongside a group he called 'DarkClan'. Our warriors fended them off, but not without injury. They were strong attackers, and we do not know whether they will come back. That is all. Silverstar?" The silver leader of

LifeClan stepped in where Badgerstar had been. We have four new kits, Acornkit, Eaglekit, Fawnkit and Treekit, and one apprentice, Mousepaw" A cheer arose for Mousepaw, who looked down shyly and shuffled her paws. "We have scented the rogues you call 'DarkClan' on our territory, but we have not crossed paths with them. Other than that, I have nothing else to report" Badgerstar dipped his head. "Then the Meeting is over" The 5 leaders leaped off the Meeting Rock and began to gather their clans. "See you at the next meeting" Each cat licked eachother's ear in goodbye and bounded off to their leaders. Echosong met up with Tawnyfeather and Sparrowwing and padded after their leader.

They got back to camp just before moonhigh, and every cat went to their respective dens and fell asleep.

She woke up and padded outside. Flakes of snow were beginning to fall outside. She bounded over to the freshkill pile, which was looking rather meager, and took a small field mouse, leaving the bigger prey for the elders and kits. She ate the mouse in one gulp. Badgerstar padded over."As I'm sure you can see, our freshkill pile is" he gestured to the pile, "Empty. Would you mind going on hunting patrol? Snow-season is here, and we need the freshkill. You may take two warriors with you" She nodded and began to pad over to the warrior den, when she was intercepted by Icekit. "I want to come!" She squeaked. Echosong licked the kit's ear. "You're only three moons. You'll be able to soon enough. But for now, you must go back to the nursery" Icekit gave a look of despair, but padded back into the nursery.

Echosong took Tawnyfeather and Wolfscar out on hunting patrol. Unsurprisingly due to the cold weather, there was not much prey to add to the prey pile, but every morsel counted in keeping the clan alive during snow-season.

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Chapter Two

Mentors

"Let all cats old enough to stalk their prey gather beneath the Tallstone for a clan meeting!" Called Badgerstar three moons later. Echosong sat down beside Tawnyfeather and Sparrowwing, awaiting Badgerstars news. "Today, three kits are ready to become apprentices. Icekit, step forward" Icekit stepped forward, her fur groomed tidily. "Until you become a warrior, you're name will be Icepaw. You're mentor will be Echosong" Echosong sat up a little straighter, dipping her head to her new apprentice. "Shorekit, step forward" Shorekit padded forward, much more relaxed than his sister. "Until you become a warrior, you're name will be Shorepaw. Your mentor will be Tawnyfeather" Shorepaw turned, dipping his head politely to Tawnyfeather, before sitting beside his sister. "Honeykit, step forward" Honeykit stepped in beside her siblings. "Until you become a warrior, you're name will be Honeypaw. You're mentor will be Shademist. Clan dismissed" And with that, Badgerstar leapt off the highrock. The sun was beginning to set.

"We'll begin training at dawn" Echosong told her new apprentice, who nodded eagerly. "Go rest, so you're ready tomorrow" "Thanks, Echosong!" Icepaw called as she bounded to the apprentice den. Echosong saw Darkpaw shoot a look of jealousy at Shademist, before turning and padding to the apprentice den. Shademist spotted Echosong and padded over. Echosong was surprised how far she'd come from the days when she was tormented for her rogue heritage. "Why didn't Darkpaw help us fight against DarkClan?" Echosong asked Shademist as they padded side-by-side to the warrior den. "He said he was sick, but there was nothing wrong with him that evening" Shademist replied. Echosong wondered why he had refused to fight, but she didn't question Shademist any further. "How about we take our apprentices out to train together?" She suggested instead. Shademist nodded, "I'll ask Tawnyfeather if she wants to come"