BOOK 1~A Broken Beginning

Chapter 18

      Bramblepaw couldn't believe he had seen Echo! After so long... He thought she was dead! Bramblepaw decided to keep calm, though, for he didn't want to draw attention with his excitement.

     Something about her was different, though... A good different...

~#~#~#~#~

      Snowpaw had gotten up and walked out of camp with Creekivy and Honeyleaf for a border patrol, so Hollowpaw was alone.

      He sighed deeply from his lonely heart when he started thinking... 'When should I tell her I love her? When she's a warrior? Yeah, when she's a warrior... I'll take her to that hill with the creek I've

been wanting to take her to. Yeah!' he thought to himself. 'Sounds good!' Hollowpaw got up and padded to the Medicine cat den to see Blazepaw alone sitting there, doing nothing.

     "Hey, Blazepaw? Can I ask you something?" Hollowpaw said loud enough for the tom to hear.

    "Yes, Hollowpaw?" Blazepaw replied, his fiery ginger pelt lighting up the dark Medicine Cat den.

    "I love a shecat... But I don't know how to tell her..." Hollowpaw sighed.

    "In love? With who?" Blazepaw asked, his calm voice racing through Hollowpaw's ears.

    "Don't get mad at me... Snowpaw..." Hollowpaw said nervously.

   "You're in love with my sister?"

    ~#~#~#~#~

    Echo stared at her father as he told her to leave the pack. Echo sighed and padded off, leaving her pack as a loner. She trotted to the edge of Shadowclan territory with a terrible mission in mind.

~#~#~#~#~

      "Snowpaw, really? Well I think she likes you, too." Blazepaw purred. Hollowpaw gave him a grateful lick on the shoulder and ran out, ready to meet Snowpaw with a dove at the enterance.

     Snowpaw padded into the den and was immediately greeted by Hollowpaw. Snowpaw dropped the dove and looked at the striped white cat.

     "Hello, Snowpaw." Hollowpaw said nervously.

     "Hi, Hollowpaw. What's up?" Snowpaw said happily.

     "Just checking to see how you're doing..." Hollowpaw said.

     "I'm doing fine... We found a dove at the border patrol..." Snowpaw said.

     "That's cool..." Hollowpaw said before walking away.

     'Why didn't I tell her? I have to wait... I MUST wait until we're warriors!' Hollowpaw thought to himself.

     Echo watched as a Shadowclan patrol padded up she hissed and prepared to pounce.

~#~#~#~#~

     "Snowpaw, I was wondering if you want to hang out in the forest?" Hollowpaw asked nervously.

     "Sure! Can Bramblepaw come, I've been ignoring him," snowpaw sighed. Hollowpaw felt his heart sink slightly as he nodded and the shecat called her brother. The three padded to a nice shadey spot. Hollowpaw sighed and layed down next to Snowpaw while Bramblepaw sat across.

     "I, umm, will leave you two," Bramblepaw muttered. He winked at Snowpaw and padded off in dirrection of the Shadowclan border.

~#~#~#~#~

     Falconfeather, Willowspots, Spottedflare,and Sagepaw was the Shadowclan border patrol. Spottedflare smelled Echo and turn to face the bush.

     "Sagepaw, get back to the Clan. Rogue." Spottedflare said as Willowspots started to run back to camp with Sagepaw.

~#~#~#~#~

     He faced nervously at the beautiful shecat who was lying down, looking at the tom.

     "Snowpaw, I've been wanting to ask you something..." Hollowpaw said.

     "Yeah?" Snowpaw looked at Hollowpaw.

     "I... Uh..." Hollowpaw said nervously.

~#~#~#~#~

     Echo watched boredly as the cats went to fetch more cats. Echo sighed .

     'Kill me now' she muttered. She slowly put her heads on her paws and listened to they're muttering as she waited.

~#~#~#~#~

     "Do you think we can be more than friends? Not exactly mates but sorta?" Hollowpaw stuttered. Snowpaw's eyes brightened.

     "Of course!" She yelped excitedly. Hollowpaw purred and rubbed her cheek happily.

     Snowpaw suddenly darkened.

     "What about Dirtwhisker?!" she said in a worried tone.

     "D-dirtwhisker... Great..." Hollowpaw hissed under his breath.

~#~#~#~#~

     The dark tabby tom padded, trying to locate the black shecat. He picked up her scent and followed the trail.

~#~#~#~#~

     "It can be secret," Snowpaw sighed. Hollowpaw licked her cheek comfortingly and they held a moment of sweet silence.

~#~#~#~#~

     Echo smirked as 4 cats came up they're hackles raised and their claws out. Echo closed her eyes and prepared herself as they surrounded the bush. One strike. Two strike. They lashed at her tearing her skin and blood trickled from the wounds. Echo squeezed out her eyes and tightened her jaws to not yowl in pain and waited as more blows came,tearing her apart.

Suddenly a yowl from behind sounded.