(Outdated) Warriors: Clouded Skies #1 - The First Storm

Chapter Sixteen

"I promise we'll never forget you; if Sage agrees, I want to name one of our kits after you... Would you be okay with that? My brother... Do you want your kits to know who you are?" Ravenpaw watched Bat as he stood on a tall hill in the open moorland, his eyes facing up to the Star Streak.

As the dream began to fade, Ravenpaw looked over the four cats at Bat's side, wondering if they were his kits, but none looked like Echo. He called out the she-cat's name after the five long-dead cats disappeared, and she shimmered into view, right next to where her father had been standing. "Who were the cats that were with him?" he asked, moving forward to stand next to her.

"They were his guess of what we, his kits, would look like," Echo replied calmly. "I'm guessing you're wondering about Bat's brother?" she added.

He nodded. "What's his name? And who are his kits?"

Echo sighed, blinking her eyes softly at the star-littered sky. "His name is Crow, he died twelve moons before I was born. He was Flint and Smoke's father. Creek told them they never had one because she was very troubled after his death, and by the time she was over it, they were so old she was scared they'd hate her."

"So they don't know they're related to Bat?" Ravenpaw asked, wondering what it would be like if he didn't have a father, and a pang hit his heart as he thought about not knowing Boulderclaw.

"They think that Bat might be their father, but something happened between Creek and him," Echo replied with a light purr. "Bat has always wanted them to know, so he can tell them stories of Crow, but he doesn't want to upset Creek. They were very close, and it's still a very sensitive subject. And now that Flint and Smoke are older..."

"She's scared they'll hate her for hiding the truth," Ravenpaw finished, and Echo nodded. "Do they ever find out?"

She turned to look at him, blinking with amusement shining in her eyes. "You'll have to wait and see, young one."

"Alright." His tail flicked, but he felt light-hearted. "Hey, Echo, did Smoke and Flint have any other littermates?"

"Yes, they had a sister," she meowed. "Her name was Dust."

"How did she die?" Ravenpaw prompted when Echo fell silent, wanting to know so nothing happened to his own Clanmates—if he could stop it, that is.

"She was eating mouse for the first time and choked on a bone." Echo looked at her misty white paws. "She would've made a fine warrior."

"Ravenpaw! Time to get up!" His dream was broken by Mossrain's mew in his ear. "We're all out of watermint, and I want to collect some in case someone gets a bellyache. On our way back we'll stop to get some borage leaves, too. We only have a few dead ones left, and they won't be any help. We'll come back and rest, then we'll go through one of the tunnels for training and so we can pick up some dock that grows near the entrance in the forest. The tunnel is pretty dark and scary the first time going through, but you'll get used to it soon enough! We might also get some ragwort leaves, but I'm not sure yet. When we get back I'll have you check on Dappletail and see if she's sore. You can also clean her fur of ticks and fleas." He was speaking so fast it was hard to understand.

Ravenpaw yawned, his head fuzzy with everything his mentor was saying, and he was sure he had already forgotten half of it. "Isn't, uh..." He blinked his eyes to clear his mind. "Isn't Flamepaw supposed to be taking care of the elders' den, for his punishment?" He still recalled the fresh memory from three days before, when he learned his brother had left Willowpaw alone so he could see the dead Twoleg with the other apprentices.

He looked over at the nest that Willowpaw had vacated the day before, deciding to go back to the apprentices' den to sleep, though she had asked to stop her training for a few sunrises until she started feeling better, and, of course, Pebblepeak had allowed it. The entire medicine cat's den was empty, with Grayblaze and Snowfern back to the warriors' den the same time as Willowpaw.