Echo: The Kits Take A Stand

Chapter 2

Echokit clung to Sunpaw's tail, trying not to be crushed by the stream of PondClan cats heading to the Gathering.

"Sunpaw, help! I'm slipping!" she whispered. In response, Sunpaw quietly lifted Echokit to her shoulders. Sunpaw's golden fur gleamed in the moonlight, making it look silver, just like Echokit's pelt. Echokit took a deep breath and rested on Sunpaw's shoulders, promising to herself that nobody would notice her.

When they got there, the leader's of the other three Clans were already there, sitting on the Gathering Stump. Hazelstar joined them. Sunpaw and Leafpaw sat closer to the stump than Echokit wanted. It wasn't that she was scared of the leaders or anything, but where she was sitting, she could quite easily be spotted by Hazelstar. She would have asked Sunpaw and Leafpaw to move a little farther away from the stump, but she did not want to make any noise.

"Cats of The Clans, let the Gathering begin!" yowled Goldenstar, the leader of WoodClan. The cats fell silent. Goldenstar was a large, strong sturdy tom. He looked powerful enough to rule all four clans. Echokit sensed a bit of fear from a PineClan apprentice behind her. But Echokit forced herself not to let Goldenstar scare her. There was a truce at the Gathering, meaning Goldenstar couldn't attack anybody, and just because he looked strong didn't mean he was bad.

"WoodClan would like to say that they have scented some PineClan scent on their territory," Goldenstar glared at Blizzardstar, the leader of PineClan. "We would like to make clear that if this behavior continues, there will be an attack!"

"PineClan would like to negotiate with you," Blizzardstar meowed politely. "We would like ownership of the space between our two forests, only for leaf-bare, of course."

"Never!" Goldenstar hissed.

"Fine, but this is not over!" Blizzardstar growled.

Blizzardstar and Spotstar spoke, but there was nothing important going on in PineClan and MoorClan. The Gathering was less exciting than Echokit had thought. At last, it was Hazelstar's turn to speak.

"We are doing well in leaf-bare and while a few of our warriors have fallen sick, our medicine cats know how to treat it," He told the cats below. Then Hazelstar squinted as if he had noticed something strange. Echokit realized with a jolt of fear that Hazelstar was looking at HER!

"Echokit? Why are you here?" the leader demanded. "Sunpaw, I can't believe you have taken a one moon old kit to the Gathering! Why?"

Echokit jumped from Sunpaw's shoulder and crouched underneath Sunpaw.

"I-I-I just wanted to go to the Gathering, that's all! It's not Sunpaw's fault!" Echokit protested.

"That's it! PondClan is leaving!" Hazelstar meowed, anger blazing in his voice. Echokit shrieked as she realized that clouds were covering the moon. StarClan was angry at her! But hadn't she done the right thing? She wanted to protest against Hazelstar's unfair rule, surely StarClan didn't agree that kits should be apprenticed at 10 moons! Echokit glanced at Sunpaw. The golden tabby was terrified. And Leafpaw was nowhere to be seen.

Hazelstar leaped down from the meeting stump.

"Wolfpelt! Pick her up and carry her back while the rest of us walk back!"

Wolfpelt, the gray deputy, grabbed Echokit by the scruff rather harshly. Echokit hated being carried by the scruff. It was so uncomfortable to be dangling from a cat's jaws.

Finally, they returned to PondClan and Wolfpelt placed Echokit down right below the rockledge. Hazelstar was up there.

"Sunpaw! Get over here!" Hazelstar growled. Sunpaw slowly sat down below the rockledge next to Echokit. Leafpaw was cowering beside the apprentice den. He hadn't spoken a word to her or Sunpaw on the way back from the Gathering. To Echokit's surprise, Hazelstar did not call Leafpaw over. But then she figured out why. Hazelstar didn't know about Leafpaw having anything to do with Echokit going to the Gathering. Leafpaw had also agreed to take her, however when Hazelstar noticed Echokit, he had backed away into the sea of cats, and since Echokit was on Sunpaw's shoulders, Hazelstar had to assume that it was Sunpaw who had taken her and that Leafpaw wasn't helping at all. How dare he sit back and watch as they got in trouble for something he took part in! Echokit wanted to tell Hazelstar that Leafpaw had taken part in it to, but if she did that, she would be seen as a tattletale, and would he even believe her after what she had just done?

"I want an explanation from both of you about why Echokit was at the Gathering and how," Hazelstar demanded, his hazel eyes glaring down at them.

"It all started when you announced that all of the kits who wanted to be warriors would have to start their training at 10 moons," Echokit explained. "I thought about having to spend 9 moons being confined to camp, and it made me want to do something exciting. I wanted to go to the Gathering. So I asked Sunpaw if she could take me." Echokit wanted to say, "Sunpaw and Leafpaw if they could take me," but she didn't.

"You broke the warrior code simply because you wanted to do something?" Hazelstar asked. "I am very disappointed in you, Echokit." he turned to Sunpaw. "So what did you do then, Sunpaw?"

"I-I said yes, and then I took her with me and when we got to the Gathering I assumed nobody would notice her because she's so small and she blends in with my pelt 'cause it looks silver in the moonlight," Sunpaw meowed.

"Echokit, you have broken the warrior code, and Sunpaw, you have endangered the life of a kit. You shall both be punished. Sunpaw, despite you originally only having to wait one more moon until you became a regular apprentice again, I have decided that you will wait until you are 10 moons, just like all the other kits. You will do no apprentice duties, and even when you are a regular apprentice again, you will not go to any Gatherings until you are a full warrior. And your name will be changed back to Sunkit for now."

"No! Please, don't change my name!" cried Sunkit.

"You should have thought about that before you took a one moon old kit to a Gathering," Hazelstar scolded. "Now go to sleep!"

"Wait, please, Hazelstar!" Echokit whimpered before Sunkit headed back to the nursery. "Don't punish her! It was my idea to go to the Gathering!"

"She is an older, more responsible cat who should know better, and that is why she is being punished. You shall be punished as well, but not as severley for you are a kit who doesn't know any better. I will let your mother decide your punishment. And I shall assign all the queens to specifically keep an eye on you. Now go to the nursery, you two." Hazelstar's words stung Echokit.

"I'm so sorry, Sunkit," Echokit whispered as she and Sunkit walked into the nursery. "I didn't mean for you to get in trouble. If it makes you feel any better, I'll still call you Sunpaw. And all of the other kits will, too. They don't think any of these rules are fair either."

"Thanks," Sunpaw replied. "You're a good friend, Echokit."