Whispers and Echoes

Prologue

Moonlight shimmered on the surface of a pond, turning the water silver. A gentle breeze whispered through the trees, echoing across the cool, starry night. A stray leaf floated down through the air, carried on the breeze. It landed into the pond, which sent ripples across its surface, breaking the moon's perfect reflection. The grass around the water waved restlessly as the cool night air weaved around it.

Two cats lay in the cool grass, the wind sending chills through their bodies as it ruffled their fur. They both gazed up at the night sky, their eyes clouded with sadness. The first was a ginger she-cat, and the second was a dark gray tabby tom-cat. Both had stars glittering in their fur, reflecting on the surface of the pond.
Footsteps sounded behind them and they both turned around to find two more cats padding toward them: a silver tabby she-cat with white paws, and a pale brown tabby tom. They, like the first two cats, had stars in their fur, sending up of sparks of starlight every time they took a pawstep.

The ginger she-cat sat up and spoke to the newcomers, "So have you found anything, Whirlheart? Swampclaw? All the new Clans are in terrible risk of being destroyed. There is a danger coming upon the forest; I can sense it even if I can't see it."

"Yes, we have, Peachfur," Swampclaw replied, dipping his brown, starry head. "StarClan can only do so much to help them. I believe, that with the proper cats, this evil can be overcome..."

"Yes, that is possible, but which cats to choose? There are many loyal cats in all of the Clans," meowed Slatefur beside Peachfur, looking concerned. He then turned to the silver tabby she-cat with white paws. "What do you think, Whirlheart?" he asked her.

The starry silver she-cat blinked. "Well, after I sent each of you to your old Clans to keep an eye out for those that have the skill to lead the Clans through the dark times, I went to look in my own old Clan," Whirlheart replied.

"And did you find any cat in DawnClan that would be strong enough to bear the weight of this prophecy and hold the fate of the Clans in their paws?" Swampclaw asked Whirlheart urgently.

"Yes," she replied slowly and nodded her head, as if convincing herself that she had found the right cats. "Two of them." She nodded at the pond, which had begun to swirl with the moving image of two small cats sleeping peacefully beside each other.

The other three starry cats glanced at the pond too, staring at the two small cats portrayed in the water.

"I have to agree," Swampclaw nodded, turning back to Whirlheart. "These two cats are very loyal and brave already. They have pure hearts and want the best for not only their Clan, but all the Clans, even if neither of them know it yet. Yes, these two are perfect."

"Shall I tell them then?" Whirlheart asked.
Swampclaw nodded. "Yes, I think that would be wise. But only when they are ready. It would be torture to tell them when they are still so young."

Whirlheart dipped her head and meowed, "I shall watch them then, and soon I'll tell them; but the longer we wait, the less prepared they will be when the danger does come."

Peachfur turned to Whirlheart, concern in her eyes. "How will you tell them? They're only kits! They wouldn't understand how important they are if you tell them so soon!"

Slatefur rounded on her. "We must tell them soon! The future of all the Clans, including StarClan, may rest in these two cats' choices, in these cats' paws! And anyway, loads of young cats learned things about destiny and choice when we were young warriors, did they not?" he hissed. "I was a young warrior, and I watched cats around me die; kits and apprentices watched our Clanmates die! You, Peachfur, out of us four, should remember what I'm talking about! You were a wise old elder at the time, weren't you? Wise enough to give Rain—"

Swampclaw shot between them and glared at Slatefur. "We have no room for argument among StarClan! Forget previous arguments between you and your old Clans! If we are divided, all of the Clans will perish!"

Peachfur glared mutinously at Slatefur, but she obeyed Swampclaw's demand and didn't argue further.

Slatefur sat up and dipped his head, "You're right, Swampclaw. But we need to tell these two cats soon; even if they are just kits, they may be the only thing that stands between the Clans being destroyed and the Clans surviving!"

Peachfur blinked. "Can we really rely that much on these two? Can we be sure that they'll make the right choices to protect the Clans? Saying that these two cats want the best for all four Clans, Whirlheart, is, in fact, only StarClan's guesswork."

"StarClan's knowledgeable guesswork," Slatefur intervened.

Swampclaw blinked. "It is true, what Peachfur says. We don't know for sure that these two will fulfill the prophecy, but we must trust in their choices and their hearts, because prophecies aren't final; they don't predict the future."

"Yes; destiny isn't set in the stars; rather it is a choice. One determines their own destiny. We can't set out these cats' destiny for them. But we can guide these two as they find their destiny. Besides that, we have to put our trust in them. That is all we can do," Whirlheart added.

Swampclaw nodded. "Whirlheart is correct. And we must trust that these two cats will find their hearts the courage to handle this knowledge and find the desire to save the Clans."

"I believe that they will. After all, they come from my Clan," Whirlheart purred.

Slatefur rolled his eyes. "It doesn't matter which Clan they're from in the end. What matters is that they can put Clan differences aside and save all four Clans. That's why we sought them out."

Swampclaw nodded approvingly at him.
Peachfur spoke up and turned toward Whirlheart. "How are you going to tell them? It has to be well thought out, or else they may think it's just a dream they had by coincidence."

Whirlheart dipped her head. "I already know how I'm going to tell them."
Peachfur, Swampclaw, and Slatefur turned to Whirlheart, flicking their ears for an answer.

"How?" Swampclaw demanded.

Whirlheart sat taller, determination burning like a flame in her blue eyes. "I will send them a sign, a vision: the vision of falling stars."