Echowing fluffed up her fur against the cold wind. With leaf-fall here, her Clan was becoming more restless and tired. She had no deputy, and everything seemed out of control. Fights wound up every day, and Echowing had a few scratches herself from trying to stop the fights.

Moonwhisker and Sunfur acted as if they were loners. They stood on the outskirts of camp, sometimes going on patrols and helping out wherever they could, but Echowing needed to talk to them about leaving.

She had not talked to them yet, like she planned too, since everything was so stressful and busy. Swallowtail's injury became worse, and she had to join the elder's den early. Echowing was disappointed about that, since Swallowtail was one of the top cats she would have choice to be her deputy.

Wavefire constantly reminded her that she needed to get her nine lives, but Echowing kept making excuses, anything to keep her from going to the Moonstone. I'm not ready. 

Twigkit and Sunkit became apprentices, and their mentors where Stormfur and Blackclaw. Echowing was proud of her apprentice, and she hoped she could spend more time with the two warriors in the future.

Wishkit, Thunderkit, Skykit, Tidalkit, and Hopekit spent less time outside, now that fights broke out every day. Echowing tried to stop by the nursery every once in a while, but she found herself too busy to spend any time with them. 

Poor Sunbeam. Echowing winced. The queen had to take care of all five kits by herself. Wavefire had used up her whole supply of borage to make sure Sunbeam had enough milk. Echowing would have liked for Mosspelt to stay in the nursery and keep company for Sunbeam, but the she-cat was restless, and barley slept in her nest after Dawnflower died.

Blackclaw and Hawkfrost remained in the medicine den still, after the fight with the dog, they both were the most injured. Blackclaw had a shredded ear that wouldn't stop bleeding, and his leg was broken and crushed. Wavefire was worried he would never walk again.

Hawkfrost's nose was scathed horribly, and the skin was all gone. He couldn't smell, and the only smell he could make out was his own blood. Echowing checked on them the other day, only to find them groaning in pain.

Echowing looked up at the night sky, but it was covered by dark clouds. There was no Gathering tonight because the moon was covered, and Echowing felt a little grateful that StarClan was giving her more time to prepare for becoming leader of RiverClan.

Every cat had gone to sleep, except Wavefire and her, who were sitting on Highrock together. It wasn't smushed, and Echowing felt comforted with her friend's fur against hers. Wavefire is the closest thing I have of Waterstar now. 

Swallowtail was sitting outside the elder's den, asleep, but she constantly twitched as if she was fighting. Waterstar's mother may not be Swallowtail, but she grieves as much as the rest of us. Echowing may be experiencing more pain than any of us, with her half-son and mate gone.

At least Dawnflower is reunited with her son. I wonder why Waterfur had two mates in the first place.

Wavefire glanced at the brown tabby elder. "She is not well, and if she doesn't get better, she will end up like Reedwhisker."

Echowing glanced at her friend, and Wavefire shuffled her feet uncomfortably. "I think it's time we make our way to the Moonstone." Before Echowing could say something, Wavefire interrupted. "You are ready, but you just don't know it."

She looked up at the sky. The moon was covered, but you could see the light that shined through. It was almost dawn. "Tomorrow, we will go."

Wavefire sighed and nodded, jumping off the Highrock and walking toward the medicine den. Echowing looked back at her parents, who were talking in low whispers.

She walked toward them, but they didn't notice her until she cleared her throat. They looked at her and Echowing sat down. She didn't know exactly what to say, so she said, "How come you are staying in RiverClan for so long? We do not need another mouth to feed, with our Clan spread thin."

Moonwhisker's fur glinted. Echowing's memory of the black and white cat shined in her mind, and she had to take a deep breath to contain herself from spilling out all her worries and questions.

Sunfur nodded. "We will be returning soon, but-" He hesitated, then looked down at his paws. "We wanted to get to know you."

Echowing's annoyance faltered, and she let herself relax. Moonwhisker nodded. "You must be wondering why we left you out on the river." They left me there? Echowing thought suddenly. "We were sleeping when we suddenly heard a noise. Owls were swarming the camp, and we took all the kits to safety at Sunningrocks."

Sunfur looked over at the moat. "You were so interested in everything, even though you had just opened your eyes.  You wandered to close to the river in a big storm, and an owl picked you up in the air, but it dropped you on the stepping stones for reasons we don't know."

Moonwhisker winced. "We looked everywhere for you, because we didn't know where you were, but we had given up hope. Your brother, Flameheart, refused to stop looking for you. And when all three of us saw you at the Gathering as Waterstar took your rank away, we knew that was you."

Echowing was overcome in shock. Flameheart is my brother? Then that means Wavefire and I are sort of like kin. Skykit and Thunderkit are kin, and so was Flameheart all along. 

"Did I have a name?" Echowing asked. Moonwhisker hesitated, but Sunfur nodded and said, "Your name was Ravenkit, but we wanted your warrior name to be Ravenheart or Ravenstorm, because right away we knew you would be leader of ThunderClan."

Sunfur's eyes glinted with humor. "We were half right."

"How come you never told me before?" Echowing asked, her fur bristling. "And how can I have Flameheart as my brother? He's nothing like me!"

Moonwhisker nodded to the nursery and said, "But Skykit and Thunderkit are exactly like you."

Echowing winced. It was true. She felt bad for treating him like an enemy, but he took Wavefire's kit away. Moonwhisker must have read her mind because she said, "We also came here to give you your kit back."

She moved aside, revealing the little black kit, looking up at Echowing with shining eyes. "Say hello to Fatekit."

The kit stepped forward and whispered, "I'm sorry dad took me away. He was a bad cat. But he loved me, and I miss him." Echowing looked up at her parents, eyes tearing.

"Thank you."

.               .               .

Rain pattered against Echowing's pelt as she trudged to Fourtrees. Echowing refused to go as long as she could, but Wavefire eventually got her to agree. It was the half-moon, and every medicine cat was meeting at Fourtrees to share tongues with StarClan.

The clouds were still covered, and Echowing felt pain in her heart. She never imagined once she would take this trip. When Wavefire told the Clan that she was to be deputy, the first thing that Echowing thought of was losing Waterstar, and having to take his place.

I can't do this. It will only make me hurt more.

Cinderpelt, Leafpaw, Barkface, and Littlecloud were all waiting patiently as Echowing stopped in her tracks. Only Wavefire noticed Echowing's heart racing.

"We need to hurry if you want to share tongues with StarClan." Barkface advised. "We must go."

Wavefire gave Echowing a gentle nudge, and she took a small step forward. Blood pounded in her head, but Mudfur's voice whispered through the noise, Or StarClan cannot save you.

Echowing took a deep breath and started to follow Wavefire toward WindClan's territory. He's right. This isn't about me. This is about my Clan, and how I need to save it. Alone.

The word alone made her shiver. She didn't remember where she did anything alone, besides attacking a Twoleg, but even than her favorite cats were close bye.

Highstones loomed in front of her, big and imposing. The reek of WindClan and the Thunderpath the walked along clouded her mind, and she had to take deep breaths to clear her head, but the smell only got worse then.

Echowing scoured her brain, trying to distract herself. She thought of Fatekit and wondered how he was fitting in. She felt more connected to him than any other kit. Even her own. Tidalkit and Hopekit had been avoiding her, and the other kits seemed to be uncomfortable around her.

But Fatekit was always nice. He had no idea of the close bond she once shared with the other kits, so he didn't know what to expect. He loved all her visits to the nursery, and Sunbeam was grateful for extra help and company. 

Echowing gave a small chuckle, and Leafpaw glanced back at her, smiling. Wishkit is enjoying being the biggest in the nursery. Often, she would see the kit leading the others around the camp, showing them good places for hide and seek and good places to groom.

Echowing was so preoccupied with thinking, she didn't notice that the ground beneath her paws had turned to stone. "We are here." Wavefire whispered.

The Moonstone cave was pitch black. It was as big as three monsters, wide and yawning toward Echowing. She took a step back, but Wavefire was there to reassure her. "It's fine. Just stay next to me, and if you lose me, follow my scent."

Echowing nodded, taking a deep breath. She tried to distract herself and thought, The only thing scarier than going into a dark tunnel is training with Hawkfrost. She chuckled, and Wavefire gave her a smile.

Darkness swarmed her, and Echowing tried to keep her fur pressed in to Wavefire's. She could feel her paw steps taking her the right way, as if all the cats that had taken this path was there to lead her.

It seemed as if the tunnel went on forever, until light seemed to glimmer ahead. They emerged into a big cave, full of moonlight. There was no roof, only a big sky hole where the moon twinkled above. The clouds had finally cleared.

The Moonstone was bright, and it seemed to radiate the cold. "Lay down and press your nose to it." Wavefire whispered. Echowing took a cautious step forward. The other medicine cats were already in their dreams, but Echowing was unsure.

I might be able to see Waterstar. The kept her going. She laid down, pressing her muzzle to the Moonstone. It was blisteringly cold, piercing her nose, but it warmed as Echowing closed her eyes. 

She opened them again and found herself in Fourtrees, except it seemed a little different. Wavefire stood off to one end, looking around. 

Suddenly, a mist seemed to pour down from the stars, and nine cats drifted down from the sky. They landed on the soft grass, and Echowing could see stars in their pelts.

The first cat that stepped forward was a golden spotted she-cat. Echowing didn't recognize her. "My name is Leopardstar. With this life, I give you courage. It takes guts to do the right thing for your Clan, and you must use your courage to protect it."

They touched noses, and as they did, pain lanced through her, sharp as anything else she could imagine. She struggled to stay on her feet, but it faded as the next cat stepped forward.

She looked up, only to mew in sorrow when she saw it was Reedwhisker. "With this life, I give you forgiveness. Cats make mistakes, but it is up to us to forgive them."

Echowing looked up at him, whispering, "I'm sorry."

Reedwhisker smiled. "No need."

He touched his nose to hers, and Echowing wasn't sure if it was pain or satisfaction that mobbed her, or if it was both. She winced, and her claws dug into the ground. Her legs ached. 

The next cat that stepped forward, was her two kits, Heartkit and Herbkit. Echowing crouched down and said, "It's so good to see you Heartkit and Herbkit."

Heartkit shook his head. "It's Heartstar and Herbfeather." Echowing crouched down again and murmured, "You would have been amazing."

Herbkit stepped forward. "With this life, we give you acceptance. Things happen in life that you cannot control, and you must be able to accept that."

She touched noses to her kits, and again agony sliced through her body. She wasn't sure how was going to be able to go through six more lives.

The next cat that stepped forward was Mistystar. Echowing purred and said, "Its so good to see you!"

Mistystar nodded in return and said, "With life I give you confidence. You need to show your Clan that you can do things nobody else can."

Like lead them through a horrible time? Echowing thought to herself. She touched her nose to Mistystar's, and pain splintered her body. It was the worst of them all. Her stomach fur was touching the ground, but Wavefire's voice called out, "Keep fighting!"

She managed to stand up, wincing and gritting her teeth. The next cat, to her surprise, she didn't know. He was tall and looked a lot like Waterstar. 

"My name is Waterfur." He said solemnly. "With this live I give you hope. Hope that you may guide your Clan, and see it through all the disasters to come."

They touched noses, and the sweet feeling of hope washed over her. She didn't feel any pain, which was good.

The next cat was Mothwing. Her fur was ungroomed, just as it was when she died. "With this life I give you trust. If you cannot form a bond with anyone, your life will be harder than it can ever be."

The pain pulsed this time as the new life surged through her. She struggled to stay on her paws, but the next cat that stepped forward made her have strength.

It was Dawnflower! "Dawnflower, I missed you so much. I'm sorry I wasn't there to fight Ashfur." She tried to rush everything into one sentence, but Dawnflower only shook her head.

"As your foster mother, I know you will do great." She took a deep breath. "With this life I give you persistence. When things go hard, you are not allowed to quit. You have to keep going."

A rush of energy surged through her as Dawnflower and Echowing touched noses. She felt like she could do anything. Like battle a tiger and a lion all at once.

The next cat made her rush forward. "Mudfur! How are you?" The brown tom lifted his head, eyes bright.

"I am so glad you are here." He said softly. "With this life I give you the power of knowing when to fight and knowing when to choose peace. Every leader should have this to protect his or her Clan."

They touched noses, but Echowing didn't feel satisfaction like she thought. She felt pain off and on again, until she almost fell on the ground, but she stood up as she saw the last cat.

Echowing rubbed her fur across his cheek. Waterstar!

"Waterstar I'm so sorry. I didn't know what to do and I don't want to take your place, I'm so, so sorry." Waterstar used his paw to turn her face towards him.

"It's okay." He mewed. "You aren't taking my place, you're succeeding me, and I couldn't be prouder. I love you Echowing."

She wiped the tears from her eyes and said, "I love you too."

Waterstar took a shaky breath and said, "With this life I give you friendship. Your friend's will be the ones that lead you and know that you are never alone."

Fourtrees faded, and Echostar was back in the cave. The medicine cats were standing around her, but only Wavefire spoke, "Welcome Echostar, to a new world."