Warriors Series 5.5: Echoes of the War
Book 1: Faded Boundaries
Chapter Twenty Six

"Blazepaw? Wake up."

A paw poked his side. The apprentice wrinkled his nose, curling into an even tighter ball. Nearby, an apprentice growled. "We're leaving soon. Get up!" Blazepaw jolted awake when claws poked hard at his pelt.

"I'm awake," he yelped, his head snapping up. Amberpaw was in front of him, whiskers twitching with amusement, and one paw raised with claws unsheathed. "What was that for?"

Amberpaw purred, lowering her paw. "We're leaving today, remember?"

Blazepaw felt a burst of energy. He leaped to his paws, suddenly fully awake and ready to do. "Great StarClan, I forgot." The ache for home was suddenly stronger than ever, almost too much to bear. He wanted to be back in the stone hollow more than he could say. "Come on, let's go see what's going on." He and Amberpaw hurried out of the den, out into the clearing of the nest.

Cats were moving everywhere, dismantling dens, carrying bedding and prey, collecting what would still be useful for dens in the stone hollow. Bramblestar stood by the entrance, supervising the work. He spotted Blazepaw and Amberpaw and waved them over. "Amberpaw, the elders need help clearing out their den, could you help out?" She gave a brisk nod and padded off. "Blazepaw, can you carry Shadowkit? Squirrelflight and I will have our paws full with Sunnykit and Redkit."

The apprentice blinked in surprise. Bramblestar trusted him to carry his adopted son? He dipped his head, trying to mask his pleasure. "Yes, Bramblestar," he agreed. "When are we leaving?"

"Once all the dens are broken down and every cat is ready to go," his leader told him. "Now go. The queens are busy with the den, they'll need someone to look after the kits."

Blazepaw gave a final nod, then turned and headed off for the upper level, bounding easily up the blocks. Cats were working up there as well, elders and queens pitching in. Dovewing noticed Blazepaw as she passed him. "Oh, Blazepaw, can you look after the kits for a minute?" she asked. "I can't watch them and work at the same time."

He flicked an ear in acknowledgment, then headed towards the nursery. Daisy, Squirrelflight, and Hazeltail were all working, and the kits were all watching curiously, Finchkit making sure they didn't wander off too far. "What's everyone doing?" Ripplekit squeaked, looking around with wide blue eyes.

"Gathering materials for the dens back at camp," Blazepaw told him. He approached the kits, sitting beside them. Finchkit gave him a grateful nod as Blazepaw took over being in charge of the little kits. Hazeltail's son had been subdued ever since his sister's death. He hardly spoke unless he had to, and he seemed far more mature than he had been a moon ago, always respectful to the older warriors. Blazepaw knew Hazeltail was worried about him – he tried to stick by her paws as much as possible, but she pushed him to play with the other kits.

Skykit's eyes were wide with confusion. "But isn't this our camp?" Shadowkit and Sunnykit were crouched, sniffing and watching the older cats, completely ignoring the conversation of the older kits. Redkit was beside them, blinking her kitten-blue eyes. They had only opened two days ago.

Blazepaw shook his head, explaining, "We came to live in this nest because a storm drove us out of our camp. We live in a stone hollow, with walls that stretch far over any cat's heads, under the shelter of trees. There's no roof over our heads, or twoleg stench." He felt a pang of regret. Other than Finchkit, these kits had never known any home except the twoleg nest. They would be more at home in a kittypet's nest than the stone hollow.

"But I don't want to leave," Ripplekit wailed. "Can't we stay here?"

He crouched beside Ripplekit, giving the tabby kit an friendly purr. "No, Ripplekit," he told him. "We belong in the stone hollow. Don't worry, you'll like it there. There's so much more room to play moss ball."

Ripplekit's eyes lit up with joy. All reservations about the new camp were instantly gone. "Will you play moss ball with me when we get there?" he asked eagerly.

Blazepaw purred in amusement. "Of course," he promised.

He was so intent on Ripplekit that he didn't realize Finchkit was trembling until his tail brushed against the golden tabby kit. Blazepaw looked up at him in surprise. "Are you alright?" he asked.

"Fine," the kit mumbled.

Blazepaw sat up, looking down at Finchkit anxiously. Hazeltail's kit seemed even more subdued than usual, and there was a frantic, panicked glow to his eyes. "Are you sure?" he pressed.

Finchkit looked up at him, his amber eyes wide as he trembled. "Blazepaw, I don't want to go home," he admitted. "If I go back to the hollow, all I'm going to see is Petalkit." Blazepaw flinched, sympathy welling up for the kit in his chest. "I'll have to sleep in the same den, next to her empty nest. Every time I see the walls of the hollow, I'll just remember Petalkit falling." He suddenly looked so small and vulnerable, his whole body trembling as he gazed desperately up at Blazepaw.

He settled down beside the golden tabby. "Oh Finchkit, I'm so sorry," he breathed. Grief for Dewpaw, and for Petalkit, hit him harder than it had in moons. "Death is a part of Clan life. There are always going to be empty nests beside you and faces you won't ever see in the hollow again. But the memories you have there don't have to be a bad thing. Remember the good times you had, and be grateful you got to have those days with Petalkit."

"She deserved so much more than she got," Finchkit whispered, shutting his eyes tight in pain.

Blazepaw replied, "I know. And it's not fair. But you can't change it, and you still have a life to live. Don't spend it mourning the dead." He got to his paws. "Talk to Snowpaw or Amberpaw. They'll be sleeping beside an empty nest too."

Finchkit hesitated, then nodded. He still didn't look totally happy, but at least he seemed calmer.

Blazepaw stayed with the kits as the queens worked, keeping them entertained with stories and letting them play with his tail. He made sure they didn't wander off and bother the queens.

After a few minutes, Lightpaw and Snowpaw joined him. "We're leaving very soon," Lightpaw told Blazepaw as they sat with the kits. "We're suppose to carry Dovewing's kits. She's helping Jayfeather with his herbs."

"Alright." Blazepaw glanced between the two of them, asking, "Are you ready to be home?"

Lightpaw ducked his head shyly. "Yes," he admitted. "I can't wait to sleep in the real apprentice's den."

Snowpaw nodded as well. He glanced around the den, mewing, "This nest is still too suffocating. I want to live under the open sky again."

"It's not so bad, now that I'm used to it," Blazepaw replied. "But I know what you mean. There's not enough room here."

The white apprentice raised his head proudly. "I'm almost at the end of my training. I want to earn my warrior name beneath the High Ledge, where I can see Dewpaw watching me in Silverpelt above, not beneath a roof in a place stinking of twolegs." With a glance at the kits, he added, "And I want to see these kits grow up in our home, not this place."

Blazepaw nodded. Living in the camp would definitely bring back memories of Dewpaw. It would be hard seeing all the places they had hunted and played together, and the place where his nest had been. But eventually that pain would fade. There would be new apprentices, new warriors, new nests. Life moved forward.

The only thing still bugging him was whether Silentpaw would ever come back. The next time he saw her, would she be coming home, or would it be at the Gathering, as an apprentice of RiverClan? He knew it was Silentpaw's choice, and he couldn't influence it at all. But he also knew that he missed his sister more than anything. All he could do was hope she decided to return.

SCENEBREAK

Finally, everything was ready. All the dens had been broken down, and all the nests cleared out. The twoleg nest looked as empty and broken as it had been when they'd first arrived. Blazepaw stared at it, almost sad to be leaving. He much preferred the stone hollow, but the twoleg nest had made a good home while it lasted.

Bramblestar was at the front of the Clan, Squirrelflight bringing up the rear. Once the leader was satisfied that everyone was ready, he called to his Clan, "ThunderClan, let's go home."

They made their way through the forest as a group, the young helping the old, the strong carrying the weak. Blazepaw felt a rush of pride as he saw Amberpaw helped Spiderleg limp along on his stiff limbs, and Snowpaw carrying Skykit. This was what it meant to be part of a Clan. They all worked together, standing together in the face of whatever threats they might face.

He looked down at the kit in his jaws. Shadowkit was growing fast; he was already much larger than his sister. With his dark brown fur and broad build, he looked more and more like Bramblestar every day. There another cat he looked like too, if the legends about Bramblestar's father were true. Little Shadowkit likely wouldn't face as much opposition for looking like Tigerstar as Bramblestar had in his youth. But he would no doubt face his own challenges and his own doubts. A ShadowClan leader's kit in ThunderClan would never have an entirely trouble-free life. Both Shadowkit and Sunnykit would have to work hard to prove themselves to ThunderClan. But Blazepaw knew that Bramblestar and Squirrelflight would be beside them every step of the way, and so would the Three, their kin. It would be a hard battle, but their family would be there for them every step of the way. And eventually, they would be full, accepted members of ThunderClan.

Blazepaw looked forward, purring around the lump of fur in his mouth. The flood was over. Things had undoubtedly changed. Relationships between Clan and Clan had shifted. He didn't know whether they would ever be the same again. Probably. The Clans had always been enemies, and one flood wasn't likely to change that. But he also knew the Clans would stand together when the need was greatest. Maybe his sister had been right, after all. He didn't know how the flood and its changes would affect him and his Clan. But whatever was ahead, he knew ThunderClan would face it, and beat it, just like they always did. They had weathered this storm, and they would weather whatever else came at them.

He lifted his head proudly. The hard times were over. The future looked bright for ThunderClan.

END OF BOOK ONE

Well, I tried. This an incredibly short chapter. But I don't mind too much for this one. I said what needed to be said.

Anyway, Faded Boundaries is complete. Up next is book two. I'll probably post the prologue sometime in the next few days. I hope you all stick with me through the next book as well.