Lost Hope: Book 1: The New Star

Chapter 11

Dandelionpaw was relieved to see that Stonestar's patrol made it back safely. He'd been fretting silently about the prophecy all night. Annoyed by his fidgetiness, Starfur sent him to the den entrance to wait for his father and sister to come back.

      And so, he had sat there for hours, wondering what the prophecy could mean. Blood will spill between the echoes and the brooks. . . he thought that sounded like a battle. It was obvious that 'echoes' meant EchoClan, and 'brooks' meant BrookClan. A battle between EchoClan and BrookClan? Is that what StarClan is warning me about?

What does 'unless you find the two brave enough to look' mean, then? And how would that stop the battle? Dandelionpaw had been startled out of his thoughts by a rustling in the bushes. He had peered out through the lichen at dawn and saw his father's patrol.

He rushed out to meet them. His sister's eyes were tired and shone with slight fear. "Did anything happen?" he asked Burrowpaw.

"I'll tell you later," she yawned and set off for her den. Her mentor, Darkmoon, approached a warrior named Creektail to organize a dawn patrol.

      "Dandelionpaw," Stonestar leaned down to murmur quietly to his son. "Go get Starfur, I need to talk to you two."

      "Okay." Grateful for something to do, Dandelionpaw hurried off. He ducked through the lichen and found his mentor in her nest. He prodded her awake.

      "Dandelionpaw?" Starfur meowed sleepily. "Is it morning?"

"Dawn," Dandelionpaw replied, nudging her. "Stonestar wants to speak with us."

Starfur stumbled to her paws and followed Dandelionpaw out of the den. They both padded into the leaders den, which was a couple of boulders leaning against the Echostone, draped with moss and lichen.

Stonestar was waiting for them. His ears twitched when they entered. Starfur sat down in front of him, Dandelionpaw at her side.

"I had a dream at the Startree," Stonestar began. "I was standing at the beach, BrookClan's border. Warriors were racing out of the river, but it wasn't a river of water, it was a river of blood."

Dandelionpaw's tail flicked in surprise at the familiarity. Burrowpaw saw the river stain with blood, he thought. But she hadn't seen any other cats.

"And a StarClan cat, Meadowstar, told me a prophecy," Stonestar continued. Starfur listened intently, her eyes showing no emotion other than interest, though her ear flicked at the mention of Meadowstar. "She said something about 'blood spilling between echoes and brooks,'"

Dandelionpaw froze. Blood will spill between the echoes and the brooks, unless you find the two brave enough to look. . . the prophecy rung in his ears. He kept his mouth shut though. If StarClan has told Stonestar, then there was no reason for him to.

Starfur looked thoughtful, and didn't respond. "Has StarClan scent any visions to you?" Stonestar inquired. The golden medicine cat shook her head.

"I think StarClan may be warning you of a potential invasion from BrookClan," Dandelionpaw said carefully.

Starfur gave her apprentice a nod of a approval. "You could be right, Dandelionpaw."

"Then we must prepare ourselves," Stonestar said. "Or attack BrookClan first."

***

The sun had risen hours ago, and Dandelionpaw was itching to talk to his sister. After his conversation with his mentor and father, he had been bored. Starfur had made him check their stores, but the task had been long and unnecessary. By the end, Dandelionpaw has declared that their stores were full, bu they could do with some more watermint.

      Now, he scraped his claws against the dusty ground, impatient. Finally, Burrowpaw trotted out of the apprentice den. Dandelionpaw dashed up to her. "Come on," he said briskly. He angled his ears toward the camp entrance.

      His sister sighed and rolled her eyes, but followed him out. He led him to a common fennel gathering spot. It was near the river and an good distance away from camp.

Remembering why he had wanted to talk to her in the first place, he asked Burrowpaw, "What were you so scared about?"

Burrowpaw hesitated, before launching into her story of hearing the voices again at the Startree. She also described seeing herself reflected in the stream, except she looked older.

"Maybe your vision doesn't have anything to do with the prophecy after all. . ." Dandelionpaw murmured.

      "What?" Burrowpaw looked confused. "What prophecy? Did StarClan speak to you?"

"Yes," Dandelionpaw said. "They told me of a prophecy, blood will spill between the echoes and the brooks unless you find the two brave enough to look," he recited. "I thought you seeing the blood-stained river might refer to it, but maybe it doesn't."

Burrowpaw looked outraged. "When did this happen? And why didn't you tell me?" she asked crossly. "I told you of my vision as soon as I saw it."

Dandelionpaw ignored her accusing tone. "I saw it at the last half-moon," he said. "I didn't know if it was even real at the time, until now." He told her of Stonestar's vision at the Startree. "I think StarClan's warning us of an invasion from BrookClan, Starfur and Stonestar agree!" he finished.

Burrowpaw nodddd an understanding. She seemed to have gotten over the shock of it, much to Dandelionpaw's relief. "Stonestar did seem worried when we woke up." She flicked her dark brown tipped tail. "But who are the 'two brave enough to look'?" she asked.

Different cats flashed through Dandelionpaw's mind, but none seemed like they worked. When his eyes focused on Burrowpaw, a puzzle piece seemed to fit into place.

"Isn't it weird that StarClan sent a vision to me and you?" Dandelionpaw asked. "Maybe we're the two brave enough to look!"

"We don't even know if my vision was from StarClan," Burrowpaw pointed out. "So
I don't think we are. Besides, how are we supposed to stop a battle?"

Dandelionpaw knew Burrowpaw made a valid point, but still. "I suppose you're right. In the meantime though, let's keep and eye out for more visions."

"Will do," Burrowpaw agreed, back to her normal, energetic self. "We'll figure out this prophecy, just you wait."