Whispers and Echoes

Chapter 11

"It can be fun if you make it. Oh stop being such a downer! Learn to have a little fun!" replied Hailkit, still laughing.

Echopaw gave up arguing and burst out laughing, and the two rolled over in the leaves, making them fly up everywhere. It was the most fun Echopaw had had in what seemed like ages.

After a few moments, Echopaw sat up, shaking leaves and dust from her pelt, and meowed, "Okay, we should actually go get the moss now. The Clan is going to get suspicious soon if we don't hurry up."

Hailkit nodded, shaking his pelt too, flinging dust and leaves everywhere. They padded off again, passing the Great Pine, and coming closer to the stream.

Echopaw meowed, "Last cat to the stream is crow-food!" and raced off toward the stream.

"Hey!" exclaimed Hailkit, and he sprinted after Echopaw.

Echopaw weaved through the trees, Hailkit on her tail. She sprinted faster, but he caught up, and Echopaw realized that he was a really fast runner. They raced side by side through the forest, their pawsteps matching one another. Echopaw looked ahead and saw the stream. She looked at Hailkit, his chest heaving as his claws gripped the earth and pulled him forward.

The stream was now only a few fox-lengths away. Hailkit was ahead of Echopaw by a tail-length. Echopaw tried to catch up, but Hailkit was faster; he sprinted forward and leapt over the stream, clearing it perfectly. Echopaw gathered up speed and followed him. She landed next to him and they both fell over, their chests heaving as they caught their breath.

When Hailkit had caught his breath, he teased, "I win! You're a dirty, smelly piece of crow-food!"

Echopaw purred, "Oh, shut up," through heavy breaths. She sat up and saw that the stream was still flooded, and it was rushing pretty fast. She bent down and gulped down the fresh, cool water gratefully. Hailkit sat down next to her and lapped up the water as well.

Echopaw sat up, licking drops of water from her chin, and meowed, "We'd better get that moss now."

Hailkit nodded and followed Echopaw downstream toward a large patch of moss. Claw marks filled the dirt where some of the moss had already been dug up by Echopaw in the last few days. Echopaw told Hailkit to get the elders' moss, and she'd get the moss for the nursery. They both headed separate directions, Echopaw searching for the softest moss for the nursery. Once she found a patch of really soft moss by an aspen tree, she dug it up and made a pile of it. It was moist, so Echopaw would have to leave it out in the clearing so the sun could dry it.

After Echopaw had harvested enough moss, she gathered it up and carried it toward Hailkit, who was digging up a patch over on a rock by a pine tree. She dropped her moss next to him and asked, "Is that moss dry for the elders? I'll be in big trouble with the elders if it's even the slightest bit damp."

Hailkit nodded, his whiskers twitching with amusement, and ripped another piece from the rock, adding it to his pile. Hailkit looked up and meowed, "I think that's enough, don't you?"

Echopaw nodded and grabbed her moss with her teeth, being careful not to get it wet. Hailkit had his moss clamped between his jaws and flicked his tail, signaling for Echopaw to lead the way.

Echopaw turned and remembered that they were on the other side of the stream; they had jumped over it during their race. "Mouse-dung! We'll drop it for sure if we try and jump it!" She exclaimed through a mouthful of moss.

"Isn't there a log somewhere where we can cross over it?" Hailkit asked, and Echopaw hardly understood him since he had so much moss in his jaws.

Echopaw turned and started heading upstream, meowing to Hailkit, "Yeah, there is. It's upstream a bit." They walked through the forest, the wind whistling through the trees, and Echopaw looked up through the red, orange, and yellow leaves at the sky. Clouds now filled it, light gray and fluffy.