Broken Reflection

Chapter 13

"We don't exactly know what StarClan and the Tribe of Endless Hunting meant when they sent Star, Echoheart, and I similar signs and dreams," Whispersong meowed, still shivering. "But it's unusual."

Bumblefrost nodded mutely, tail twitching.

"But, now that we know the danger, when will we start heading home?" Echoheart asked urgently. The bear seemed so much worse than it had in her dream, and fear for her Clanmates back home was beginning to envelope her. They needed to protect their Clanmates, all the Clans, from that bear! What if it was in the forest right now? What if it was killing the forest cats one by one? They needed to get home soon!

"I think we should leave as soon as we can," Whispersong murmured, shivering. "We need to be ready."

"How about tomorrow then?" Bumblefrost asked.

Echoheart's heart leapt in excitement. Tomorrow?

But Whispersong meowed, "That seems too soon, way too soon. And too sudden. I mean, I'd like to leave here and get home too. But we don't know much about the danger, only that it's called a bear. We need to know was much as we can before we leave; we won't be able to come back."

"I don't know..." Echoheart meowed quietly, "We really should get going; we've been gone for nearly two and a half moons now, and it'll take nearly a moon to get home. And what if the bear is already in the forest?"

Whispersong sighed. "I know, but..."

"But tomorrow?" Star exclaimed, sounding worried and sad.

"Are you coming with us?" Echoheart asked the silver to-be.

Star looked at her paws and sighed. "I... Yes? It... It seems that that's where the stars will lead me."

"Then we'll have to tell your Tribe... and Stoneteller," Whispersong meowed quietly.

Star nodded, looking distant.

"Shall we go then?"

"Yes," Echoheart answered quietly. Her heart hammered in her chest once more, not because she was still tired after sprinting back to the cave; she was going home! Excitement and fear filled her body at once: excitement to finally get back home, and fear of what they'd find when they got there.

She stepped behind the waterfall that pounded the stone and followed Star across the cave. "Stoneteller?" Star meowed shakily at the Healer's den entrance.

Stoneteller appeared after a few heartbeats, looking surprised to see four cats waiting for him. "You're back already?"

Echoheart nodded. "We found the... the danger."

Stoneteller widened his yellow eyes in shock. "Really? That fast?" Then he turned to Star. "Did you recognize it? How did you know it was the danger?"

"It's a bear," Star meowed flatly.

"A bear?" Stoneteller exclaimed, looking worried. "Are you sure?"

"Yes," Whispersong spoke up. "I recognized it immediately; it was like I was living in one of my nightmares."

Echoheart nodded; that was exactly how she had felt.

"I don't know how I didn't know that the creature in my dream was a bear... But I guess I was more focused on helping the foreign cats that were in my dream than looking at the creature." Star shivered.

"Well," Stoneteller muttered. "You'll need to leave back to your Tribes then, or... don't you call them something else?"

"Clans," Bumblefrost meowed quietly.