When Echopaw and Bronzepelt reached camp, Echopaw holding her shrew and Bronzepelt holding a mouse and a finch, Eveningstar was on the High-stone, and the Clan was gathered at the base of it.
"Okay, we should leave now, I bet most of the other Clans are already on their way; we don't want to be the Clan that shows up last, do we?"
"No!" the rest of the Clan shouted, and Echopaw saw Whisperpaw joining in the loudest.
"Okay, so I'll choose—" Eveningstar stopped as he saw Bronzepelt and Echopaw walking toward the High-stone. "Oh good! You're back!" He blinked warmly at the vole in Echopaw's jaws. "Congratulations on your first catch by the way Echopaw."
Echopaw blushed and beamed shyly as she nodded her thanks to Eveningstar.
Eveningstar shook his head as if clearing a thought. "Enough chit-chat, we've got a Gathering to get to. Echopaw, Bronzepelt, put your prey on the fresh-kill pile."
Echopaw followed her mentor away from the gathered cats to the fresh-kill pile. She raced ahead of him, hastily tossed the shrew on the fresh-kill pile, and ran back to the High-stone to sit next to her sister.
"Nice job on your first catch!" her sister meowed cheerfully as Echopaw reached her.
"Thanks," she purred. "The shrew was easy to catch; it didn't even notice me. You should have seen me try and catch a mouse; great StarClan they're fast!"
Whisperpaw purred with amusement then meowed, "So you didn't catch it then?"
"No, I didn't. But it's alright, at least I brought home something!"
Whisperpaw nodded her agreement, then looked back up at their leader in excitement.
"Now it's time to choose a patrol. Time is wasting away and we must get going! Okay, I'll take Aspenleaf and Creekfall, Copperleaf, Twigfoot, Bronzepelt." He paused, glancing around the clearing. "Gravelpelt, Spruceclaw, then Echopaw and Whisperpaw."
"Great StarClan!" Echopaw squealed. "We get to go to the Gathering!"
"I can't believe it!" Whisperpaw squealed in return. Then they both started chasing each other in their excitement.
Eveningstar nodded in satisfaction then yowled to the Clan, "Cats on the Gathering patrol, we're leaving now! Let's go!"
Echopaw bounced up and was about ready to race out of camp, but was stopped by a voice behind her.
"You're not leaving without saying goodbye, are you?"
Echopaw turned around and saw Sparktail and Rustypelt sitting side by side. Echopaw raced over to them and heard Whisperpaw right behind her. Echopaw ran over to her mother and rubbed her face in her fur and meowed, "Goodnight, I'll see you tomorrow."
"Goodnight. Have fun, and be safe. Do exactly as Eveningstar and your mentors tell you," Rustypelt meowed.
"We know!" Whisperpaw replied.
Echopaw licked her father's shoulder and then followed her sister toward the bramble bushes and the rest of the patrol, but she was stopped again by another cat.
Hailpaw meowed, "Lucky furball! Anyway, be safe, and I'll see you tomorrow."
"Bye!" Echopaw smiled, then raced out of camp after Whisperpaw.
Eveningstar yowled, "We need to run through at least our territory if we have any hope of making it there on time. Once we reach DayClan territory... well, we'll see then. And remember, stay within two fox-lengths of the border when we get there. We don't need a fight with DayClan."
Echopaw nodded eagerly and raced after her leader, Aspenleaf to her left, who wasn't even slowing down, despite that she had had a healing scar on her stomach still, or that she was going to have kits.
Bronzepelt was to Echopaw's right, and he panted, "Are you excited?"
"Are you kidding?" Echopaw purred excitedly through heavy breaths, heart racing.
Bronzepelt smiled and fell back to run with Gravelpelt and Copperleaf. Echopaw looked ahead once more and saw her sister running just in front of her. Echopaw picked up speed and finally reached her sister's side as they passed the Great Pine and neared the stream. Echopaw prepared for the jump and watched in amazement as Eveningstar jumped early; about two fox-lengths from the stream's banks. He cleared it perfectly, and continued to run. Twigfoot and Spruceclaw followed, gracefully landing beside their leader as Creekfall and Aspenleaf leapt up into the air and over the stream, too. Not a heartbeat later, Echopaw saw Whisperpaw leap, and Echopaw followed close behind her sister, springing off the ground and pushing off hard with her hind legs. As she landed, she heard Gravelpelt, Copperleaf, and Bronzepelt jumping right behind her. Once everyone was safely across, the three warriors behind Echopaw picked up speed and soon the patrol was one big group again, each cat matching each other's paces almost perfectly.
A weird feeling crept along Echopaw's spine as they reached the meadow. She was so close to DayClan territory, then they would be actually entering it! Butterflies filled her stomach as Eveningstar slowed down to a trot along the river's banks toward some stones sticking up out of the rushing water. The river was silver and white in the moonlight, looking peaceful in the brisk, chilly night. Starlight made the stones glow silver, their smooth surfaces making them look like moons in a watery sky.
"Good thing we are crossing now and not the day after the rainstorm. The flooding would have made it nearly impossible to reach the Gathering," Copperleaf murmured to Spruceclaw, who nodded in agreement.
"Alright, we're crossing here. One at a time. I'll go first," Eveningstar meowed.
Echopaw looked sideways at Whisperpaw, her sister's eyes reflecting her own fear and anxiety, but eagerness and adventure filled them as well.
As all the cats but Echopaw, Whisperpaw, and Copperleaf crossed safely, Eveningstar called from across the river, "Whisperpaw, you next. Then Echopaw, you go. Copperleaf, once they're safely across, you'll go."
All three of them nodded and Whisperpaw walked forward and leapt to the first stone, her paws slipping. Echopaw closed her eyes, but when she heard no splash, she opened them to see her sister jumping from the last stone to the other bank.
Echopaw sighed in relief, but fear crept up on her again as she padded toward the river's banks to cross. She looked down at the currents, and a memory filled her mind: she was underwater, lashing out at the currents, struggling to hold her breath. No matter how much she kicked and fought, the water was still stronger. She felt helpless. Water was a dangerous enemy...
Echopaw jerked herself back into the present. She shook her head to clear away her fear; she couldn't let her Clanmates think she was afraid of water. She prepared to jump, rocking her haunches back and forth. The memory had faded, but was still lingering in her mind as she swallowed nervously and jumped to the first stone. Her paws slipped and she unsheathed her claws to try and find a grip. As she steadied herself, she took a deep breath and leapt to the next stone, the water making waves pass over the stones that lapped at her paws, as if it was taunting her. She ignored the thought and sprung off the stone and onto the next one. Stone by stone, she crossed the river. When she'd safely made it to the other side, Copperleaf leapt across them, almost at a running speed. He made it look so easy.
Show-off, Echopaw thought as she turned and followed the patrol away from the river.
"I can't believe we're in DayClan's territory!" hissed Whisperpaw in Echopaw's ear. "It feels so strange. I feel like DayClan is going to jump out at us at any heartbeat!" Her sister's statement made her shiver, and she realized she felt the same way. She slowly nodded and sunk lower into the grass, feeling like she was being watched by enemies on all sides. Her heart pounded so loud that she thought it would jump out of her chest.
They padded onward, and Echopaw soon realized that they were heading toward the Thunderpath. She was about to ask why the were heading the wrong way from the Pointed Mountain, when she realized that DayClan had ordered the other Clans to stay within two fox-lengths of the border on nights of Gatherings, and staying by the Thunderpath would do that.
Eveningstar turned right as they reached the edge of the Thunderpath. Echopaw crept forward, so low that her belly fur dragged across the dirt as she stalked forward.
"Echopaw, there's no need to hide. There aren't as many monsters at night as there are in the day. And, DayClan made their promises about us being in their territory. Stick close and you'll be fine," Spruceclaw meowed.
"Yeah," agreed Creekfall, nodding, "Plus, DayClan will have probably already left on their way and are probably way further ahead of us."
Echopaw nodded, rose from the grass, then walked beside her sister. Although the warriors' statements had somewhat comforted Echopaw, the weird feeling of being watched, and worry of being on unfamiliar territory, still engulfed her, and she had to glance around her in order to try and convince herself that nothing was actually watching them.
They continued onward, the moon climbing higher into the sky: halfway to moonhigh. Echopaw followed Creekfall and Aspenleaf, whose pelts brushed as they walked. Echopaw smiled and turned to her right to see Eveningstar, Twigfoot, and Spruceclaw walking side by side.
Then suddenly Spruceclaw stopped mid-step and whispered to Twigfoot and Eveningstar, "Do you smell that?"
Echopaw paused to sniff the air. A cat-scent filled the air, mixed with the smell of the Thunderpath. She turned and saw a patrol of cats crossing the Thunderpath many fox-lengths in front of them. In the lead was a white tom with ginger patches, and Echopaw guessed he was the Clan leader. Beside him was a mottled brown tabby tom. He was followed closely by a group of three apprentices. One was a long-haired white tom with a dark brown ear, dark brown striped tail, and a dark brown stripe on his face. The next one was a taller black tom with amber eyes; he pranced after his Clanmates, his nose and tail raised proudly. The last one was a pretty silver, black, and white tabby she-cat with deep, dark orange eyes. She glanced at Echopaw shyly but eagerly and followed the light brown tabby tom in front of her. They blinked at the DawnClan patrol eagerly; Echopaw guessed by their expressions that it was their first Gathering, and anticipated meeting them. Apprentices from another Clan! She reminded herself to find them later and meet them.
Behind them, the rest of their Gathering patrol reached the other side of the Thunderpath, gathering around their leader as he paused to meet Eveningstar.
Eveningstar dipped his head politely to the white tom with ginger patches and meowed, "Good evening, Orangestar; how's the prey running?" Echopaw glanced at Orangestar and remembered that he was the leader of DuskClan.
Orangestar dipped his head in return, "Fine enough. How about in DawnClan?"
"It's good, thanks," Eveningstar meowed curtly but politely. Then he turned toward his own Clan. "We'd better keep going."
The cats from DuskClan followed Orangestar away from the DawnClan cats and ran onward through the thin trees. Eveningstar padded after them, and the rest of the patrol followed him.
After a long, seemingly endless walk, which left Echopaw's feet aching, Bronzepelt meowed to her, "We're nearing the edge of DayClan's territory. Soon we'll be at the base of the Pointed Mountain; can you see it in the distance?"
Echopaw looked ahead and squinted her eyes, trying to see the jagged, steep slope of the Pointed Mountain in the darkness. Echopaw jumped in surprise when she saw it. Because they were now so much closer, the Pointed Mountain looked huge! She couldn't imagine what the mountains behind it would look like this close, but it was too dark to see them in the distance. Her heart leapt in excitement as they got closer and closer to its base.
Then Eveningstar announced, "Okay, we're here. Watch your step; this slope can be dangerous if you're not careful." He looked at Echopaw and Whisperpaw when he said this.
Because were the only ones in the DawnClan patrol who've never been to a Gathering before, Echopaw realized, looking up at the towering jagged rocky hill above her, surrounded by numerous others. She almost fell over from her dizziness. It was massive! She looked down again to see Orangestar and the other DuskClan cats climbing the slope, jumping swiftly from ledge to ledge, avoiding the protruding clumps of grasses and bushes. Echopaw swallowed nervously and followed her Clanmates up too. She leapt up and grabbed a ledge with her claws, hauling herself up. She left out a long breath. Wow, she thought, with tiredness already sweeping through her.
"Echopaw, you are taking the hard way," she heard Aspenleaf purr with amusement, "It's much less steep over here."
Echopaw groaned inwardly and jumped down from her ledge toward Aspenleaf's path. Echopaw looked up and saw that Aspenleaf was right. This slope was hardly anything! She ran up it, passing Whisperpaw, Aspenleaf, and Creekfall on her way up. Hardly any bushes grew on this barren slope, but the few that did had strong roots digging into the rocky slope to steady the plant and protect it from falling during storms. These strong bushes and small trees helped provide a perfect grip to help Echopaw make her way up the mountain, especially when the rock underpaw wasn't steady.
Echopaw jumped up and over the topmost ledge of the mountain and stared in surprise at how many cats lay in the grassy and rocky meadow on top of it. Small shrubs grew along the edges, with sage bushes and a few flowers, which were wilting from the cooling weather as it approached leaf-bare. Echopaw recognized jasmine, lavender, and dandelions, fading, drying, and wilting beside her paws.
Echopaw glanced up and saw a large, scraggly dead tree on the highest point on the mountain. She realized that this must be the sacred Lightning Tree.
Echopaw turned as Whisperpaw jumped up behind her.
"Now, remember, you can talk to the cats of other Clans, but don't give away anything that could be used against us; don't show any signs of weakness," Gravelpelt meowed sternly. When both apprentices nodded, he meowed with a smile, "Now go have some fun. It is your first Gathering after all; make it memorable."
Echopaw nodded in excitement and walked side by side proudly with her sister. She recognized two scents, DuskClan and DayClan. Echopaw's fur prickled along her spine as she looked at the DayClan cats. They were really scrawny and ragged, and Echopaw realized they would be a threat for sure. She swallowed nervously and whispered to her sister, "Do you see the DayClan cats? This can't be good."
Whisperpaw nodded, "Yes. But have you noticed? NightClan isn't even here yet."
"Well, they are the farthest from the Pointed Mountain," Echopaw pointed out.
"I suppose so. Do you want to go over there and sit with Bronzepelt and Gravelpelt? We'd get to know some of the warriors then," Whisperpaw nodded toward where their mentors were sitting with a group of DuskClan and DayClan cats.
"Sure!" Echopaw meowed enthusiastically and trotted over to sit by her mentor.
"Oh, yes, I remember that—" Bronzepelt cut off his sentence as he saw the two young cats approaching him. He was sitting with a dark ginger she-cat with white paws and underbelly from DuskClan and a white tom with pale yellow eyes also from DuskClan. On his other side was a long-haired reddish brown tom from DayClan. His pelt was a bit darker than a fox, and he looked just as strong as one, despite his scrawniness.
Bronzepelt continued, "Oh, this is my apprentice, Echopaw, and her sister, Whisperpaw."
Echopaw dipped her head nervously to the warriors and sat down beside her sister and her mentor, trying not to look too intimidated.
"I remember, Eveningstar announced that they'd been apprenticed at the last Gathering," meowed the dark ginger she-cat thoughtfully.
"Yes, he did. Echopaw, Whisperpaw," Bronzepelt meowed, nodding to the reddish brown DayClan tom who was eyeing them with a look that Echopaw did not like at all. "This is Burningwood. And over there," he motioned to the dark ginger she-cat from DuskClan, "is Gingerfur. And," he motioned to the white tom with pale yellow eyes from DuskClan, "this is Blizzardclaw."
The warriors nodded curtly and Echopaw dipped her head fearfully in return. She didn't like them all that much; they were too stern looking, and they made her feel so small and insignificant, especially the two broad, muscular toms.
Echopaw turned to Bronzepelt. "Um, we... Whisperpaw and I are going to meet some of the apprentices now." She avoided the eyes of the other cats.
"Alright, see you later then," Bronzepelt meowed, turning back to the other warriors.
Echopaw let out a long breath of relief once they were out of the warriors' views. She looked around and saw the three DuskClan apprentices they'd seen earlier crossing the Thunderpath. Echopaw padded over to them, Whisperpaw close behind.
"Hello, um, I'm Echopaw," Echopaw meowed shyly, "And this is my sister, Whisperpaw."
"Hi," meowed the black tom curtly with his eyes narrowed.
"Hello, I'm Snowpaw," meowed the silver, white, and black tabby she-cat. She sounded much friendlier than the older apprentice. "This is Pantherpaw," she meowed, flicking her tail at the sleek black apprentice. Then she flicked her tail to her right at the long-haired white tom with dark brown stripes on his tail and a dark brown stripe on his face. "This is Raccoonpaw."
"Hi!" meowed Raccoonpaw excitedly. "So you're from DawnClan?"
"Yep," Echopaw stuck her chest out proudly. "We are."
"How long have you been training?" Whisperpaw asked the three DuskClan apprentices.
"Oh, just over two moons," answered Snowpaw.
"What about you?" challenged Pantherpaw.
"Just about three moons," countered Echopaw.
"Actually," Pantherpaw meowed indignantly. "I've been training for nearly four moons."
"Are any of your mentors Gingerfur or Blizzardclaw? We just met them," asked Whisperpaw.
"Why do you care?" growled Pantherpaw, flattening his ears in suspicion.
"She's just curious, Pantherpaw. Calm your fur," Snowpaw rolled her eyes. "Yes, my mentor is Gingerfur. But see that light brown tabby tom over there with Orangestar?" Echopaw looked across the clearing and saw the tom she'd seen walking with Orangestar: the mottled brown tabby tom. Echopaw nodded.
"Well, his name is Falconflight; he's Pantherpaw's mentor and the deputy."
"Lucky furball!" meowed Raccoonpaw playfully, nudging Pantherpaw on the side, obviously trying to lighten his mood. "I wish I had the deputy as my mentor!"
"Yes, it is quite great," Pantherpaw boasted. Echopaw snorted, but Pantherpaw didn't notice.
"Have you met any other apprentices? Like from DayClan or NightClan?" Echopaw asked the three DuskClan apprentices.
"No," meowed Snowpaw, her eyes glittering with eagerness.
"Well, I see some DayClan apprentices over across the clearing; I'm going to go say hi," Whisperpaw declared, getting to her paws. At that same moment, Echopaw saw Cliffpaw, the friendly NightClan apprentice she'd met when she'd ended up in NightClan territory.
"You go, I'm going over that way," she told her sister, flicking her tail at the NightClan cat.
Whisperpaw shrugged and meowed, "I'll see you later then," and dashed across the clearing to two DayClan apprentices: a pretty gray-brown, black-striped tabby she-cat and a handsome tan-colored tom with thick black stripes. They looked like brother and sister.
Echopaw watched her sister go, shaking her head. What was she doing? They were from DayClan; the Clan that was causing all the trouble!
Echopaw sighed. Worry for her sister crept up her spine, and she was about to go over there with her just to look out for her. But when Echopaw looked back, she could no longer she her sister or the DayClan apprentices; they were hidden behind a large crowd of DuskClan and DawnClan cats.
Echopaw's heart skipped a beat, but she realized that Whisperpaw would be fine. This was a Gathering; no cat would fight and break the sacred truce, not even two DayClan apprentices.