Echo padded back into the den from her hunting practice at the river, carrying a plump salmon, and a small carp in her jaws. The black she-cat set down her prey outside of Mystery's den, poking her head in to check on Flashpaw, the wounded ShadowClan apprentice. Mystery's scent bathed her tongue, and she caught a glimpse of the black and white dappled tom curled in his nest at the far side of the den, his bulky shape rising and falling with his breathing.
She quietly searched through the herb storage, gathering a little marigold for Flashpaw's wound, sitting with a sigh and bending down to chew up a few of the bitter leaves, spitting them onto her paw with a small ripple of disgust. Echo carefully removed the spiderwebs from the sleeping apprentices golden pelt, trying not to wake him. She sniffed the wound carefully, relieved that there was no sign of infection, at least not yet. The wound had stopped bleeding, but she decided to keep the apprentice from moving too much or too fast, applying the poultice gently.
Flashpaw moved slightly in his sleep, his face wrinkling in a wince for a heartbeat before settling back down with a soft sigh. Echo smiled slightly, ducking out of the den and circling around the stone slowly, sticking her non-twisted paw into a crevice to collect a wad of spiderwebs, shaking a spider out of them before padding back to the den on three paws. She carefully spread the cobwebs over Flashpaw's wound before padding back out into the morning sunlight, dipping her paws into the river, an icy shiver trickling down her spine from the cold water as she rinsed off her paws.
Echo took the time to relish the morning sun for a few heartbeats, quickly grooming dust and moss from her sleek black fur. She closed her eyes with a deep sigh, since she had left the clans she hadn't been disturbed by the dark forest, not to mention leaving her dark destiny behind her, her only regret was losing the cats she cared about.
Her heart ached for her friends, her brother and her mate especially, it was a bittersweet feeling, seeing Foxflame that night. He had been so close yet so far, it was nice to see him looking healthy and well, but it was like icy claws in her chest to not be able to be close to him. Echo sighed, shaking her head to clear it from her memories, padding away from the running water to collect the two fish she had caught earlier in the morning.
She ducked into the shaded den, stifling a sneeze from the mixed scents before prodding the ShadowClan apprentice gently. Flashpaw shifted with a tired grunt, blinking open amber eyes, which flared with surprise when he realized that he was not at his home. Fear-scent filled her nose as the apprentice tensed, his wide gaze flittering around the den in panic.
"Easy there, your safe here." Echo meowed soothingly, calmly meeting the small cats gaze. He relaxed slightly, his gaze changing to caution as he pulled himself into a sitting position, wincing in pain. "If your hungry there's a salmon with your name on it, if you can try coming outside the den to eat, just be careful. Flashpaw nodded slowly, his jaw clenching as he stood, slowly climbing out of the den as Echo ducked back outside, rolling the fish onto the grass in front of her as she watched the determined apprentice carefully limp out of the den.
The golden tom blinked from the sudden light until his eyes adjusted, plopping down onto the grass outside the den with a relaxed sigh. Echo nosed the plump salmon toward him, settling down with the small carp to take a bite of the still-cold fish. The rich fishy taste bathed her tongue as she swallowed, swiping her tongue around her muzzle, keeping an eye on the apprentice.
Flashpaw sniffed the salmon hesitantly before shrugging and taking a small bite of the fish, muttering to himself under his breath, "Hmm, not bad."
The two cats ate in quiet until the golden apprentice asked, "Is it true?"
"Is what true?"
"That your the Shadow Walker."
"I wouldn't call myself that, I am just a rogue who will not sit around and watch other cats die when I can help." Echo meowed.
"I always heard rogues were hostile and selfish."
"Every cat is hostile and selfish in ways, some more then others."
"That makes sense." Flashpaw meowed, his curious gaze still trying to search hers.
"You will not have much luck searching that one's eyes young Flashpaw." Mystery's deep meow sounded from inside the den as the rogue padded into the light.
Flashpaw stared at him in surprise, and Echo rolled her eyes with a sigh, "This is Mystery, he knows everything, as in everything, so good luck striking a conversation with him." Mystery mouthed each word as she said it, Flashpaw's whiskers twitching in amusement as Mystery dipped his head, "Although I would agree with her, I am a difficult cat to talk to."
The golden and white apprentice laughed and meowed, "I'll keep that in mind."
"Attack from above!" A yowl split the air as Ivy leaped off a tree branch, smashing into Echo, who yelped in surprise as the two she-cats tumbled into the stream. Flashpaw stared with wide eyes, "Uhh....", and Mystery chuckled. Ivy slid out of the water, her brown and silver fur plastered to her sides, "Oh hello, I'm Ivy, Mystery's sister." She introduced herself cheerily.
Echo burst from the river, grabbing Ivy's hindquarters and dragging her into the water, "Your not getting away that easy!" The two she-cats disappeared again under the waters surface until Echo burst out of the water again, sending Ivy sprawling onto the grass, water droplets flying everywhere. The tabby rogue leaped back to her paws right as Echo knocked her back with a strike to her chest(ShadowClan), rearing up to arch her strikes down on the rogues ears (ThunderClan), darting behind her and sweeping Ivy's legs out from under her(WindClan), rearing to ram her paws into her side(RiverClan).
Ivy batted her back, "Okay! Okay! You win, I give in!"
Echo grinned, letting the silver and brown she-cat stand, shaking water and dirt from her fur. Flashpaw chuckled and attempted a frustrating conversation with Mystery, who was greatly enjoying the apprentices frustration, while Ivy and Echo shook the water from their fur. Ivy bounded over to Mystery, "Hey you leave the poor cat alone, I've got to talk to you over here."
Mystery nodded ruefully, following his sister off into the brush, and leaving Flashpaw and Echo alone once again. "Their excitable." He commented, and Echo nodded with a grin, "They are indeed, now lets get you back inside, you need to rest if your going to get well enough to go back home." She herded him carefully back to his nest, passing time checking his wounds before giving him poppy seeds.
When she finished she went to sit in the corner of the den, staring down at her paws and letting memories flow through her mind. She couldn't help but think of Foxflame, Bumblestripe, all of her friends who thought she was dead now. "You have such a sad soul, Echo." Flashpaw meowed, his amber eyes glinting innocently.
"You do good for others, but when was the last time you did something good for yourself? You're surrounded by friends, and yet you seem so lonely and sad." He meowed, and she looked at him thoughtfully.
"I just don't have time to do things for myself, I'm too busy protecting others. "
"Why not let yourself be happy? Why not protect others while doing good things for yourself?"
"I had a family, a mate, but I was told I had a destiny, one that would destroy them, so when something happened, and they thought me dead, I kept it that way, the only thing that I can do for myself is go to them, but if I do that, I can never protect them from myself."
He looked at her in admiration as she continued quietly, "Its such a bittersweet feeling. I see them when I go out. I have heard them mourn for me, seen how sad they look even now, sometimes I want to let myself be selfish. To have them so close, so close that I could literally just take one step and they will see me, but I just can't let myself destroy them. I can see the pain on their faces, the holes in their gazes, I know that it hurts them to think I am dead, but it hurts me even more to know how easy it would be to talk to them, to take my hurt and theirs away, but I just can't."
Flashpaw's yawned drowsily, closing his eyes and laying his muzzle on his paws, "I was always told that a cat can never truly run from their destiny, I have the feeling you and your family will reunite." Then his breathing slowed as he fell asleep, leaving Echo to take in his words, dread and sadness settling over her, combining with the dim amount of hope she clung on to as she struggled to make sense of it all, What if he's right? What if I can't escape destroying the clans?