Feeling her terror as if it was his own, Hawkwing bent his head and began to lick Curlypaw’s wounds. “Don’t think about it anymore,” he mewed between strokes of his tongue. “You were very brave, and you’re safe. That’s what matters. You’ve got your whole life ahead of you.”
Curlypaw nodded and gave her pelt a shake. “I’ll try.”
As he comforted his apprentice, Hawkwing remembered the kits in his dream—his kits. They’ll have meaningful lives, too, he thought, even if I never get to see them. I wouldn’t want them to give up because they don’t have a father.
“And now we’d better go home and get Echosong to check us out,” Bellaleaf meowed.
The cats skirted the edge of the lake as they made their way back to their new camp. Hawkwing kept a watchful eye on the sky, in case the fierce bird returned.
“Hawkwing, that was good advice you gave Curlypaw,” Blossomheart murmured. “I’ve noticed you’ve not been yourself lately. Of course, you have good reasons, but you can’t live your whole life like that. You have to believe what you told Curlypaw, too. You’ve got your whole life ahead of you, you know?”
For a moment Hawkwing considered how he should respond. I wouldn’t want my kits to give up, so maybe I shouldn’t, either. “I’m trying to believe,” he replied at last, even though it was a struggle to get the words out.
Blossomheart touched her nose to his. “All of SkyClan needs to believe that we have a future. If this isn’t the right lake, then we have to believe we will find the right one, where the other Clans live. If we don’t find it soon, surely StarClan will send us a sign…
.”
Hawkwing dipped his head, almost overcome. “I hope so,” he managed to mew.
He watched Bellaleaf and Curlypaw padding ahead of him; now that the danger was over, they were excitedly discussing the encounter with the water-bird. They’re so young and brave!
Hawkwing knew that they were the future of SkyClan—the
SkyClan that must live on, for seasons beyond counting, and prosper.
Blossomheart is right.
Chapter 29
The sun was going down, casting red light over the forest. Shadows were already gathering in the camp, but there was still a sunny spot near the fresh-kill pile, where Hawkwing and several of his Clanmates were eating.
“We’ve been here a moon now,” Waspwhisker remarked, pausing as he devoured his vole. “It’s starting to feel like home.”
Hawkwing murmured agreement. He watched Curlypaw and Fidgetpaw playing with Rileypool at the other side of the camp.
Rileypool was pretending to be a badger, and the air was filled with the apprentices’ joyful squeals of terror.
As newleaf melted into greenleaf, the weather had grown warmer and the land around the lake had become lush and green.
Somehow Hawkwing felt that his cold grief was melting, too. He still missed Pebbleshine desperately, and feared for her and their kits, but he was able to look forward to a better time.
Someday I’ll find them all again.
Curlypaw was also doing much better. She had begun to thrive once he started really paying attention to her again, trusting that he could be a good mentor to her instead of always questioning himself.
She’s finally living up to her potential. She just needed patience and understanding. She’s going to be an incredible warrior!
A few heartbeats later the peace of the camp was shattered by raised voices coming from the medicine cats’ den. As Hawkwing turned toward it in surprise, Leafstar stormed into the open, followed by Echosong.
“It’s not just a hunch!” the medicine cat protested. “It’s a message from StarClan.”
Leafstar whipped around to face her. “You just told me you had no vision,” she retorted furiously. “This is just a ‘feeling’ you have.”
Hawkwing exchanged a glance with Waspwhisker. It was almost unheard of for the Clan leader and their medicine cat to have a serious disagreement, and just as unusual for Leafstar to show so much anger. Something is really wrong here.
“But the feeling is so strong,” Echosong meowed, “that I believe that StarClan is telling me something. There’s no other explanation! I’ve known this since we arrived here. We can’t stay here!”
Hawkwing pricked his ears. Echosong was putting into words the feeling he himself had experienced ever since SkyClan had made camp here. Something is simply wrong with this place.
He had made the best of it, trying to concentrate on teaching Curlypaw and doing everything he could for his Clan. He had made a huge effort to rein in his runaway temper and behave sensibly for once. And now he had to push down his instinct to join in the argument and agree with the medicine cat.
But what does Echosong think we should do?
“Remember how long it took us to find this place?” Leafstar continued, clearly making an effort to speak more calmly. “And how hard it was, traipsing through strange territory with no home.
A Clan needs a home to be truly strong!”
“Yes, I know that,” Echosong responded with a sigh. “But this isn’t meant to be our home! You can’t deny that we haven’t found the other Clans here.”
Leafstar grunted a reluctant agreement. “There’s no sign that any other cats have ever lived here.”
“Then wouldn’t we be stronger if we were surrounded by equally strong Clans?” Echosong asked.
Leafstar paced to and fro, the tip of her tail twitching, before she replied. “I’ve heard your argument,” she meowed at last, “but I am not convinced that we should uproot yet again. We’re surviving here—and we should remember, SkyClan has survived on its own for many seasons, with no help from other Clans. If StarClan wants us to move on,” she added after a heartbeat’s pause, “then they need to send us more guidance. We can’t go on chasing ‘the spark that remains’ forever—not when we don’t know where we’re supposed to go.”
“But that’s not how StarClan works,” Echosong protested.
“You know that as well as I do, Leafstar.”
“But that’s what SkyClan needs, after all we’ve been through.”
“I understand.” Hawkwing thought Echosong sounded desperately unhappy to be in conflict with her Clan leader. “But you have to understand too. I have deep concerns about this place.
It doesn’t feel right.”
Leafstar’s shoulders drooped in exhaustion. “I hear you, Echosong. But I am not convinced that leaving is the right decision for SkyClan.”
“I will respect your leadership, Leafstar,” the medicine cat mewed, dipping her head resignedly. “But I feel we are going against the advice of StarClan. And as long as we do that, we’re at risk.”
Hawkwing watched as the Clan leader and the medicine cat separated, stalking off in opposite directions. He was deeply disturbed by what he had overheard. Whether we stay here or not, he thought, it can’t be good for Leafstar and Echosong to disagree so wildly. Clan cats need certainty from their leader and their medicine cat.
Not having that certainty made Hawkwing feel as if icy claws were raking through his pelt.
A painful yowl broke into Hawkwing’s dream of the big bird attacking his Clanmates. At first he thought the noise was part of the dream, but then he realized it was coming from outside the den.