Hollyleaf looked around realizing that she must be right in the middle of Windclan territory. 'Mousedung I must have made my escape out the Windclan tunnel,' she thought not wanting any of the Windclan cats to catch her. If they caught her they would probably send her back to her clan or maybe they would think she was some rogue and chase her out. She wasn't sure how long she had been in those tunnels but it felt like ages since she had been outside. The black she-cat froze when she heard pawsteps and she took off running fleeing towards the mountains. She could hear the shocked yowls of a Windclan patrol as the saw her and gave chase but she knew that she hadn't passed close enough to them for them to have gotten a good look at her.
When the sound of pursuit faded she slowed to a walk and tried to get her breathing under control. Finally she was able to get her breathing under control but she was kind of tired and the mountains looked to be far away. 'I should continue walking,' she thought stumbling slightly from exhaustion. She knew she would have to stop soon to rest and to eat but she really didn't want to stop until she reached the mountains. She walked maybe until the sun was high in the sky until she realized that she really did have to stop unless she wanted to faint from exhaustion.
Letting out a sigh she stopped walking and curled up wishing that she wasn't so tired. 'I guess their is nothing I can really do about it,' she thought curling up into a ball and falling asleep. She was immediately sent into a dream the second she closed her eyes.
Hollyleaf saw a pale brown and cream tabby laying in a nest. She slowly approached the cat and could immediately tell that the cat was sick. She heard paw steps and turned her head to see a pale silvery gray tabby she-cat approach her and the other cat. She waited for the cat to bristle and try to attack her for being in their home but it didn't happen. Instead she watched as the silvery gray tabby spoke to the cat she had noticed before.
"Here Leafstar, this should help," the she-cat meowed softly pushing some catmint towards the dying leader.
"Its no use, thanks for trying Echosong," Leafstar rasped.
"Leafstar you can't give up what about your kits and what about Billystorm," Echosong meowed her eyes flashing with concern.
"Billystorm, Harrypaw, Stormpaw, and Firepaw will be fine without me, even now I can hear our ancestors calling out to me. I won't fight this sickness Echosong, go give it to Sharpclaw or one of the other sick cats," Leafstar commanded her mew rasping in her throat.
"But Sharpclaw is dead you can't leave us," Echosong meowed with wide eyes.
"I-I'm sorry, please tell the clan that I'm sorry to leave them," Leafstar meowed a shudder going through her and she closed her eyes but it was clear she was breathing but barely.
Hollyleaf watched all this horrified and started in surprise when Skywatcher came up beside her. She looked at him and saw that he looked grim and that was when she realized that was was actually what was happening while she slept. "This is actually happening as I sleep isn't it?" she asked.
"Yes, you have to wake up now and hurry Leafstars time as leader of Skyclan is coming to an end and Skyclan won't be able to cope without a leader, you must hurry," he told the she-cat.
"Okay," Hollyleaf meowed closing her eyes willing herself to wake up.
She woke with a start and leapt to her paws her fur bristling with alarm. She blinked realizing that she was no longer in the dream and she relaxed but she also knew that she had to hurry. 'I have to hurry so that I can complete my destiny,' she thought noticing that it was still nighttime but she didn't really care. Instead she took off at a run letting the light of the moon guild her. 'I'm just glad that there is a moon tonight,' she thought as she reached the mountains that the tribe made their home in. She was a little nervous about climbing the mountains in the dark but she was determined to get to Skyclan before everything fell apart.
Taking a deep breath the black furred she-cat began to her climb up the mountains using the trail that her and her siblings as well as her fake parents had used when they had visited the tribe when she had been an apprentice. Thinking of her brothers hurt her and for a few heartbeats she thought of running back to Thunderclan to re-unite with her siblings but she shook herself and those ideas vanished. 'They would never accept me back into Thunderclan after what I've done,' she thought as she continued to climb the mountains.
By the time the sun had reason she had already reached tribe territory and she knew that there was no way of avoiding going through tribe territory. 'Maybe I want meet anyone of the tribe,' she thought. Just as that thought crossed her mind she heard a yowl and she whipped around surprised to see Stormfur racing towards he clearly not recognizes her since he wasn't close enough to recognize her.
When the tom was close enough he slid to a halt his amber eyes wide with shock. "Hollypaw? What are you doing here?" the dark gray tom asked thinking that she was still an apprentice.
"It's Hollyleaf now, and I need to go through tribe territory," Hollyleaf meowed staring Stormfur straight in the eye.
"Congratulations on getting your warrior name but why do you have to go through Skyclan territory?" Stormfur wondered confused.
"Because I need to get to the old forest," Hollyleaf meowed.