Blossompaw's Escape

Part Five: The Truth

A mottled gray she-cat with white paws stood before Blossomfang. Her golden eyes were luminescent in the darkness. A darker figure appeared next to the gray cat, this one was black with blue eyes. Shadows played on both the she cats until they appeared to merge, and become one.

"Please," the gray she cat said desperately, separating herself from the other cat just slightly. "Kill me."

Blossomfang woke with a start. Her eyes were wide, seeking out any familiar sign or shape. But she could see nothing, she was in total darkness. Her ears were ringing, and she felt a throbbing in the back of her head. Slowly she recalled the events that lead up to this moment.

She'd gotten into a childish fight with Flintmask about Echo, and she had left the camp. She was running when...when everything went black. She must've fallen down a hole or something. Maybe it was the same hole Bugs fell down. A chill wafted through the muggy air of the tunnel, sending shivers running up and down Blossomfang's spine. She was certain she was in the same place Bugs had wound up in. The cavern was definitely creepy, as Bugs had promised.

Blossomfang stood up, only to have to sit down again when she became lightheaded. She took a moment to catch her bearings before she slowly rose to her paws. Her eyes adjusted to the darkness ever so slightly. She could make out dirt walls around her, but when she looked up she didn't see the hole she had fallen down. Maybe she stumbled around a bit when she fell before passing out. Meaning she was completely lost.

She sniffed the air and the smell of fresh water touched her nose. She had to contain her excitement as she sought out the source. If it was the same stream Bugs had followed to get out of the cave then she would know once and for all if it was the Sparkling Stream or not. After only a few minutes Blossomfang's paws met mud. She heard the stream running smoothly over the floor of the tunnel, a misty sprayed dampened her coat.

As she looked at the water a heavy disappointment weighed down on her shoulders. It was just a muddy underground creek. Nothing special or sparkly about it at all. She lapped at the water but nothing happened. The water did little to quench her thirst too, it had a strong metallic taste and was as thick as mud. Containing a sigh she followed the water, seeking a way out of the cavern. Left alone to her thoughts she contemplated the weird dream which had awoken her. What did it mean? Who were those cats?

The mottled gray cat struck an eerily strange resemblance to Echo, but why would she be asking Blossomfang to kill her? And who was the other she cat? Maybe it was simply a weird dream instead of an omen or prophecy. After all Ashstar wasn't talking to her anymore -

"Blossomfang," a voice whispered almost directly in her ear. She let out a gasp of shock and spun around. There was no-one behind her, but she had recognized the voice. It was her father, Adderfang. A strange coincidence he would visit her now after she had only been thinking a moment ago Starclan had abandoned her.

"Adderfang? Are you here?" she asked hopefully and listened with strained ears for a reply. A minute later came the soft murmur.

"Look closer."

Look closer at what? She peered around the darkness but nothing revealed itself to her. Her gaze drifted toward the stream. She walked right up the the banks, claws unsheathed the steady herself on the slick ground. She looked at the stream, the water was murky and cloudy. She shrugged and continued walking, maybe Adderfang had meant look closer at something else. Starclan cats were always so vague.

Soon enough moonlight filtered into the cave from a hole in the cavern ceiling. There was a pile of rocks beneath the hole that Bugs must have crawled up to get out. The white light was bright enough to make the stream appear to glow. Blossomfang studied the water hopefully.

"Closer."

She stood so her front paws were in the water.

"Closer," the voice urged.

She waded deeper into the stream, water pulled at her long coat. Before she could look any closer the riptide caught her paws and pulled her under. The stream was shallow but a strong current ran through it. She floundered for a few minutes as she was carried deeper into the cavern before she could pull herself out of the water.

"What are you trying to do dad, get me killed?" She let out a huff and shook out her now soaking fur. She looked up and let out a faint, "oh."

Directly in front of her was the end of the tunnel. The cave had done a full circle around Ashclan's territory and ran to the edge of the cliffs. A small gap allowed the water to drain out as a waterfall into the ocean. It wasn't wide enough for a cat to fit through, but it was mesmerizing watching the water filter out of the tunnel. Mist collected on the walls, sending small droplets rolling down the sides.

With the light of moon outside shining through the gap in the cave wall, the water droplets seemed to be made of tiny ice fractures. Blossomfang looked away from the waterfall and focused her attention on the shimmering droplets. She looked at the roof of the cavern where hundreds of droplets clung, ready to fall. A single bead of water released itself from the roof of the cavern and landed on Blossomfang's upturned nose.

She barely had time to lick the water off her nose before sleep claimed her.

"Congratulations Blossomfang," Ashstar greeted her from the peaceful realms of Starclan. "You have found the Sparkling Stream." His eyes were grateful as he praised the young warrior. Adderfang was beside standing beside him, looking at his daughter with the pride of any parent.

"I don't understand..." Blossomfang said first.

"You don't understand what?" Ashstar chuckled.

"Why is it called the Sparkling Stream? The stream wasn't special at all...it was the dew drops," she said.

"But that's where you're wrong," Ashstar smiled like he held some big secret. Blossomfang waited for the revelation. Ashstar motioned towards a nearby stream with his tail. They walked a few paces throught he tall grasses of Starclan's hunting grounds to reach the stream. Small silvery fish small through the water. This stream held the light of a thousand stars and glimmered with each ripple.

"You saw in your world a muddy stream, but in our world we see a sparkling trail. The dew drops are the water from our stream, falling from the sky, into your world."

Blossomfang felt like she'd been tricked. She had spent so much time looking for a stream, when the meeting place between the two worlds was something else entirely. Yet she couldn't be mad when the reason behind the meeting place held so much meaning to the ancient leader.

"I suppose I better wake up and get back to the clan now," she sighed. She touched noses with Adderfang quickly before stepping back. Ashstar and her father faded along with the image of the stream. Her eyes opened and she back beside the banks of the stream. Following the water she made her way back to the pile of rocks and scrambled out of the cavern. She'd have to do something about the dangerous entrances and exits of the cavern - but first she needed to tell the clan the great news.

Now they would have to believe in Starclan.

...

It took most of the night to find her way back to the twoleg nest. When the crumbling exterior of the camp came into view Blossomfang was about to fall asleep on her paws. She was covered in twigs and leaves and her head still hurt from her fall. She stumbled into camp and all eyes were on her.

"Blossomfang!" Shiverspots exclaimed and ran to her friends side. "We've been worried sick, you've been gone all night."

"We sent out a search party and everything," Rabbitleap interjected. He sniffed Blossomfang's flank, making sure she wasn't seriously injured.

"Sorry, I found something. I need to make a clan announcement," Blossomfang brushed off the concerns of her friends and walked to the center of the twoleg nest.

"All cats of Ashclan gather here!" she called out. The clan was already gathered from her abrupt appearance. Blossomfang noticed Flintmask sitting next to Echo, and his eyes were trained on the floor to avoid accidental eye contact.

"Last night I went out for...a walk...and I stumbled upon something. Or fell upon it really. I fell down a hole and wound up in an underground tunnel with a stream running down the middle of it. The same one Bugs fell down, actually."

"Told ya I wasn't making it up!" Bugs interjected. A few cats chuckled before settling down again to hear the rest of Blossomfang's story.

"I followed the stream and reached the end of the tunnel. The tunnel ran all the way to the cliffs edge and the stream poured out into a waterfall. But all the condensation in one area caused water droplets to fall from the cavern roof. It's hard to explain, but I found the meeting place with Starclan. Tonight is not the half moon or the full moon, but still we will all travel to the meeting place so you may share tongues with your ancestors."

Instantly the clan came alive with questions and exclamations. Blossomfang tried to get them to settle down so she could actually answer their questions, but they were too excited. Finally she raised her voice enough to be heard.

"It's a long walk so we will leave at sun high. Get your rest now," and with that she retreated into the warriors den for some much needed sleep. However it was a long while before she drifted off. Her mind was occupied with worries and fears, and hope too. She was afraid Ashclan wouldn't accept Starclan regardless, she knew she couldn't make someone believe anything. And she supposed they had the right to scorn their ancestors, who after all had been the reason Ashclan was destroyed in the first place. She worried that Fawndapple and Foxtooth might cast them away by the full moon, having decided their choice already.

But she hoped everything would work out, Ashclan would become a real clan and live peacefully in their forest by the ocean cliffs. She hoped her friends would believe in Starclan the way she does. And she hoped Flintmask would be her friend once more, and they could put their arguments behind them.

Blossomfang's eyes started to close and she knew exhaustion was winning the fight against her thoughts. But through a slanted gaze she thought she saw something peculiar, it was Echo, sneaking out of camp. However Blossomfang was already fast asleep and that image was disregarded in her fatigue.