Chapter 4 After sobbing in my den for a few hours, I fall asleep. My dreams are filled with ice and death. Echopaw’s frozen body laying in the snow. But… Hollyheart is dead too. Her eyes are blood-shot, her bones are showing, and her mouth is crusted with blood. Her empty eyes stare into nothing, then her head snaps towards me and her jaws part, blood pouring from her mouth. I wake with a jolt, panting and crying. After realizing it was a nightmare, my heart slows to normal. My body aches and my hind left paw is swollen and throbbing. I trudge into Hollyhearts den to treat my scratches and wrap my paw. Holltheart is curled in the corner of her nest. “Hollyheart? I'm going to let Silverstar know about…” I’m sure Hollyheart can guess who I mean. Her response is a small nod, not bothering to sit up. I take a deep breath walking into Silverstar’s den. “Silverstar? I have some bad news.” I hesitantly say. “Oh? Are you okay?” Their face contorts in worry, looking me up and down for major wounds. “Echopaw. She died last night. She fell into a lake to save me and froze shortly after I got her to camp. I'm sorry for not coming sooner. I was overwhelmed with grief and injured, so I fell asleep.” I'm crying again by the time I finish. Silverstar’s eyes cloud with grief. They walk over and rest their chin on my head. “It’s okay, little one. You did all you could. I will handle the rest.” They walk out of their den and climb atop Moss Rock, calling the rest of camp. “MAY ALL FOXES WITH A ROLE GATHER!” Silverstar yelps out, drawing confused, sleepy foxes from their dens. I trail up onto Moss Rock, sitting next to Silverstar with my head down. “I have just received horrid news. We have lost one of our foxes. Echopaw died of cold last night. We will all mourn and miss her, but we must accept that she is with Spiritclan. I shall grant Echopaw her warrior name, Echosight.” By the time Silverstar is finished, the camp is filled with yowls and yelps of surprise, sadness, and anger. I walk to the front of the rock to speak. “I wish to sit vigil with Echosight alone for some time tonight.” I slink into my den and drift back to sleep, hoping to escape into a dream, escape from reality, escape from sadness. I’m running through the woods, towards camp. Away from the direction of the lake. But something isn’t right. I’m not me. My fur is a warm gold, and my paws a rich brown. My eyes are pale yellow. I’m Echosight. But how? Jolting awake once again, my dream floods my mind, along with numerous questions. What, why, how and where are my main ones. But now that I think about it, what about my drowning nightmare? It was just like what happened at the lake. Was I Echosight then too? But could that mean I have visions of the future? Healers sometimes have prophecies, but not visions. Besides, I'm not a full fledged healer yet. Is Spiritclan trying to communicate with me? If so, what are they trying to tell me? Hollyheart should know, for she might die.
