Just to start it off, I want to give a big thanks to @Spooky_Love_Raven for all her support and tips, and to everyone who has been giving me awesome comments!
Watersplash opened her eyes tiredly. She yawned and stretched, feeling the ache in her torn muscles. She padded out from the warrior's den and looked at the camp. Every cat was hustling about, fixing up brambles for defense and repairing the dens from the battle. Watersplash just glimpsed Fogmask and Beyrlstar walk into the leader's den. She gave an inward sigh. Fogmask was probably going to be there a lot now, since he was deputy. Then Watersplash remembered, she had an apprentice! She quickly bounded over to the apprentice den. Watersplash looked at Bluepaw's sleeping form and gave a sigh of relief. I mean, how embarrassing would it be if Watersplash had to be woken up by her apprentice!
Watersplash gave Bluepaw a soft prod. Bluepaw opened her eyes tiredly. "Come out and get a bite to eat, then we'll go train," Watersplash whispered, careful not to wake the other apprentices. Bluepaw nodded and Watersplash backed up from the apprentices den and padded toward the fresh-kill pile.
As she neared the pile and bent her head to pick up a squirrel, she felt a shove and saw an annoyingly familiar black pelt. Blackshadow looked at her disgustedly and picked a mouse from the pile. Watersplash glared at him, feeling her fur rise in anger. "What're you looking at, rogue?" Blackshadow snarled as he turned and walked away, Ashclaw and Rockpaw at his side. Watersplash gave a low growl and picked up her squirrel. She sat down with a sigh. Snowfrost padded up to her and sat next to her, Willowwhisper behind her.
"Don't worry about Blackshadow," Snowfrost said. "He's always been prickly!" added Snowfrost. Willowwhisper snorted. "He's just a mousebrain, don't let him get under your fur, sis," mewed Willowwhisper. Watersplash gave a quick nod. The three friends sat together and talked for a while, then Willowwhisper stood up. "I'm on boundary patrol near Duskclan territory," Willowwhisper said. Snowfrost stood up as well. "I'm going on a hunting patrol, bye Watersplash!" Watersplash gave them quick farewells and finished her squirrel. After all, Willowwhisper and Snowfrost weren't the only ones with a busy schedule!
Watersplash was padding toward the camp entrance, Bluepaw at her side, when Fogmask came up. "Hey, Watersplash! Want to join the hunting patrol with Nightclaw, Mistpaw, Jaypaw, and I?" he asked her. Watersplash looked at Bluepaw, and Bluepaw gave her an excited nod. "Sure," Watersplash replied. "It'll be good practice for the apprentices to train together," she added as she joined the others, Bluepaw clearly excited.
As the group walked out into the forest, the apprentices started chatting. Watersplash rolled her eyes. Apprentices! Always chattering away like blue jays! Watersplash stopped in a small clearing, and in front of them stood a large beech tree. "Alright, who can tell me why a beech tree like this is a good place to find prey?" asked Nightclaw. Mistpaw and Bluepaw shrugged, but Jaypaw piped up. "Because prey will be most likely hiding under the roots," mewed Jaypaw, manner of factly. "Good," Fogmask said to his apprentice. "Now, what can you smell?" asked Fogmask. This time Mistpaw answered. "Mouse!" she mewed excitedly. "Correct!" Watersplash replied. "Now before you can catch a mouse, you need to stalk it," Watersplash said. "Lets see your hunter's crouch," added Watersplash, gesturing to the apprentices.
Bluepaw had it right off the start! Watersplash looked at her apprentice in amazement. After Nightclaw and Fogmask corrected their apprentice's crouches, Nightclaw spoke again. "Alright. Bluepaw, since you did the best, why don't you try sniffing out and catching a mouse?" Nightclaw said. Bluepaw quickly scented the air and crouched down. She slid forward, making no sound on the grass. Watersplash saw Bluepaw's target, a fat dormouse. That'd feed the clan well! Bluepaw neared and coiled up, preparing to strike. Come on, come on! Watersplash thought. Bluepaw pounced, catching the mouse squarely between her paws. She gave it a quick bite to the neck and turned to Watersplash, her eyes filled with pride. Watersplash purred and showed Bluepaw how to bury the mouse until they came back for it.
"Nightclaw, how about you take Jaypaw and Mistpaw out to practice their crouches while Watersplash and I teach Bluepaw partner hunting?" Fogmask suggested. Nightclaw nodded and padded out into the forest with the two apprentices. Watersplash looked at Fogmask pointedly, gesturing for him to lead the way. Fogmask lead the two she-cats to what looked like a burrow. "This is a mouse burrow," Fogmask told Bluepaw. "It will usually have two or three mice inside, which is why it's great to know partner hunting," Watersplash added. "Now, sniff the air and tell me if they're still in there," Watersplash mewed to Bluepaw. Bluepaw sniffed the air and nodded a yes. "Alright Bluepaw, pay attention to this part," Watersplash said. "I'm going to go behind the burrow and scare the mice out. They're going to come either to you or Fogmask, so be ready," Watersplash mewed. Bluepaw nodded, tail twitching excitedly. Watersplash crept silently behind the mouse burrow and nodded to Fogmask and Bluepaw, who were already in their hunter's crouch. Watersplash gave a loud yowl and saw the mice flee out of the den, straight into the cat's waiting paws.
"Nice catch Bluepaw!" Watersplash purred. Bluepaw nodded, eyes glimmering. "And how did I do, mentor?" Fogmask asked amused. Watersplash rolled her eyes and padded up to him. "Your stance is a bit crooked!" Watersplash laughed. Fogmask straitened up from his crouch and playfully swung a paw at her. "Well, you were always strict like an elder!" he said mockingly. Watersplash purred and turned back to Bluepaw. "Could you go tell Nightclaw and the others that we'll be returning to camp soon?" Watersplash asked. Bluepaw nodded and bounded off in the direction the others had taken.
Watersplash turned back to Fogmask, whiskers twitching playfully. "Now what was that part about me being an elder?" Watersplash asked prodding him. "Oh nothing!" Fogmask purred. "Only that you act like one!" he purred in amusement. Watersplash gave a playful growl and leapt at him, and Fogmask gave a squeak of surprise as he found himself pinned. "Now who's the elder?" Watersplash taunted him. "Still you!" he said as he forced her off. The two burst out laughing just as Nightclaw, Jaypaw, Mistpaw, and Bluepaw came around the corner.
Nightclaw's whiskers twitched in amusement. "Come on you lovebirds! We have to get the fresh-kill back the clan," Nightclaw mewed. Watersplash blushed and sat up, licking her chest fur embarrassedly. The patrol of cats padded into camp. Bluepaw set down the mice she had caught, and Jaypaw set down a squirrel she'd caught with Nightclaw.
It was now noon, and Watersplash could see the sunlight filtering through the trees. She was grooming herself by the warrior's den. Willowwhisper had come back from patrol and went straight back out to talk with Shadowfire. Snowfrost had torn a claw while chasing a rabbit, so she was in Whispersong's den. Watersplash had seen her earlier, and now she lay boredly outside the warrior's den.
Watersplash opened her eyes sleepily to see Fogmask walking up to her. "Want to go for a walk?" he asked shyly. "Don't you have important deputy stuff to do?" Watersplash purred. Fogmask flicked his ear. "I can do it later," he said. Watersplash stood up. "Sure then," she mewed. The two cats padded out into the forest. Watersplash let the birdsong and the smell of Greenleaf wash over her. She'd never felt like this when she'd been a rogue, always wondering where she would sleep next, or when her next meal would be.
"Follow me," Fogmask mewed. Watersplash cocked her head curiously, but followed him. They stopped at a large pine tree that looked as if it went up to the stars. "Wow," Watersplash said breathlessly. "And that's not even the best part!" Fogmask mewed. He vaulted himself onto a lower branch, just above Watersplash's head. "Come on!" Fogmask mewed encouragingly. "Are you sure it's safe?" Watersplash asked. "Trust me," Fogmask mewed. Watersplash nodded and clawed her way onto a branch. Fogmask leapt to another branch in front of them. Then Watersplash saw the path. The branches winded up the tree, so they were like sturdy platforms. Finally, Watersplash and Fogmask clambered to the top, a branch large enough for three cats to sit side-by-side.
Watersplash gasped, looking at the scene around her. She could see all of clan territory! "This is amazing!" Watersplash mewed in awe. "Thought you'd like it," Fogmask purred. They sat together on that top branch for a while, staring out into the world. Watersplash purred. She liked Fogmask, and the way he made her feel. She'd never felt anything like it when she was a rogue. Was this what Shadowfire and Willowwhisper felt for each other?
Watersplash saw the sun slowly dipping into the sky. Wow! Time flew fast! Apparently, Fogmask was thinking the same thing! "Well, I guess we better get back to the clan," Fogmask said uncertainly. "Ya, you're right," Watersplash mewed. But maybe they could still have some fun on the way.....
"Race you!" Watersplash mewed as she bolted down the winding branches. Fogmask purred and raced after her. Right before Watersplash reached the bottom, Fogmask leapt and landed on the ground. "No fair!" Watersplash scolded him. "Alright, alright!" he purred. "Then.... I'll race you back to camp!" he mewed as he bounded away. Watersplash laughed and ran after him, beating him as they came toward the gorse tunnel.
The two cats stood away from the entrance tunnel, panting for breath. "Watersplash..." Fogmask said, looking at his paws shyly. Watersplash looked at him curiously. "Ya?" she asked. "Well I just wanted to say that... I...." Fogmask broke off. "That I forgot a mouse I buried back there a while ago...." he said hurriedly. Watersplash rolled her eyes. Toms! "Alright!" she purred. "See you later!" she mewed as she bounded off into camp and touched noses with her sister.
* * * * *
Fogmask glanced at his paws angrily as he walked out into the forest. He sighed as he sat down. How hard was it to tell a she-cat that you... ya know, liked them? Fogmask really liked Watersplash.... she was beautiful, kind, funny.... But Fogmask just couldn't tell her, Starclan knows why! Maybe it was because he was afraid she wouldn't like him back.... Fogmask shook his head and sniffed for a mouse. If he didn't come back with the mouse he told Watersplash he had, she'd think he was a mousebrain!