Grasstail poked his head into the elders' den, concerned when he was met with the faint tang of sickness. Gorsewind was stretched out on a pile of strewn heather, sticks, and feathers that had at one point made up a nest. Grasstail supposed he might as well remake the den for the elder while he was there; he wrinkled his nose at the prospect, but he guessed it was what Sandstar would have told him to do.

"Hey," he mumbled around the mound of water-soaked moss in his mouth. "I've brought you some more water."

At first Gorsewind didn't reply, and alarm spiked through Grasstail as he observed how still the old cat was lying. His worry diminished when he saw the slow but steady rise and fall of Gorsewind's chest, but it didn't disappear altogether- even if the elder was alive, he didn't look very healthy. Grasstail quickly padded to his side, laying down his moss.

"Gorsewind, I got some water here for you," Grasstail meowed, stooping down so his muzzle was near Gorsewind's ear and speaking more loudly than usual so the elder would hear him. He pushed the moss forward with his paw, rolling it right up to Gorsewind's muzzle. "Lap at this moss if you're thirsty, okay?"

There was still no reply. Grasstail wasn't even sure if Gorsewind could hear him or not; although his eyes were half-open, his pale eyes were glazed, and it looked as though he was asleep. It wasn't too surprising- elders did tend to sleep a lot once they got to Gorsewind's age. But combined with the scent of sickness that lingered in the den, Grasstail feared for the elder's health. He sniffed around for any vomit on the floor, and while he did find a few ambiguous stains on the trampled brown grass, he couldn't find any solid evidence that the elder was ill- and even if he was, it wasn't really Grasstail's concern, was it? Even so, he decided to inform Podtail about his concerns when he had the time.

He doubted he'd find the time, though. He had plans for that night- he and Watersplash were going to meet up by the lake again. It would be the ninth time they'd get together since becoming warriors, and Grasstail was determined to make it the best, especially since it would be the one-moon anniversary of their reconciliation. A cat as special as Watersplash- both in terms of destiny and in terms of how special she was to him- deserved only the absolute best, and if Grasstail didn't give that to her, then he'd be a poor… whatever he was to her right now. More than a friend, but less than a mate. Grasstail was often frustrated that there wasn't a proper word for that.

With Watersplash on his mind, Grasstail turned to leave the elders' den. Gorsewind would be able to figure out what to do with the wet moss once he woke up; there was no need to wait around for any longer in the vile-smelling ditch that the elder called his home.

Grasstail had one paw out the entrance when a thin, wheezy voice coming from behind him caught his attention. Although he had no reason whatsoever to care what Gorsewind was muttering in his sleep, some bizarre part of him made him stop and try to make out what the elder was saying.

"Sandstone…"

Huh? Intrigued, Grasstail padded back to Gorsewind's side and leaned down once again- but this time his objective was not to talk, but to listen. Wasn't sandstone a type of rock? He seemed to remember Spikeear having pointed some out to him once on his first day as an apprentice, when he'd been shown all the borders. He had no idea why such a trivial thing had remained in his memory while other, more important things, like the locations of prey, tended to slip his mind.

"There's no sandstone around here," Grasstail muttered, wondering if Gorsewind could hear him. He doubted it, but who knew with a cat in that state?

He quickly began to regret his comment as Gorsewind's face contorted with pain. "Sandstone, please… stay with me…"

The anguish in Gorsewind's voice frightened Grasstail, as did the way the elder began to claw at the ground. That combined with his eyelids staring to flutter and his glazed-over eyes flitting around in their sockets made the sleeping elder seem terrifying. It almost reminded Grasstail of when Podtail had received the prophecy about the saviour rising from the rain and somebody else falling into waves. No cat had figured out what the prophecy meant, and Grasstail could only assume its events had yet to come to pass. But Gorsewind clearly wasn't being spoken to by StarClan; no, he was simply being tormented in his dreams by… something.

Unnerved, Grasstail began to back away. His hind paw caught on a little root that was poking up from the ground and he stumbled, almost falling down but regaining his balance just in time to hear Gorsewind whisper, "I don't see why it has to change." The elder paused, letting out a faint whimper, before continuing. "You do still care, don't you?"

What is he babbling about? Grasstail rested his paw on his forehead to check for fever. Sure enough, the old cat's fur felt warmer than usual. A great sense of foreboding filled Grasstail; was Gorsewind dying?!

"Gorsewind, wake up," he meowed, trying to keep his voice steady. He didn't want anybody to walk in on him and think he was crying over a shriveled old elder. "You're talking in your sleep."

When Gorsewind didn't respond- which, to be fair, he hadn't really expected him to- Grasstail gave him a jab in the ribs that may have been just a little too sharp. The old cat coughed, convulsing, and Grasstail jumped back with his fur standing on end. When his frail frame had settled, Gorsewind finally opened his eyes properly. He blinked at Grasstail as though he didn't recognize him. At that moment, Grasstail wasn't so sure that he recognized Gorsewind.

Fortunately, the blankness disappeared from Gorsewind's eyes quickly enough. "Oh, hello," he said slowly, noticing the water-soaked moss at his paws. "Brought me some water to drink, have you? You're a good little cat, Grasspaw."

"Gorsewind, I'm a warrior now," Grasstail meowed gently, feeling a pang of pity as he regarded the confused elder. "I have been for a whole moon now. Don't you remember?"

"Has it really been that long?"

Grasstail nodded, and Gorsewind simply let out a long, quiet sigh and didn't say anything else. He lapped up some of the water from the moss, although a lot of it had already left the moss and soaked into the ground. As he drank, Gorsewind seemed to collect himself a bit more, and Grasstail's muscles, which he hadn't even noticed had been tensed, relaxed.

His job was done. He left the elders' den after one last long look back to make sure that Gorsewind was okay, and then headed straight over to the medicine den. He really needed to talk to Podtail about that poor elder.

Watersplash buried her muzzle in Grasstail's coarse chest fur and took in a long breath of his heathery scent. "It is so good to see you again," she murmured as he gave the top of her head a gentle lick.

"It's nice to see you, too," he replied. "I've really missed you since we last saw each other."

"Grasstail, it's only been five days." Watersplash pulled back from him and came out of the crouching position she'd been in to place her muzzle below his neck. She was about a mouse-length taller than him- a fact that Grasstail didn't like it when she brought up. "How bad could it have really been?"

"Well, when your home life sucks, every day feels like a moon," Grasstail joked- or at least Watersplash hoped he was joking. She knew his life wasn't as great as hers, but surely it couldn't really be that bad? "No, scratch that- it feels like a season."

"So you've aged five whole seasons while I've only aged a week?" Watersplash purred. "Hmm, I think we might have to break this off. I mean, you're still very handsome-" she took the opportunity to press her nose against his and leave it there for a few seconds- "but I don't know if I can keep seeing a cat who's over a year older than me."

"Ha-ha, very funny," Grasstail said flatly. He wriggled in between Watersplash's front legs and leaned his head back against her chest, looking up at her with his vibrant green eyes. Whenever Watersplash looked directly at those eyes of his, it always startled her for a second. Compared to the muted gray of his pelt, the sheer greenness of his eyes was disjointing, and almost unsettling in a way. Watersplash was glad that Grasstail was hers, because she'd hate to be his enemy.

After a moment of looking deep into Watersplash's eyes, Grasstail squirmed out from between her front legs… and went around behind her to duck between her back legs. Caught off guard by the unexpected advance, Watersplash shrieked, kicking Grasstail in the head. He hissed at her indignantly, baring his fangs for a moment as she glared at him. Then he moved in again- this time from the front, thank StarClan- and hooked his claws into her soft neck and chest fur. He pulled her down so that their eyes were level and stared at her intensely.

Watersplash yanked herself away from him- although only after holding his gaze for a little longer than she'd have liked to admit. "What in the Dark Forest, Grasstail?!" she spat, taking a couple steps back from him. He flattened his fur out and blinked at her apologetically, but she chose to keep a bit of space between them just in case.

Grasstail looked at his paws and muttered something that sounded like "sorry." Watersplash sighed; she couldn't stay mad at him, and besides, she shouldn't have kicked him like that.

"Sorry about my reaction," she offered. "I'm just a little on edge right now. A while back…" She broke off, chewing on her lip nervously. Was it really a good idea to tell Grasstail about her missing kin? If Miststar wanted the other Clans to know that Patchfur had disappeared, he'd tell them at the upcoming Gathering.

Besides, Watersplash thought, I don't want to betray my Clan by giving this WindClan cat information that could make RiverClan appear vulnerable. She pointedly ignored the fact that she was already betraying her Clan pretty thoroughly by being in a relationship with that WindClan cat. That was different, right? Love was more important than borders, right?

"Well, I'm sorry I acted like a mange-pelt," Grasstail muttered, still staring at his paws. "I shouldn't get mad at you if you don't want to do the stuff I want to do."

Watersplash breathed out a sigh of relief at Grasstail's apology. It was good that he recognized where he'd misstepped. Even so…

"Hey, who said I don't want to do what you were trying?" she purred, curling her tail around his and enjoying the way his eyes lit up in comprehension.

"A-are you sure?" he stammered- now he was the one to take a step back. "I mean, that's great, but… are you really sure?"

It was kind of fun seeing Grasstail so flustered. He and Watersplash hadn't seemed to make each other nervous, at least outwardly, since they had started having a proper, solid relationship. "Sure I'm sure," she drawled, leaning in and resting her muzzle on his forehead. She tried to keep her chest from brushing up against him, because she didn't want him to feel how fast her heart was thumping. "We are warriors, after all. That means we're old enough, right?"

She tried very hard to believe what she was saying. She loved Grasstail; of that she was certain. And when you loved a cat, you were supposed to do certain things with them. One of those things was…

Watersplash's thoughts were cut off as Grasstail tackled her to the ground, as if they were play-fighting. She was a bit startled by his abruptness, but it was obviously a first time, so she let it slide. He began covering her in licks- face, neck, chest, and then a bit lower down. He stopped when he got to the space between her open legs. "Are you sure this is okay?" he whispered. Suddenly Watersplash wasn't so sure herself anymore, but she didn't want to say no to Grasstail, so she decided to change the topic, so to speak, by flipping him over. She bit down on his shoulder just hard enough for him to feel it, and he responded with a meow of approval. His hind legs began to beat at her sides- it was kind of like they really were fighting- and he angled his hips so that they lined up with Watersplash's.

She let him flip her back over, the sudden new energy pumping through her body driving her on. They moved against each other, drawing in heavy breaths that slowly became in sync as their bodies melded into each other. It was cold out- leaf-fall was upon them- but they kept each other warm.

Although it was all a bit sudden, Watersplash was certain that she would never regret a thing about that night.

Grasstail woke up to the incessant chatter of songbirds. He raised his head groggily, not remembering at all what had happened that night until his head bumped against Watersplash's muzzle and she grunted, batting him away. Wait… what's Watersplash doing here? he thought. Then he realized where he was- decidedly not in the warriors' den. Or in the WindClan camp. Or, for that matter, on WindClan territory. But he supposed that was fitting, considering that he'd just slept with a RiverClan cat.

"Oh, dear StarClan," he mumbled, cringing as he suddenly got a splitting pain in his head. "What have I done?"

It was a stupid question- he knew exactly what he'd done. The only problem was that what he'd done was something he really shouldn't have. At least no cat could say it was entirely his fault- Watersplash had been pretty eager once they'd both gotten on the same page. And to be completely honest, Grasstail felt like it had been worth it.

He slithered out from between Watersplash's fluffy paws and shook his pelt out. "Hey," he whispered, giving the sleeping she-cat a little shake. "It's morning. We've gotta go."

"Uhhngh…" With a moan, Watersplash rolled over so she faced away from Grasstail. "Don't wanna get up…"

"Well, you have to," he told her, a prickle of irritation creeping into his mew. He tried to keep it out, but his voice might as well reflect how he felt. "If we let any cat find out about this, we're done for! How are you supposed to fulfill your fancy destiny if you've been banished from the lake?"

"Geez, okay, you don't have to be so mean," Watersplash grumbled. She slowly rose to her paws, wobbling a bit as she began to walk back toward RiverClan territory. The reeds that dotted the lakeshore closed around her and she was gone from view, and Grasstail was left to ponder the potential outcomes of coming home with ruffled fur after being gone all night.

While he made the trek back to the WindClan camp, the wind shifted and blew the scents of a few of his Clanmates toward him- the dawn patrol must have been out. Grasstail changed his course in an effort to avoid running into them. The last thing he needed was to be confronted.

However, his efforts proved to be in vain. A voice called out to him from the distance, and he looked up with a sinking feeling to see a group of dots on the horizon that were coming closer to him. As they came further into view, Grasstail recognized them as Spikeear, Barkstripe, and Berryheart. He breathed a sigh of relief that Appleshine wasn't among them, but remained wary nonetheless as his Clanmates approached him.

"There you are, Grasstail!" Berryheart exclaimed, seeming overcome with relief as she ran up to him. "Where were you last night?!"

Grasstail gulped. What was he supposed to tell her?! "I didn't go anywhere last night," he lied. "I just happened to get up a bit earlier than usual, and I decided to go for a little walk down to the lake to watch the sunrise."

"Hmm," Barkstripe muttered with a flick of her ears. "Appleshine says you've been going for a lot of nighttime walks recently. You don't have anything you'd like to tell us, would you?"

The sharpness in the tabby warrior's gaze was unnerving. Just how much did she know? However much Appleshine had told her, Grasstail supposed- so how much did Appleshine know?

"Now, now, Barkstripe, let's not jump to any conclusions here," Spikeear cut in, inadvertently saving Grasstail from further accusations. He would have sent his former mentor a grateful glance, but he felt it just would have aroused more suspicions. "Young Grasstail here is a mighty fine little furball. I'd be willing to bet my pelt that he'd never do anything suspect."

Spikeear's faith in Grasstail was a bit surprising. When they'd been apprentice and mentor, they hadn't really seemed to have any sort of connection that went any deeper than "I'm training you." Hearing Spikeear announce how much he trusted in him made Grasstail feel even guiltier about his relationship with Watersplash. But what was done was done, and all he could do now was make sure no cat ever found out about it.

"Rabbitleap was super worried when he realized you were gone," Berryheart told him as they escorted him back to camp. "Appleshine said you were probably visiting that RiverClan cat you used to be friends with, but I told her no way!"

Grasstail looked away and said nothing. How much longer could he keep this up?