It was a few days after Snakepelt's death. Ivytail was still struggling to return to his duties, not that anyone blamed him. The two toms had been fast friends, and it made perfect sense that the older tom's death had hit him especially hard. As far as he knew, Waspeye was the only one to know there was more to it than that. He continued to refrain from asking Ivytail about what he'd overheard.

Waspeye had been assigned an evening border patrol alongside Sagepatch, Brackenfur, and Cherrytail. They'd been making idle conversation for a while, though had fallen into a comfortable silence as they approached the Skyclan border. About halfway through checking the scent marker Waspeye stopped, hearing something. The others, not noticing at first, continued on before realizing. Brackenfur padded closer.

"You hear something?" the Thunderclan deputy asked, Waspeye nodding. "Our side?"

"No, Skyclan," the red and black tom answered. "Patrol, I think. We'll see them shortly." Brackenfur nodded in understanding, then looked to the border. Sure enough, a Skyclan patrol appeared not long after.

"Ah, Brackenfur," Snowthroat said in greeting. The Skyclan deputy noticed Waspeye, dipping his head. Waspeye blinked, surprised, then returned it. Behind the white tom appeared two other warriors as well as a small, ashy gray apprentice. Or at least Waspeye assumed it was an apprentice, going by their size. Maybe they were just small.

"Snowthroat," Brackenfur replied. "Berrynose, Tawnyspots, a pleasure. I'm afraid I don't know this one, however."

"This is my apprentice, Owlpaw," Snowthroat explained. "He only just became a 'paw yesterday. This is his first border patrol."

The younger, gray tom shrunk in on himself slightly. "Hello," he said shakily, almost seeming afraid. Maybe nervous was a better word. It would make sense, with his being his first border patrol and likely his first experience meeting cats from another clan.

"Owlpaw, a pleasure," Brackenfur said with a warm, friendly smile. "I'm Brackenfur, the Thunderclan deputy. This is Sagepatch, Cherrytail, and Waspeye."

The younger tom perked up. "Oh, this is him!" he exclaimed excitedly. "I've heard of you, Waspeye!"

"Yes, that has been my experience," the much larger tom replied. Snowthroat chuckled. "It's nice to meet you, Owlpaw. Here's hoping you have a boring apprenticeship."

The ashy gray tom blinked, confused. "Isn't…that bad?" he asked, looking at Snowthroat.

"I believe what the Thunderclan warrior was getting at is that he hopes for a lack of trouble or conflict," Snowthroat explained with a hint of amusement in his eyes.

"Oh, right," Owlpaw replied, nodding his head. "Well, thank you, Waspeye. I hope that doesn't happen, too."

"It was nice to meet you, Owlpaw," the red and black tom said, dipping his head. "Enjoy your first patrol. There's countless more to come."

"I will," the gray tom promised with a nod.

The two patrols parted ways after a few more polite words, finishing up their inspection of the Skyclan border and starting their trek back to camp. As they walked, Sagepatch moved to walk beside Waspeye.

"Have you spoken to Lakesplash lately?" she asked, the larger tom looking at her in surprise.

"We spoke yesterday," he answered. "Is something wrong?"

Sagepatch was silent a moment. "Fernpelt told us she's expecting kits," the she-cat said eventually. Waspeye's initial reaction was to congratulate her, though quickly stopped himself when he realized Sagepatch didn't sound excited.

"Foxear," the red and black tom said simply. Sagepatch nodded. "Fox dung. That must be hard on Lakesplash."

"He…didn't take it terribly," Sagepatch replied tactfully. Waspeye just looked at her. "Terribly. Never said badly."

"What did he say?" Waspeye asked somewhat sternly.

Sagepatch sighed. "In the moment, he congratulated her. Said that while he's never liked her and Foxear together, he hoped for an easy kitting and healthy kits. After, once Fernpelt had walked away, he left camp. Said it was to clear his head and think. That was this morning."

Now that Waspeye thought about it, he hadn't seen his former mentor all day. The larger tom wordlessly nodded, then peeled off from the group and began to walk towards the lake. He faintly heard Sagepatch tell Brackenfur he was going to make dirt. He came to the shore of the lake not too long after, finding Lakesplash sitting by the water. He padded up and sat beside the slightly smaller gray tom, both of them sitting in silence for a long while. The only sound was the waves of the lake crashing into the shore. The wind picked up ever so slightly, Waspeye noting the slight chill on the air. Leaf-fall was approaching.

"Sagepatch send you?" Lakesplash asked, keeping his stare out over the lake.

"Told me what happened," the younger tom answered. "Came to look for you. She's worried."

"I'm fine," his former mentor said. "Had time to think, to relax."

"No lingering desire to tear Foxear to shreds?" Waspeye asked in a teasing tone.

"I'm still debating it," Lakesplash replied with a small smile. "You come from camp?"

"Was on a patrol with Brackenfur, Cherrytail, and Sagepatch," the black and red tom said with a shake of his head. "Met Skyclan's new apprentice, Owlpaw. A little skittish, but nice."

"Mentor?"

"Snowthroat."

"Snowthroat's a good cat," Lakesplash said with a slow nod. "He'll make sure Owlpaw is well prepared."

"I hope so," Waspeye said. He hummed. "You think this peace will last?"

"What's brought this on?" Lakesplash asked, a hint of worry in his voice.

"I wished him a boring apprenticeship." Waspeye looked around idly. "It just made me think, is all. Peace is all I've known. All half the cats, if not more, around this lake have known. What happens if there's something words can't fix? A skirmish where claws go deeper than intended? An argument where tempers flare and someone acts in anger? What do we do when someone gets killed? This quiet can't last forever, no matter what we do or how much we might want it to."

"These are a lot of questions someone your age shouldn't be worrying about," Lakesplash said. Waspeye scoffed.

"I'm a warrior, Lakesplash, same as you and most everyone else in camp. Age has nothing to do with this," he said, perhaps a little sharper than he intended to.

His former mentor hummed. "I suppose," he conceded. "Still, it isn't something I want you to be worrying about. Leave it to the rest of us who are teetering on the elder's den." A small, teasing smile touched Lakesplash's muzzle.

"Why, so you can be useless and leave the fighting to us younger cats?" Waspeye asked with that same teasing grin.

"Of course," his former mentor said, chuckling warmly. Waspeye echoed the chuckle, the two toms falling silent.

A long moment passed.

"Ivytail was pretty tore up over Snakepelt," Lakesplash said suddenly.

"I know," Waspeye replied, glancing at his former mentor out of the corner of his eye. "He's better than he was, that night, but still. Snakepelt was the last reminder he had of his mentor, right?"

"Yeah, Snakepelt and Rockfur were pretty good friends before Rockfur died. Snakepelt always said Rockfur taught him almost as much as Mossleaf did."

"I can't imagine the loss," Waspeye said softly. "The bond they must have had…"

"I had only just left Riverclan when Ivytail became a 'paw, but everyone around the lake knew those two were as close to brothers as two strangers can be," Lakesplash said with a small chuckle. "I feel bad for him. Greypelt and Dustpelt went to the elder's den right after Vinepaw and Bluepaw became apprentices. Quite a few cats have gone to it younger than they did. They still have a few greenleafs in them, I think, but not that many. At that point it'll just be him and his siblings."

Waspeye nodded silently, a somberness settling over him. He couldn't imagine knowing you were likely soon to be one of the only three cats left in your family.

After a moment the red and black tom looked to his former mentor. "Are you ready to head back?" he asked politely.

"A little bit longer," Lakesplash answered with a soft sigh of contentment. "It's been so long since I've just…sat here and admired the view."

"Don't get many chances for that, do we?" Waspeye replied, nodding in understanding. A moment passed as the red and black tom debated whether he should bring up the news about Rainpelt. Eventually he cleared his throat. "Didn't expect the news from Pikestar last night."

"Yeah," Lakesplash said simply. The slightly smaller tom let out a quiet, almost annoyed exhale.

Waspeye was silent a moment, looking around at various things awkwardly. "Who, uh…who do you think the father is?"

"Don't care," his former mentor said with a blunt, surprisingly sharp tone. Waspeye blinked in surprise. Eventually the gray tom sighed. "Sorry. At a guess…Spottedpelt."

"Oh, gross," Waspeye muttered. Lakesplash couldn't help but chuckle, though he tried to muffle and hide it. "He was really rude when we met him."

"Spottedpelt's a nice cat," Lakesplash said reassuringly. He just…took me leaving a little personally, is all. I admit I've let my mood around him reflect his own, but there was a time we were good friends."

Waspeye hummed softly, thinking that over. "I suppose I can see that," he said after a moment. "You'd balance each other out pretty well, I think."

"Oh, no, I was minnow-brained when I was younger," Lakesplash said with a short laugh. "Much more like you or Brownfur than the me you know."

The red and black tom blinked a few times, glancing at his former mentor. A long moment passed. "I think I can find a way to take that as a compliment," he eventually said.

Lakesplash hummed neutrally. A comfortable silence fell over the two toms, the both of them staring out over the lake for a long while longer before deciding to head back to camp.

Sagepatch ran over to Lakesplash when they arrived, rubbing her face against his lovingly. "Oh, I was so worried…" she whispered.

"I just needed some time to think," the larger gray tom whispered back, licking her cheek affectionately. "I'm good now. Thank you for sending Waspeye, though."

Sagepatch turned to the red and black tom. "Thank you for finding him," the she-cat said with a smile.

"It was no trouble," the larger tom replied with a dip of his head. "We had a nice talk. Apparently he forgot how to make a compliment while he was out there, but hey, I'm a lot like he was at my age, it turns out."

"I was hoping to spare you from that information," Sagepatch said teasingly.

"Starclan above, did you both forget how to give compliments today?" Waspeye questioned in joking incredulousness. Sagepatch smiled in amusement, dipping her head to thank him once more before walking away with Lakesplash in tow. The large, red and black tom watched them walk away, then hummed softly to himself before approaching the fresh-kill pile. He retrieved himself a vole, looking around curiously to see if anyone else was eating. He didn't spot anyone besides Foxear, though he didn't really want to talk to the orange tom.

As it turned out, he didn't get much say in the matter. The green-eyed tom spotted him staring, pausing momentarily before flicking an ear in invitation to approach. Waspeye hesitated, glancing around to see if there was anyone else he'd rather talk to in the moment. With a sigh the tom realized it was this or nothing, wordlessly padding towards Foxear. He sat down a tail-length away and started to eat.

Foxear was silent a moment, picking at the squirrel he'd chosen for a bit before clearing his throat awkwardly. "I, um…wanted to apologize for my behavior when you and Brownfur became apprentices," the orange tom said nervously. Waspeye blinked in surprise, looking at him with a mix of confusion and thinking he must have misheard. "It wasn't right, shirking my duties like that. And it was wrong of me to lash out like I did. I'm sorry."

Waspeye was quiet a moment, processing what he'd just heard. After a moment he huffed. "You weren't my mentor," he replied pointedly.

"I know," Foxear said quickly. "I know I wasn't. But Brownfur won't let me get a word in. He keeps saying I missed my chance moons ago. Maybe I did, but I still want to make this right. It took me a long time to stop being angry. To be better. Now that Fernpelt is expecting, it's like I've found a wildly different perspective I never had before. I don't want to be the cat I was back then anymore."

"You attacked Lakesplash," Waspeye said with a hint of anger.

"I know I did," Foxear replied, eyes closing in shame. "I've tried to apologize. But every time I do, he just brushes me off or scoffs that I turned Fernpelt against him and Sagepatch. Maybe I did, but…I don't know, I was just…I was scared she would listen tot hem and hate me. Neither of them liked me, not since he first joined the clan and not since Sagepatch and I were paws. It wasn't right, but I was afraid, and I loved her so much. It hurt to think about. To talk about."

"Is this supposed to make me feel bad for you?" Waspeye asked with a lash of his tail. Despite his words, it would be a lie to say it wasn't working at least a little.

Foxear opened his muzzle to respond, though nothing came out. He tried to think of something to say, but eventually just closed his mouth and went back to picking at his squirrel. Several long heartbeats passed as Waspeye went back to eating. He finished his vole and stood up, starting to walk away to dispose of the bones.

"Waspeye," Foxear said suddenly. The larger tom turned, silent. A heartbeat passed. "Convince them to hear me out. Please. Lakesplash and Brownfur."

Waspeye stared at the smaller, orange tom for several long moments. Eventually he simply turned and walked away, disposing of the vole's remains and making his way to the warrior's den. He curled up in his nest, eyes closing. Sleep refused to claim him for the longest time, only finally welcoming him into its comfort once he caught Brownfur's scent as the tom padded inside and curled up beside him.

A few more days passed with relative quiet. Waspeye found himself returning to camp from a sun-high lone hunting patrol when he spotted Lakesplash washing himself idly. The red and black tom deposited the rabbit he'd caught on the fresh-kill pile. Then padded over.

"Ah, hello, Waspeye," his former mentor said warmly. "Nice sized rabbit you caught."

"Thank you, Lakesplash," the larger tom replied. A moment passed as he hesitated. He'd had plenty of time to think about his conversation with Foxear. Plenty of time to decide whether he thought the tom was genuine or not. To his disappointment, the tom either was genuine, or was just that good of a liar. Lakesplash noticed his hesitance, sitting up and looking at him curiously. Before he could ask what was wrong, the larger tom sighed. "Listen, Lakesplash, we both know Foxear hasn't always been your favorite cat…"

"To put it lightly," the gray tom interjected.

"Right. However…" Waspeye hesitated again. "However, like it or not, Fernpelt is expecting his kits, and she is your daughter. The latter carries a bit more weight, I would think, so…"

"You want me to put past grievances aside, just pretend they never happened, and welcome him as family," the gray tom said with a hint of disappointment.

"No, of course not," Waspeye said quickly. "You don't have to forgive him, but…Starclan above, I can't believe I'm saying this, but you should at least give him a chance. He seemed genuine when he spoke to me the other day."

"You two spoke," his former mentor said, not even sounding surprised. That hurt a bit, oddly enough.

"Believe me, I was not happy about it either," Waspeye replied with a huff. "Listen. I have no idea if he's being honest or not. All I have is how it feels, and it feels genuine. He says being a father has opened his eyes on things, given him a different perspective. Give him a chance to prove it. For Fernpelt, if nobody else. I know I wouldn't want to raise kits knowing my parents hated their father and wanted nothing to do with me or my kits because of it."

Lakesplash was silent, staring at a spot on the ground some place behind Waspeye as he thought the younger tom's words over. After a moment he sighed.

"I'll talk it over with Sagepatch, so that we're of the same mind," he said. "Foxear will get one chance to prove himself. No more."

Waspeye bowed his head in thanks, then turned and padded away to look for Brownfur. He may as well get that conversation over with now that he'd already done half the work. He found the tom leaving Ivytail's den, most likely for the thorn he'd stepped on right before Waspeye had left for his hunting patrol.

"Oh, hey, Waspeye," his friend said with a smile. "Ivytail's doing good today. I'm fine too, in case you wondered."

"Well, I'm glad Ivytail is fine," the red and black tom teased, a small grin touching his muzzle. Brownfur huffed in mock annoyance, the two toms chuckling. "Hey, can I talk to you a moment?"

"Always," Brownfur replied, following Waspeye as the larger tom lead him to a quiet part of the camp to speak. He sat down and curled his tail around his legs. "So, what's up?"

"Okay, listen…" Waspeye began, Brownfur already on edge from those words alone.

"Starclan's sake, what did you do now?" his friend asked jokingly. When Waspeye didn't immediately respond, the amusement disappeared. "Waspeye, what did you do?"

"I…spoke to Foxear, a few days ago," Waspeye said hesitantly. "After bringing Lakesplash back from his walk."

"Oh, of course," his friend muttered.

"Look," Waspeye said with a somewhat stern tone. "We spoke for a short time. He wants to talk to you. Apologize for how he acted when we first became 'paws."

"Yeah, I know," Brownfur said dismissively. "He's tried to speak to me a few times now."

"Then give him a chance," Waspeye replied, the brown tom scoffing and rolling his eyes.

"Yeah, I gave him a chance when he became my mentor," he meowed. "He much preferred padding around after Fernpelt and attacking Lakesplash when confronted about it."

"I know what happened, Brownfur, I was there," Waspeye said with a bit more annoyance than he intended. He took a breath to calm himself. "Look at me." His friend huffed and turned away. "Brownfur, look at me."

"I'm not forgiving him that easily," Brownfur snapped. "If not for you and Lakesplash, my first day as an apprentice was almost ruined. I was almost left to skulk in camp while you went out and explored the forest because he had more important things to do, apparently. For Starclan's sake, I don't know how you could have!"

"I haven't," Waspeye insisted. "Believe me, I'm still angry thinking about it, and I almost didn't even try to have this conversation in the first place. But…ugh, I can't believe it, but…he seemed genuine. I'm skeptical too, probably more than you and Lakesplash combined. But he insisted he's different now. We can't hold onto this anger forever."

Brownfur hissed in frustration, trying to hold onto his anger over that day's events. It battled in his eyes for what felt like ages. Eventually his gaze softened, the tom sighing in defeat.

"I will hear what he has to say," his friend said. "If I don't like it…"

"That's okay," Waspeye said reassuringly. "Forgiveness is a complicated journey, sometimes. It's rarely easy. But holding onto this anger we've both had over that day for so long…" Waspeye shook his head. "That's not the solution. For anything."

Brownfur sighed. "Yeah," he said with a nod. "Yeah, I know."

Waspeye smiled, proud of his friend for at least agreeing to try. He stepped closer and nudged him. "Come on. Let's go do some battle practice at the clearing. You can pretend I'm Foxear so you aren't tempted to shred him once you talk."

"I'll make sure Ivytail has plenty of poultices ready for our return," his friend replied with a small smile. "Just promise you won't pout when I win."

"You mean if you win," Waspeye shot back, excitement coursing through him.

"Oh, not denying you pout," Brownfur commented. "That's progress, Waspeye, I'm proud of you."

"Shut up," the red and black tom muttered with a roll of his eyes. They both laughed as they started walking towards the camp entrance. Waspeye smiled as they walked. This was going to be fun.