#mossyfall

After all of these moons, the SpottedClan border still made Owlshade anxious. 

Normally, when a patrol was headed in that direction he would split off from the group and slink off, always coming up with some excuse about finding a prey scent nearby or thinking he heard pawsteps. For some reason, he was always believed.

Or perhaps no-one wanted to question Owlshade’s authority.

But this was different.

Owlshade sat, curling his tail around his paws politely, and he waited.

And waited.

Owlshade was beginning to fall asleep.

Finally, a soft mrrp caught the tom’s attention and he perked up, standing when he caught sight of the cat he had been waiting for.

Waspfoot.

Oh, how handsome he was, even now. 

The tom’s gray fur was patchier, now, and speckled with the same silver that was beginning to tinge his muzzle. His green eyes, which Owlshade so clearly remembered being bright and youthful, were growing cloudy, and carried a slight sadness that Owlshade hadn’t noticed before. Did something happen? 

He hoped not.

Waspfoot padded closer, bumping his forehead to Owlshade’s with a low purr. He began to nuzzle the other tom’s neck, making him shiver a bit.

“Oh, Owly…” He murmured. “I missed you.”

“And I missed you,” Owlshade replied, smiling as he took a few pawsteps back. He looked Waspfoot up and down. “Did something happen?”

Waspfoot hesitated, before letting out a heavy sigh and looking down at his paws. “It’s Rosewhisker.”

The mention of his son, Violetsong’s littermate, made Owlshade stiffen. 

“...Is he alright?” He asked, but he almost wasn’t sure if he wanted the answer.

Waspfoot shook his head. He didn’t meet Owlshade’s gaze. “He’s dead.”

“What?” Owlshade’s eyes widened, a tightness filling his chest. This couldn’t be real- Surely Waspfoot was joking? “No…”

“Yes,” Waspfoot muttered sadly. “Rogues. Those star-damned brutes…I’m happy you didn’t see his body.”

Owlshade’s ears pinned back. “We already lost Lilacnose…”

“Yes, I know,” Waspfoot muttered. “Bluebellpool is beside herself.”

Owlshade fell silent for a long time. He felt a strange feeling engulfing him, and wondered for a moment if it was the same grief Aspenfall had felt when he found out about Spiderstep’s death. 

Owlshade had never witnessed any of his kits' deaths before. He had been sad when he left Lilacnose, Rosewhisker, and Bluebellpool with their father many moons ago, yes, but he was still able to see them when he wanted to. 

The thought that he wouldn’t see Rosewhisker or Lilacnose again for a long time broke his heart. And poor Bluebellpool…Owlshade had already heard of her daughter’s passing a few moons back. Flurrykit had been the only one in the litter, and Bluebellpool’s second kit after Mossyfall. She passed of kittencough just a moon before her apprentice ceremony. Owlshade never got to meet his granddaughter. And just a few moons prior to that Owlshade and Waspfoot’s son Lilacnose had succumbed to a snake bite.

Owlshade let his mind wander. Had Rosewhisker been scared when he died? Was he hurt?

Did he call for him in his final moments?

Shaking his head, Owlshade looked back up at Waspfoot. “I need to tell you something.”

Waspfoot glanced up with a small nod. “I’’m listening, Owly.”

“I’m…Expecting kits.” Owlshade meowed, forcing a smile. “They’ll be here next moon. Possibly sooner.”

Waspfoot’s ear flicked. “I assume they’re mine.”

“Yes.” Owlshade chose not to mention Squirrel. The loner, of course- Not Squirreltail. Though the tom had sired Maplepool and Aspenfall, Owlshade continued to meet him, and the two grew close…

If Owlshade was being honest, he didn’t know which tom had fathered this litter. It didn’t matter, he told himself, because neither of them were in the clan anyway.

“You look like you’re barely showing at all!” Waspfoot looked Owlshade up and down. “Are you sure you didn’t just eat a lot or something?”

Owlshade chuckled, despite his mildly dampened mood. “I’m sure.”

Waspfoot looked into Owlshade’s eyes, and for a moment both toms were silent. Owlshade could tell that they both had questions.

He figured he would speak first. “How do you…”

“Feel? I don’t know,” Waspfoot replied, shuffling his paws. “Owly, we’re old. We’re not the same cats we were before, the first time this happened. We know better now.”

Owlshade looked away. “Yes…I know.”

“How many kits are there?”

“I don’t know. Our healers said no more than two.”

Waspfoot was silent for a few seconds. “Will they be staying with you?”

“Yes, they will be,” Owlshade meowed in reply. “I don’t have a reason to give them up anymore.”

Again, another stretch of silence.

Again, Owlshade waited.

“...We could leave.” Waspfoot suggested. “I take Bluebellpool and her kin, you take Violetsong and whatever kin you have in BranchClan, and we leave. We make our own clan. We could call it SplinterClan-”

“I feel like someone’s already done that.” Owlshade murmured.

“...We’ll come up with something.” Waspfoot waved a paw. “But we shouldn’t have to do this. We could be together, the way we want to be-”

“Or you could join BranchClan.” Owlshade stated. 

Waspfoot looked at him as if he had grown another tail and three more legs. “Owlshade, no, I can’t. You know this.”

“It would be easier than starting over.”

“I don’t want to see the faces of my former clanmates if I left.” Waspfoot meowed. “Seeing them at gatherings, on patrols, it would be awful.”

“I feel the same,” Owlshade said, his voice soft, “when I have to encounter you or one of our kits on patrol.”

“...I’m not joining BranchClan.” Waspfoot murmured. “I just can’t. I’m sorry, Owly.”

“It’s…Fine.” Owlshade replied.

Waspfoot looked up at the sky. Suddenly, his ears pricked. “Ah- I think someone’s calling me. I’ll be right back.”

“Mmm,” Owlshade hummed in acknowledgement. 

Waspfoot turned and ran away surprisingly fast for a tom his age. The last thing Owlshade saw was his fluffy tail vanishing into some bushes.

And again…Owlshade sat.

And once again, he waited.

And he waited. He waited until his paws were numb and the sky had turned a dark blue. Owlshade looked up. The stars were out, and one was glowing brighter than the rest.

“Hello, Rosewhisker…” Owlshade whispered. “I’m waiting on your father.”

But Waspfoot never came back.

Violetsong appeared, her black fur blending into the dark sky and the shadows of the forest.

“Papa…” She murmured, her tone scolding. “What are you doing all the way out here? And pregnant, no less…”

She nudged Owlshade to his paws and began to pad alongside him, so close their pelts were touching. 

“Come on,” She said, “We should be getting you home. Everyone is asking about you.”

Owlshade’s whiskers twitched. He wanted to protest- he was waiting for someone, Stars damn it! 

But in the back of his mind, he knew Waspfoot wasn’t coming back, and he didn’t know if he would ever see him again.

And that was okay. Owlshade didn’t need him anymore.

He had his family right here, within BranchClan territory. His kits…Or kit, if he were blessed with only one…Would grow up loved and safe, surrounded by cats who cherished them.