Chapter Text
It was the sunniest noon of Splashpaw’s life. Golden beams shone down upon her soft pelt, warming her to the bone. She found herself quickly dozing off to the sound of distant waves and the even clanks of the Twoleg boats as they slept nearby on the ocean.
“All cats old enough to run the sands, gather here beneath the Salt Rock for evening patrols!”
The familiar yowl of Hazelstar echoed through the camp, stirring the sleeping cats and bringing four squealing kits tumbling out of the nursery to the centre of camp.
The kits’ father, Tornbelly, was quick to scold them and shepherd them back to their mother, who was padding lethargically out of the nursery. Goldspring gave Tornbelly a quick lick on the cheek, before lifting Swiftkit, Saltkit, Lightkit and Sandkit back into the nursery.
Tornbelly then made his way to the Salt Rock and quietly settled among his clanmates.
Splashpaw turned her attention back to the deputy, who had already started the assignments. Mistpool assigned Tornbelly, Rosepelt, Silentheart and Minnowpaw to the hunting patrol and Shellthroat, Splashpaw, Juniperstep and Wavechaser to the sun-down border patrol.
Splashpaw's excitment dwindled at the mention of Wavechaser. She loved her brother, for sure, but he was unlikely to leave her alone for the entire patrol. He would much rather boast about his latest catches or swoon over some she-cat than actually look out for rogues or foxes.
As she padded over to the assigned cats, she lowered her head as her brother's golden paws and thick, blue fur came into view.
"Splashkit!" he grinned.
"Splashpaw, mousebrain." she grumbled. Her ears flattened at her brother's mocking eye-roll and goofy smile.
"Of course, how foolish of me. Splashkit." he playfully cuffed her around the ear as he padded over to Juniperstep, who she heard mrew with laughter. Splashpaw stalked along silently fuming, not noticing her mentor's appearance at her shoulder.
"He's your brother, kid. That's what brothers do." Shellthroat's rumbling voice startled her. "He loves you very much, you know. I remember when you were born. His only sibling. He spent as much time in that damn nursery as apprentice duties would allow."
Splashpaw allowed her ears to perk a little. She felt pleased to know that Wavechaser would risk the scolding of his mentor to spend time with her, even as a useless little kit.
Shellthroat purred, "I even remember, when you were very tiny, he caused quite the scene when your mother stopped him feeding you a fish before you were weaned. He worked very hard for that fish, he said." The large tom turned his gaze down to his apprentice, looking thoughtful.
"He rather reminds me of someone."
---
Splashpaw padded back into camp, and immediately headed for the fresh-kill pile. Her belly had been rumbling since Juniperstep caught the juiciest rabbit she'd seen for a while.
"Hey, Splashpaw." A quiet mew sounded in her ear. Splashpaw's head snapped around and her fur stood on end, but her eyes softened upon seeing her old friend Cliffpaw. He had recently transferred to medicine apprentice, and his fur had started to smell of herbs rather than moss.
"Cliffpaw!" Splashpaw mewed. The young tom purred as he padded over.
"Here." He dropped a delicious-looking fish at her paws. "I already ate, but I saved this for you." Splashpaw purred as she stooped to gently lift the fish.
"Thanks." She mumbled around Cliffpaw's gift, settling down to eat. She looked thoughtfully at the cream tom as her sat across from her. "It feels like forever since i last saw you." Splashpaw mewed. "It's weird in the apprentice den now. Feels empty."
Cliffpaw frowned. "But it's not empty, Splashpaw. You have Minnowpaw and Breezepaw. And Pearlkit and Reedkit will have their ceremonies any day now." Splashpaw didn't know what to say. Cliffpaw was right, the den was practically bursting with cats. But there was something warm, and full, and comforting about her best friend that neither shy little Minnowpaw nor self-absorbed Breezepaw possessed.
But Splashpaw only murmured, "Yeah. I guess so."
Cliffpaw didn't press her any more, instead beginning to groom his fur. The two apprentices fell into a comfortable silence as Splashpaw ate her fish. She listened to the quiet chatter of her Clanmates; elders preaching ancient tales from the very beginning of the Clans alongside their own, perhaps more mundane stories to excitable kits; Hazelstar and Mistpool's quiet discussion regarding the increasing number of kittypet intrusions; Juniperstep's loud purr as Rosepelt cracked a joke about rabbits...
Splashpaw licked up the last of her fish, nudging away the tiny skeleton. She raised her head, and looked around at the camp. Her brother Wavechaser sat hunched in the corner with Sunpath, his incessantly shifting paws a telltale sign that his confidence with the pale she was merely a mask, and Splashpaw knew that his heart was probably hammering like a woodpecker.
Pearlkit was showing off her 'warrior moves' to Saltkit and Lightkit, both of whom seemed in utter awe. Her shimmering white pelt fluffed up as she performed her idea of a hunter's crouch, her tail waving madly above her. She jumped a short way before landing clumsily, scraping her chin against the sandy ground. Despite this, she stood and raised her little head proudly as the two smaller kits mewed praise.
Splashpaw caught a glimpse of SeaClan's medicine cat, Quietsong, calmly sorting fresh herbs in his den. Curled up outside the medicine den was Silentheart, her small frame soaking up the sun's warmth. She had been excused from warrior duties for the past four days following a nasty fall from a towering pine near camp. She had broken a hind leg but if anything it was her ego that was most hurt.
Splashpaw was brought back to herself when Cliffpaw mewed a quiet goodbye, that he had some important jobs to finish off. Splashpaw nodded and watched him pad away to the medicine den, then out of camp. Splashpaw assumed he needed to fetch some herbs missing from his mentor's pristine stock.
She rose to her paws, heading for Pearlkit so as to save the older kit's future mentor a little trouble. She spent a good while teaching the kits the correct way to pounce, and felt pleased with herself when even tiny little Sandkit pulled off a decent enough crouch. Their very first mentor! She thought to herself, purring.
Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Reedkit and Pearlkit sneaking up on her, closing in from either side while the four of Goldspring's kits hissed their expert observations in an attempt to aide them. Splashpaw decided to indulge them the way the apprentices had for her when she was small. She sat complacently, pretending to calmly groom herself. Reedkit was the first to pounce, letting out a high-pitched yowl as he sprung towards her. Splashpaw put on her best shocked face, falling back as though she had been struck by the strongest rogue on the coast. When Pearlkit leapt next, placing too-big paws atop the apprentice's head in an attempt to pin her, Splashpaw let out a mock yowl of desperation. Saltkit, Sandkit, Swiftkit and Lightkit mewed excitedly, racing over to help the attack on Splashpaw. The sight brought many amused purrs from surrounding cats, and Splashpaw felt herself beam.
Everything felt so very peaceful in Splashpaw's world.
So peaceful, it was almost too good to be true.