Leopardpaw bristled in shock as the tom slid out of the undergrowth and into view, his longhaired tabby pelt shining in the light of the rising moon. His tufted ears were pricked curiously, dark green eyes seeming to glow in the dark.

"Moss-cat? Leopardpaw?" Lizardkit repeated cautiously when she didn't respond. He took a tentative step closer, his large forepaw hovering above the ground. He had grown taller than the last time they had met. "What in StarClan's name are you doing out here at this time? ThunderClan should have gone to sleep by now. "

The young she-cat felt her heart pounding in her chest, and she could not make it slow. "Lizardkit," she gasped, still coming to terms with the reality of the situation. She believed she would never see him again, but here he was, in front of her, all too real. Regaining control of her voice, Leopardpaw retorted, "What are you doing out here?" She flinched at the raspiness of her words, likely from her recent breakdown. Her ears burned and she pinned them back.

Lizardkit flicked a tufted ear in amusement, green eyes glimmering. "Actually, it's Lizardpaw now," he meowed proudly, straightening his shoulders. "And I was just patrolling my border, looking for intruders," he added, stalking toward her. "And you've come quite close for a ThunderClan cat."

Leopardpaw's heart dropped in fear and she stumbled backwards, fur on end. In her distress, she hadn't even noticed that she was only a few paw steps from the border. Glancing up, she realized in horror that the root she had tripped over led upwards to the gnarled trunk of the Twisted Sycamore.

Lizardpaw chuckled at her reaction. "You can relax; I was just joking." The humorous glint in his eyes faded as he took in her disheveled, fearful state. "Er, are you okay?"

Leopardpaw felt her throat clog up with sadness as the day's events flashed through her mind. She couldn't bring herself to meet Lizardpaw's eyes. Of course the first time she saw him in moons, she looked like a ragged furball. "Yeah, I'm fine," she said quietly, staring down at her paws.

Lizardpaw paused on his side of the border and sat back on his haunches, shooting her a concerned look. "Look, I really don't care that you were so close to the border. You were practically one of us anyway."

Leopardpaw tried to hide the pang of memories that the tomcat's words brought back. "That's not what's bothering me," she snapped, looking away. What was she doing? Fraternizing with a ShadowClan cat? Was she out of her mind? She should turn and bound into the woods right now, back to her camp like the loyal ThunderClan cat she was. But, for whatever reason, her paws kept her planted. There was no where she would rather be at this moment than right here.

"Then what's bothering you?" the tomcat pressed, tilting his head curiously.

Leopardpaw lashed her tail in frustration. "Nothing," she murmured, licking his chest fur flat.

Lizardpaw sat facing her, green eyes narrowed skeptically. "ThunderClan cats are not normally out this late. I found you here, laying on the ground, looking worse for the wear–" Leopardpaw shot him a murderous look. "–So, are you going to tell me what's going on or will I have to come over there and—"

"And trespass?" Leopardpaw challenged, but she couldn't hide her lip curling into a grin. "Oh, please, you brave ShadowClan tom. I dare you."

Lizardpaw snorted at her taunts. "Now, that's the Moss-cat I remember," he meowed with satisfaction. However, the concern remained lingering in his eyes.

Leopardpaw sighed in the awkward silence that followed, and she rolled her eyes. "Okay, fine. You want to know what's wrong? My brother is trying to ruin my life, my mentor is a fox-heart, my other brother won't even listen to me anymore, and the leader who I thought was my friend brushed me off like I was a flea biting his pelt." A heavy weight seemed to peel itself off her shoulders, and the spotted she-cat finally sat down with a shuddering sigh.

Lizardpaw titled his tufted head at her, a look of wonder and curiosity crossing his face. "How do you always manage to find yourself in the middle of every unfortunate situation?"

Leopardpaw rolled her amber eyes. "Well, according to my inspiring mentor, I'm a bad omen." Her tone was mocking, but hearing the words from her own jaws still made her stomach churn uneasily. What if Bluesky had been wrong about her all along?

Lizardpaw offered her a sympathetic look. "I know you can handle anything, but that's a bit harsh."

"Tell me about it," Leopardpaw said with a dejected sigh, staring down at her paws in the snow. "I just want to be able to train. That's all."

Lizardpaw stared at her, her spotted pelt shining in the low light of the rising moon. He looked as if he were about to say something, but his shoulders stiffened from the sound of a yowl coming from the pines behind him. "That's my mentor," he said with a grimace, giving Leopardpaw an apologetic look. "I'm supposed to be hunting. I have to go..."

Leopardpaw nodded. "I wouldn't want you to end up ruining your apprenticeship too, being caught off-duty," she uttered bitterly.

Lizardpaw swept around to head back into ShadowClan's territory, but he paused, a curious glint in his green eyes. "You know, I usually practice hunting about this time, a bit after dusk. If you ever want to talk..." the tom let his sentence trail off, giving the she-cat one last long look. Then, he turned and bounded into the inky darkness of the evergreens, the shadows swallowing him up.

When he was gone, Leopardpaw released a breath she had not realize she had been holding. As the silence enveloped around her, she realized how cold the air had become since nightfall. It had seeped beneath her pelt. With a shiver, the spotted she-cat turned and slowly began making her way back to camp.

Though the heaviness from the day's events still clouded the back of her mind, a simple meeting now dulled the sting. In fact, she still felt the glow of seeing her old friend. The memories of her short, yet eventful time in ShadowClan replayed through her mind. She felt a pang when she thought of Fogtail's overflowing kindness, and then the companionship and lack of judgement from Rowankit. Leopardpaw had never had another she-cat similar in age to her around that she shared such camaraderie with. She also remembered the quick acceptance from all the apprentices, some now warriors. And her playful younger adoptive littermates, Lightningkit and Duskkit. And, of course, Lizardpaw.

Leopardpaw felt a semblance of peace as she weaved through the dark trees. There was a strange calm in her amber eyes, and her paw steps firmer than before. She did not know whether it was simply getting everything off of her chest or if seeing an old friend helped stabilize her mood, but she was grateful nonetheless.

There was no guard at the thorn tunnel tonight. Leopardpaw slipped in silently, padding across the stone hollow and to her den. It was late enough that when she ducked into the hollowed bramble bush, each one was deeply asleep, huddled close for warmth. She lightly stepped over Mousepaw's curled body and settled into her own nest.

A harsh whisper made her start. "Where have you been?" Mousepaw raised his head to stare at her in the darkness.

Leopardpaw shrugged nonchalantly. "Just went for a walk." She suddenly hoped that her pelt did not still carry the sharp ShadowClan scent from the border.

Mousepaw's green eyes narrowed to slivers. The she-cat could practically feel the suspicion radiating off his black pelt. "You really shouldn't be taking off in the middle of the night. Your focus should remain with your training. Besides, you'll be in a world of trouble if you get caught."

Leopardpaw scoffed, suddenly remembering his stinging words from earlier. Rather than responding, she turned her head the other way and laid her tail over her nose. She fell asleep faster than she had in moons.