HOME | DD

Description
Prev - Response to - Next
4844 Words w/o dialogue lifted from Virus’ story (4947 Total)

Warnings: Overstimulation, mentions of bodily fluid (vomit), emotional manipulation, fear/threats of violence, fainting

She just ran. Ran because she couldn’t think of anything else to do. Ran because she just wanted to get away from the blaring lights. Ran because she wanted to get away from the other kits. Away from their constant requests. Away so maybe she could stop feeling so bad about spending some time for herself. And as flights of stairs turned to corridors turned to paths leading out into the open air, she found herself feeling no better. Mind still caught elsewhere.

Deep in her chest was a war raging between her mind and her heart, her leads had run bone-dry ages ago, all logic said that even if she were to continue her search that it was hopeless. A futile effort. But… she wanted to believe. She wanted so hard to believe that he was ok. All she could really do now was sit and pray… staying in one spot gave her about the same odds of bumping into him at this point. And… at least it was quiet here. Calm. Just her, distant sounds of people going about their days and the soft white noise of the water far in the tree behind her. Closing her eyes and turning her head to the sky, she let the late evening breeze billow over her. She felt… just for a moment… at peace. But it wasn’t to last.

“HEY, YOU! GET BACK HERE!” A shrill screech of a voice split through the air like a bullet toward the sky. Causing her to nearly jump out of her skin as she turned her head to look at the source - that last kit who had tried to talk to her before she’d bolted. And she looked… not in the slightest bit pleased. Oh great. Fern absolutely was not in the mood for talking right now and even less so the thought of being forcefully dragged back to that hall. At least that moment of rest had reinvigorated her stamina enough for her to firmly grasp the goober plush and restart her sprint at a moment’s notice.

Lulu’s apartment was too far away from here to reasonably run to but if she was quick she could make it back to the den. At least there she could cry for adult back up if her pursuer was one of the more violent ones like she feared.
Wood, concrete, steps, stone, steps, wood.
Her claws rapped against it all as she ran for her life.
Turning left, swerving right, diving though small gaps and leaping over roots. Yet that kit was fast. Six legs moving in tandem like a horrific but well-oiled machine as she rapidly gained on her. It felt like almost like watching an extreme accident in slow motion, unable to tear her eyes away for much longer than she would have liked. That glance back would prove not only to be mistake in that it made her feel deeply ill however. It was a fatal flaw to her escape. Left becoming right for just a second, she skidded off of her planned path and was met directly by an insurmountable wall of century-old roots surrounding her on all sides. All sides but the one in which she had came, at least. Dead end.

She tried to claw her way up but it was no use, she could feel her body quivering ever so subtly as she placed her paws on the ground again and turned to face the purple kit once more. Yellow eyes glinting menacingly in the shadows of the roots as she closed in on her target. This was it. Fern flinched back, tightly pulling her tail toward the side of her body facing the roots in an attempt to keep the goober plush as far as possible out of harm’s way. Her entire body tense as she shifted into a defective crouch to protect her phylactery and squeezing her eyes shut. Entirely resigning herself to her fate. Yet…
“I am VERY DISAPPOINTED with you, YOUNG LADY!”
“NO, PLEASE D-“ …no blow came. “-Disappointed?” Fern opened her eyes to simply stare for a second, confused, her stance relaxing ever so slightly. Perhaps this kit… wasn’t trying to maul her? “I- I don’t even know you! Please, just leave me alone. I-“ she stammered, taking a step forward toward a tiny opening left by the six-legged kit’s stance. But of course that would have been too easy.

“Oh no you don’t!” The kit hissed, turning to the side to block the gap. “You are not escaping this that easily, young lady.” The threatening aura exuding from this kit’s presence was very apparent, Fern was already starting to feel a touch faint as her primal oppossum instincts screamed at her to play dead and wait out the danger. Though, she knew that wouldn’t prove to her benefit in the end… instead letting a simple question leave her lips.
“P-please, don’t- What do you even want from me?! I-I just-“
“Don’t worry, you are not due for that kind of punishment yet, dear.” The kit smiled, tone laced with hollow sympathetic chimes to Fern’s ears as she confirmed to not be after the spilling of the grey kit’s mutated blood. “But we need to have a very serious talk this instant. Do you even realize what in the world you just did?” The stranger’s voice quickly shifting back to hostile at the last moment, intensifying their loom over the utterly defenceless Fern, eyes glistening more fiercely than ever. She felt so small in that moment… the threat ringing anything but empty upon her ears. ‘Yet’… oh sweet love, what did she mean ‘yet’!?

“What did I-“ she just about breathed before immediately being cut off again with a sharp accusation.
“YOU have hurt a very kind-hearted kit who only wanted to be a good lady and offer to dance with you, and how did you respond?! You hissed at the poor girl with the nastiest glare she could describe to me” Right… she was starting to get a clearer picture now… but… that wasn’t quite right.
“I- I’d already said no- she refused to listen!“
“Oh so it was her fault now?! It was her fault for being SO KIND?! It was Melody's fault that you had just to pile your own petty hatred and anger from your own problems onto her kind gesture? Treating her so horribly just because of your own little story that nobody knows about, is that the excuse I am HEARING CORRECTLY!?” Oh boy, she was angry now, tail lashing behind her as she bared her teeth through her words. That tone so defensive yet aggressive at the same time. Like a fearsome mother goose gearing up ready to peck out the eyes of the nearest living being to step foot near her precious goslings. One she’d heard her fair share of in the den’s classrooms with particularly bad students yet never expected to personally experience the full brunt of, much less from a kit. Barely letting her get a word in edgewise or explain herself, expecting her to just sit and endure it.

If she wasn’t so intimidated by the prior threat, she might have snapped back at the stranger for being so presumptuous but… she had discovered the first time she’d gotten an itch after the Dreamsurge just how devastating mutated claws could be if given a chance… and with the four normal legs to easily pin her down during such an attack? She wasn’t about to risk it.

“And for your information: Yes I know all about the kit I am talking about - Melody.” She continued, holding her head up a touch higher as if that was a kind of gotcha moment.
“I had… assumed as much.” Fern mumbled, her face scrunching into an awkward grimace of sorts of its own volition. “Is she-“
“Why yes, Melody, for a fact a good friend of mine. And I recall that she is grieving because she had just dealt with a very horrific loss, and she is currently recovering. AND any sort of negative behavior towards her would break her very badly.”
Fern’s voice was barely audible as she mumbled a solemn “I’ve been there…” as a shadow cast itself over her eyes yet again. Vibrancy of the colour around her draining from her vision for a moment. But now was not the time for her own grief to set in…

For such a typically heat associated colour, there was no warmth in those piercing yellow eyes that were trained on her. Fern could have sworn she saw the kits eyelids turn up slightly in a devious smirk for just a moment, though she elected to ignore it. “Listen, I- I’m sorry I upset your friend but it’s not my responsibility to-“
“Not your responsibility to what? Care about the well-being of others? To think about anyone other than yourself?”
“That’s not what I-“
“And what about the other kit you shooed off? He told me that YOU weren't very KIND to him either.”
“What do you- I thought that-“ Fern’s mind raced for a moment trying to figure out where in that first conversation that she had been rude or at least less than civil. Yet that kit with the bandaged arm seemed nothing more than a touch disappointed when she had turned down the offer. They didn’t look bothered at the time… or at least not that she could remember.
“Trying to come up with another excuse now? How pathetic! All he did was give you a sweet comment and ask you if you wanted him to show you how to dance! AND if my memory serves me correctly he said that he never tried to offend you.”

Wow, was that gaze intensifying. Fern didn’t even know why she was still bothering to try to reason with this kit, it was clear that she was never intending to listen to her in lieu of getting exactly what she wanted… Squirming slightly in place as she tried her best to avoid making any more direct eye contact with the kit before her, Fern’s eyes wandered back down to those extra legs… unnaturally insectoid by their very design. She barely stopped herself from retching as the image of the kit running popped back into her mind. Yet even that didn’t go unnoticed it seemed by the keen eye of her captor.

“Is there a problem?” The purple kit probed voice as sweet as a soured milkshake as they advanced one step closer. This time, Fern wasn’t so lucky, the sheer sight of the movement causing her to actually gag this time and stumble two steps back - desperately trying to keep what little distance she had available to her - yet she could already feel the roughness of the root bark pushing against her side. There was no use in trying to move anymore.
“Oh, you think that is funny, do you, young lady?”
“No, no, I-“
“You think this is gross, do you?!” She snapped waving one of her legs from the second set into the air and causing yet another involuntary gag from the cowering grey kit. “HOW DARE YOU INSULT ME!” She screeched, voice bearing the power of a full-blown bird-of-prey, screaming out so loud that Fern felt as if she may go deaf in that moment as her ears were assaulted by the sudden pain of ringing. “I owe my clawed limbs my life, if I didn't have them I wouldn't be able to run with swiftness and grace - and in this case - stop you from harming others!” Fern couldn’t even respond at this point, lifting one of her own clawed hands from its position over her mouth up to nurse her aching ears. Stop her from hurting others? The only one hurting right now was her… Who on Earth was she hurting by wanting to attend a dance to listen to the music? Was that so wrong? Was it really her fault that some kits can’t take a hint? What was she supposed to do - wear a sandwich board saying not to interact with her!? She shouldn’t have gone to the stupid dance. It was a mistake. This was her punishment from the universe for not focusing all her energy into her search she supposed… and now- GAH!

Bright iridescent wings all at once burst from the purple kit’s back, catching the light of the window in such a way as to shine sinking sun directly into her eyes as they spread. Great, deaf AND blind. Anymore senses she felt like stealing!? Oh sweet love, was she still talking..?

“After all, it is my duty as The Duchess of The House Moondawn to help and teach others in need, whether they are part of the Four Guilds or not adult or kit!” Yes, she was still talking but Fern wasn’t listening anymore, her mind preoccupied by finding her ticket out of this situation. It was all starting to make more sense by the moment. She still hadn’t the foggiest about the rest of it but the word ‘duchess’ was pretty much all she needed to know to get a much clearer image of why this kit was so seemingly self-righteous. Wealthy blood… spoilt little princess playing ‘hero’ and sticking her dainty little nose where it doesn’t belong. Using fear-tactics to get exactly what she wanted from a ‘ruffian lower than her’ no doubt. But now Fern was being presumptuous... she scolded herself for such, internally. Can’t stoop to her aggressor’s level. Especially if she wanted to get out of here in one piece.

A kit was a kit at the end of the day. Wealthy, powerful or none of the above. There was nothing different between Fern and her… aside from those very off-putting legs which Fern was very clearly trying her best to look at again when she’d gotten blasted by the sun’s refraction through those giant buggy wings. If this so called Duchess thought that flaunting her family’s achievements was going to scare her, she was dead wrong. But that did give her an idea.

A horrible, humiliating, disgusting idea…

Fern’s own claws sank into the ground beneath her, her tail squeezing tighter against the plush as she braced herself mentally for the horrible thing she had to do. She had no choice, lest she be mauled by those powerful legs. “You know what? You’re right.” She spoke through gritted teeth, squinting and blinking at the floor in hopes to activate the waterworks, “I am simply rotten. Just a cold-hearted bully. Oh your radiant and glorious Duchess, I am so deeply sorry for my rancid attitude! I am truly a monster!” She sniffled, finally feeling the first of many crocodile tears roll down her cheeks as she slowly looked up at the kit before her.

The words felt like slime on her tongue as they rolled around her mouth. Denying her heart. Giving in to… Lies. The most words evil of all. Lies and deception. Toxic scourge of the Earth which she so deeply despised more than anything. She felt so dirty… the kind of dirt that can never be washed away with any kind of soap. Yet it appeared to be working as the kit’s eyelids turned up into the most sanctimonious of smirks.

“So. You have given up the fight I see.” The purple kit asserted triumphantly, voice holding all the chilling calm and vicious pride of a supervillain who had their claws firmly around a hostage’s neck while waiting to be handed the all important MacGuffin by a defeated hero. Though Fern theorised that it probably looked like much the opposite for the other perspective.
“Y-yes… right… I um… I submit to you, your ladyship.” Fern sighed, lifting a paw and lowering her head in a bow of sorts, her chin practically touching the floor given how low her stance was to begin with. There was no point in reasoning with her, it’d be a waste of energy to try to plead to have her case heard and even if she did listen… Fern wasn’t sure she wanted that sensitive information in the hands of someone who would act like this anyway. Someone who seemed so willing to stoop to threats and manipulation by overwhelming the target would likely have no qualms with blackmail, after all. A worry which was only further solidified by the kit’s next few sentences.

“Quit your crying and we will discuss this properly. I expect you have a better attitude than earlier, otherwise another lecture will NOT be your punishment. Do you understand?” To stop crying at this point was easier said than done, that threat of what she could only assume was violence piecing through her chest and causing her metaphorical heart to catch in her mouth. She wasn’t even sure if these tears were fake anymore as she rubbed her face against her sleeve trying to stem the flow to appease her captor. Sputtering out “Yes, your ladyship”s and “I understand, your ladyship”s between wipes. Sweet love, she was shaking so much at this point. She could barely make out her hand each time she removed it from the stability of her face. She just wanted it to be over. She wanted to wake up and realise that she’d fallen asleep on the way to the dance. She wanted to never see this kit again. But she knew that last one was an impossibility living in the den… the tree may be vast but the community within was surprisingly tightly knit. Not to mention she was limited to a certain range away from the den’s sleeping quarters due to the curfews.

“Good. We shall speak about everything, as well as what you have to say, on the way back to the dance.” Fern flinched, back… to the dance? Just to apologise for… not letting herself be forced to do something she didn’t want to do and nipping a situation in the bud before it spiralled, right? Perhaps just her tone. Not… This kit wouldn’t force her to dance for the enjoyment of others… would she? “I'm afraid you have quite the mess to clean up and do not dare try to escape this, because if you do I will find you and once I do so, you will be hounded until you fix this mess you made. This is a fact and a promise. Am I clear with these instructions and this warning?”

Stalking… was she mishearing things or was that an active threat of stalking?! You cannot run. You cannot hide. She suddenly felt the weight of a thousand eyes cast onto her all at once. The seeds of paranoia rooting their way deep into her subconscious. Hounded by who? Just her? How many connections did this kit have? How many eyes now keeping tabs on her for just one stupid little insignificant dance? Would it just be until she apologised to that Melody kit and the other one or was she now a servant to the public under threat of unspeakable violence. That her feelings didn’t matter just as long as she never upset anyone to keep herself was safe. As long as she kept everyone who approached her happy she… she would survive another day unscathed… Just play nice, was that it? A simple enough thought for some but… Fern had never liked people. This situation was getting worse by the second and with the shock of it all, it was a wonder Fern even managed to nod toward the purple kit, let alone squeak out yet another “yes, I understand”…
“Splendid. Now let's get going, the sooner you fix this mess the sooner your free to continue whatever it was you were doing.” It looked as if she was going to start walking for a moment before she stopped, giving a disparaging glance toward Fern’s torso. “Ah, and please give your body a chance to breathe and take off the hoodie once we get there. I admit I admire the lovely patchwork, but it is June, summer has arrived and you are going to die of a heat stroke and turn into a puddle of sweat.”

Before Fern even had a chance for even a slight rebuttal, the six-legged kit finally made a movement toward walking away. At least now the grey kit finally felt able to relax ever so slightly. Standing up and giving her now aching legs a break from the intense crouch she was pressuring them under - or at the very least her front ones as she took to standing upright out of habit. Yet she was only able to take one step forward toward the exit of that tree root prison when she felt a sudden and harsh tug on the fabric of her hoodie.
“D… don’t touch- I can- you don’t-“ she sputtered out on instinct, voice breathy and barely audible as she stared down at the clawed hand digging into fibres of her beloved garment. Pupils constricting as the realisation that she’s just talked back hit her. So focused on the hand that she almost didn’t even notice being given an immediate side-eye from the kit.
“Oh, but I do, dear. Cannot have you running off again now, can we? Now come along, you have an important job to do.”

—

The trudge back to that hall felt like one of the longest journeys of Fern’s life. Trapped to ruminate on her thoughts. About Daffodil. About the kits she’d supposedly hurt. About the situation she was in right now. Sore and tired and yet having to keep pace with the lunatic who was holding her beloved handcrafted hoodie ever so tightly. After all, if she didn’t keep up those claws would have dire consequences in store for her, sharp enough to tear the whole garment apart with minimal effort. The once tranquil silence of the streets was now deafening. Her ears desperately searching for any noise that wasn’t footsteps - however her mind was not soothed as the sounds of the speaker bass came into earshot yet again. And before she knew it… they had arrived.

Stopping abruptly just before the entrance, Fern stumbled slightly to catch herself. Why did they… stop? Feeling those piercing eyes on her once more, she knew she wouldn’t have to wait long for that answer...
“You remember what we discussed about the hoodie, dear?”
“Ah- I-“ Fern’s vocal cords were more tense than they’d ever been within recent memory. That sentence repeating over and over in her head. What they had ‘discussed’… A shared discourse… together. No part of this was ever a discussion… only instructions. Orders. Assumed subordination. Staring down at her beloved hoodie she felt a whole flood of emotions. Fear and rage. Contempt and shame. Which was only made worse by…
“Come on now, off with it. You will quite frankly bake in there.”
She wanted to scream. Scream and kick and shout. Scream for allowing herself to be pushed around by some random kit who was possibly even younger than her… She… She…
“. . .n-no…” escaped her lips, barely audible even to herself so it wasn’t any surprise when the purple kit gave her a look of mild puzzlement.
“What was that, young lady? Speak up. It is impolite to mumble.”
“I-I-I…” Fern gave a hard gulp, attempting to reopen her constricted throat for just long enough to speak, “I… I SAID NO!” She finally snapped, her hand impulsively slamming down against the clawed hand that was gripping the hoodie with such speed and force that it caused the young duchess to recoil in shock. Letting go for brief enough of a moment for the now free kit to leap into a quad stance and escape.

Escape… into the hall.

The sudden overwhelming rush of warmth, sound and light of the room hit her all at once, combined with the adrenaline rush she was already feeling incredibly sick to her stomach. Her nose immediately feeling pressure of breathing from how heavy the air in the room was as it was even without her panicked breaths falling hard and fast. So sudden that in any other situation she may have just frozen on the spot, fallen to the floor and cried until she was taken somewhere quieter by an adult. But not today. Not right now.
Oh, praise be… oh, sweet love… what had she done?! Immediate regret sinking in as she vanished within the crowd - wrapping herself up in a nearby dropped blanket flag to better disguise her form for just a little longer. Safety in numbers… she just needed to disappear.

Though while her body may have been physically disguised that didn’t stop her from being noticed at all. Her frantic glances around the room causing more than a few looks and eventually…
“Hey, are you ok?” A kit approached her to ask, Fern almost bursting into tears on the spot from the shock of it all. She was just about to usher them to go away when she suddenly had an idea.
“U-u-uh… I’m um…” Steady yourself, Fern, it’s ok… “I’m looking for someone actually. Brown, pale muzzle, glasses… uh… Lovely white jumper with little hearts on it?”
“Andi?”
“Yes, yes! Uh… maybe?”
“Ah well, he’s over there by the punch. Was just talking to him actually an-“
“CHEERS!” She called, cutting the poor kit off before they even had a chance to finish as she sprinted away in the direction she was pointed in. Just apologise. The sooner she did that, the sooner she might possibly maybe NOT get murdered under mysterious circumstances? She could only hope. At least this so called ‘Andi’ was a lot closer than she thought he would be…

“Excuse me!”
“Huh? Oh! It’s you again, hello.” The brown kit exclaimed, looking up from where he was refilling his cup from the punch bowl. “Do you need me to move?”
“Y-yes, I mean yes it’s me- no, you don’t have to move- I mean, h-hi!” Fern sputtered out, entirely embarrassing herself by her utter failure to use her mother tongue through all the wild emotions she was having to deal with regarding the whole ‘actively being in danger’ thing. “Uh… I just wanted to say sorry for my tone earlier. My mind was elsewhere and I didn’t mean to come off as rude and I’m sorry if I upset you and-“
“Nah, it’s all good, don’t worry about it. We all have those days.” Andi smiled warmly, expression quickly shifting slightly to concern upon seemingly noticing how Fern kept glancing over her shoulder. “Are you… doing alright there?”
“Y-yeah, I’m just fine, peachy. But uh… thanks for checking up on me… again.” She laughed nervously, flashing her own incredibly awkward smile. “Say… do you know where that very purple kit with the hair curl and scarf is? Um… I think her name was like Medley or Melody or something?” Fern was pacing on the spot at this point, couldn’t stay in one spot talking, had to keep moving. Couldn’t be seen. Couldn’t let her hear her voice.
“Well… ok then.” The brown kit seemed unconvinced but continued anyway. Squinting around the crowd as he scoured the area for the requested kit, “Last time I saw her was… right about… THERE!” He exclaimed, proudly pointing directly at the kit in question, much to Fern’s utter relief.
“Thank you so much, you’re a lifesaver!”
“Don’t mention it. Good luck with whatever you’re doing. Have a nice night!”
“Y-you too!” Fern barely managed to squeeze in one last smile before hurtling toward Melody. Ducking behind other kits as cover yet still hyper aware that at any moment that kit could appear… and she had a sinking feeling that threat of ‘yet’ might just become ‘now’.

Skidding to an abrupt halt in front of the kit with the scarf, Fern fought to catch her breath as she quickly tried to explain herself. Now struggling to speak more than before as she felt a bout of lightheadedness fully settling in. “Hi, I… phew… I um… sweet love sake, let me just…”
“Catch your breath? Of course!” Melody finished her sentence for her, “Are you alright? You need a drink? You look really tired… and sweaty. Mostly tired.”
“No, no, no… I’m… just fine. I just wanted to say sorry… for… for snapping at you earlier…”
“Oh! Right! Don’t worry! You just didn’t want to dance… That’s ok! I didn’t mean to upset you either!” The kit beamed, rocking up and down onto her tip-toes a few times as she spoke. Seemed like all was forgiven but…
“It’s alriiiight… just I- whoa!“ Fern felt herself stumble in place, quickly flicking her feet into a wider position to maintain balance.

Everything was just… so heavy… so bright, so loud… so hot under what was now two layers of not exactly thin clothing... It was getting harder to breathe. The air… just so dense. Her body… so tired… So scared… so… did this room always sway around this much? Out of her left peripheral she could see that duchess kit. Running directly toward her, blurry as she was. Face like thunder. But when Fern tried to will herself to run - to escape her swiftly impending doom - she could hardly feel the world around her anymore…

The last thing she heard was “Are you sure y-” followed by a sharp gasp before feeling a sudden breeze rush against her cheek and then… darkness.

~~~~~~

Bandit
Opium
Melody

36/1147 Acorns

Description
Prev - Response to - Next
4844 Words w/o dialogue lifted from Virus’ story (4947 Total)

Warnings: Overstimulation, mentions of bodily fluid (vomit), emotional manipulation, fear/threats of violence, fainting

She just ran. Ran because she couldn’t think of anything else to do. Ran because she just wanted to get away from the blaring lights. Ran because she wanted to get away from the other kits. Away from their constant requests. Away so maybe she could stop feeling so bad about spending some time for herself. And as flights of stairs turned to corridors turned to paths leading out into the open air, she found herself feeling no better. Mind still caught elsewhere.

Deep in her chest was a war raging between her mind and her heart, her leads had run bone-dry ages ago, all logic said that even if she were to continue her search that it was hopeless. A futile effort. But… she wanted to believe. She wanted so hard to believe that he was ok. All she could really do now was sit and pray… staying in one spot gave her about the same odds of bumping into him at this point. And… at least it was quiet here. Calm. Just her, distant sounds of people going about their days and the soft white noise of the water far in the tree behind her. Closing her eyes and turning her head to the sky, she let the late evening breeze billow over her. She felt… just for a moment… at peace. But it wasn’t to last.

“HEY, YOU! GET BACK HERE!” A shrill screech of a voice split through the air like a bullet toward the sky. Causing her to nearly jump out of her skin as she turned her head to look at the source - that last kit who had tried to talk to her before she’d bolted. And she looked… not in the slightest bit pleased. Oh great. Fern absolutely was not in the mood for talking right now and even less so the thought of being forcefully dragged back to that hall. At least that moment of rest had reinvigorated her stamina enough for her to firmly grasp the goober plush and restart her sprint at a moment’s notice.

Lulu’s apartment was too far away from here to reasonably run to but if she was quick she could make it back to the den. At least there she could cry for adult back up if her pursuer was one of the more violent ones like she feared.
Wood, concrete, steps, stone, steps, wood.
Her claws rapped against it all as she ran for her life.
Turning left, swerving right, diving though small gaps and leaping over roots. Yet that kit was fast. Six legs moving in tandem like a horrific but well-oiled machine as she rapidly gained on her. It felt like almost like watching an extreme accident in slow motion, unable to tear her eyes away for much longer than she would have liked. That glance back would prove not only to be mistake in that it made her feel deeply ill however. It was a fatal flaw to her escape. Left becoming right for just a second, she skidded off of her planned path and was met directly by an insurmountable wall of century-old roots surrounding her on all sides. All sides but the one in which she had came, at least. Dead end.

She tried to claw her way up but it was no use, she could feel her body quivering ever so subtly as she placed her paws on the ground again and turned to face the purple kit once more. Yellow eyes glinting menacingly in the shadows of the roots as she closed in on her target. This was it. Fern flinched back, tightly pulling her tail toward the side of her body facing the roots in an attempt to keep the goober plush as far as possible out of harm’s way. Her entire body tense as she shifted into a defective crouch to protect her phylactery and squeezing her eyes shut. Entirely resigning herself to her fate. Yet…
“I am VERY DISAPPOINTED with you, YOUNG LADY!”
“NO, PLEASE D-“ …no blow came. “-Disappointed?” Fern opened her eyes to simply stare for a second, confused, her stance relaxing ever so slightly. Perhaps this kit… wasn’t trying to maul her? “I- I don’t even know you! Please, just leave me alone. I-“ she stammered, taking a step forward toward a tiny opening left by the six-legged kit’s stance. But of course that would have been too easy.

“Oh no you don’t!” The kit hissed, turning to the side to block the gap. “You are not escaping this that easily, young lady.” The threatening aura exuding from this kit’s presence was very apparent, Fern was already starting to feel a touch faint as her primal oppossum instincts screamed at her to play dead and wait out the danger. Though, she knew that wouldn’t prove to her benefit in the end… instead letting a simple question leave her lips.
“P-please, don’t- What do you even want from me?! I-I just-“
“Don’t worry, you are not due for that kind of punishment yet, dear.” The kit smiled, tone laced with hollow sympathetic chimes to Fern’s ears as she confirmed to not be after the spilling of the grey kit’s mutated blood. “But we need to have a very serious talk this instant. Do you even realize what in the world you just did?” The stranger’s voice quickly shifting back to hostile at the last moment, intensifying their loom over the utterly defenceless Fern, eyes glistening more fiercely than ever. She felt so small in that moment… the threat ringing anything but empty upon her ears. ‘Yet’… oh sweet love, what did she mean ‘yet’!?

“What did I-“ she just about breathed before immediately being cut off again with a sharp accusation.
“YOU have hurt a very kind-hearted kit who only wanted to be a good lady and offer to dance with you, and how did you respond?! You hissed at the poor girl with the nastiest glare she could describe to me” Right… she was starting to get a clearer picture now… but… that wasn’t quite right.
“I- I’d already said no- she refused to listen!“
“Oh so it was her fault now?! It was her fault for being SO KIND?! It was Melody's fault that you had just to pile your own petty hatred and anger from your own problems onto her kind gesture? Treating her so horribly just because of your own little story that nobody knows about, is that the excuse I am HEARING CORRECTLY!?” Oh boy, she was angry now, tail lashing behind her as she bared her teeth through her words. That tone so defensive yet aggressive at the same time. Like a fearsome mother goose gearing up ready to peck out the eyes of the nearest living being to step foot near her precious goslings. One she’d heard her fair share of in the den’s classrooms with particularly bad students yet never expected to personally experience the full brunt of, much less from a kit. Barely letting her get a word in edgewise or explain herself, expecting her to just sit and endure it.

If she wasn’t so intimidated by the prior threat, she might have snapped back at the stranger for being so presumptuous but… she had discovered the first time she’d gotten an itch after the Dreamsurge just how devastating mutated claws could be if given a chance… and with the four normal legs to easily pin her down during such an attack? She wasn’t about to risk it.

“And for your information: Yes I know all about the kit I am talking about - Melody.” She continued, holding her head up a touch higher as if that was a kind of gotcha moment.
“I had… assumed as much.” Fern mumbled, her face scrunching into an awkward grimace of sorts of its own volition. “Is she-“
“Why yes, Melody, for a fact a good friend of mine. And I recall that she is grieving because she had just dealt with a very horrific loss, and she is currently recovering. AND any sort of negative behavior towards her would break her very badly.”
Fern’s voice was barely audible as she mumbled a solemn “I’ve been there…” as a shadow cast itself over her eyes yet again. Vibrancy of the colour around her draining from her vision for a moment. But now was not the time for her own grief to set in…

For such a typically heat associated colour, there was no warmth in those piercing yellow eyes that were trained on her. Fern could have sworn she saw the kits eyelids turn up slightly in a devious smirk for just a moment, though she elected to ignore it. “Listen, I- I’m sorry I upset your friend but it’s not my responsibility to-“
“Not your responsibility to what? Care about the well-being of others? To think about anyone other than yourself?”
“That’s not what I-“
“And what about the other kit you shooed off? He told me that YOU weren't very KIND to him either.”
“What do you- I thought that-“ Fern’s mind raced for a moment trying to figure out where in that first conversation that she had been rude or at least less than civil. Yet that kit with the bandaged arm seemed nothing more than a touch disappointed when she had turned down the offer. They didn’t look bothered at the time… or at least not that she could remember.
“Trying to come up with another excuse now? How pathetic! All he did was give you a sweet comment and ask you if you wanted him to show you how to dance! AND if my memory serves me correctly he said that he never tried to offend you.”

Wow, was that gaze intensifying. Fern didn’t even know why she was still bothering to try to reason with this kit, it was clear that she was never intending to listen to her in lieu of getting exactly what she wanted… Squirming slightly in place as she tried her best to avoid making any more direct eye contact with the kit before her, Fern’s eyes wandered back down to those extra legs… unnaturally insectoid by their very design. She barely stopped herself from retching as the image of the kit running popped back into her mind. Yet even that didn’t go unnoticed it seemed by the keen eye of her captor.

“Is there a problem?” The purple kit probed voice as sweet as a soured milkshake as they advanced one step closer. This time, Fern wasn’t so lucky, the sheer sight of the movement causing her to actually gag this time and stumble two steps back - desperately trying to keep what little distance she had available to her - yet she could already feel the roughness of the root bark pushing against her side. There was no use in trying to move anymore.
“Oh, you think that is funny, do you, young lady?”
“No, no, I-“
“You think this is gross, do you?!” She snapped waving one of her legs from the second set into the air and causing yet another involuntary gag from the cowering grey kit. “HOW DARE YOU INSULT ME!” She screeched, voice bearing the power of a full-blown bird-of-prey, screaming out so loud that Fern felt as if she may go deaf in that moment as her ears were assaulted by the sudden pain of ringing. “I owe my clawed limbs my life, if I didn't have them I wouldn't be able to run with swiftness and grace - and in this case - stop you from harming others!” Fern couldn’t even respond at this point, lifting one of her own clawed hands from its position over her mouth up to nurse her aching ears. Stop her from hurting others? The only one hurting right now was her… Who on Earth was she hurting by wanting to attend a dance to listen to the music? Was that so wrong? Was it really her fault that some kits can’t take a hint? What was she supposed to do - wear a sandwich board saying not to interact with her!? She shouldn’t have gone to the stupid dance. It was a mistake. This was her punishment from the universe for not focusing all her energy into her search she supposed… and now- GAH!

Bright iridescent wings all at once burst from the purple kit’s back, catching the light of the window in such a way as to shine sinking sun directly into her eyes as they spread. Great, deaf AND blind. Anymore senses she felt like stealing!? Oh sweet love, was she still talking..?

“After all, it is my duty as The Duchess of The House Moondawn to help and teach others in need, whether they are part of the Four Guilds or not adult or kit!” Yes, she was still talking but Fern wasn’t listening anymore, her mind preoccupied by finding her ticket out of this situation. It was all starting to make more sense by the moment. She still hadn’t the foggiest about the rest of it but the word ‘duchess’ was pretty much all she needed to know to get a much clearer image of why this kit was so seemingly self-righteous. Wealthy blood… spoilt little princess playing ‘hero’ and sticking her dainty little nose where it doesn’t belong. Using fear-tactics to get exactly what she wanted from a ‘ruffian lower than her’ no doubt. But now Fern was being presumptuous... she scolded herself for such, internally. Can’t stoop to her aggressor’s level. Especially if she wanted to get out of here in one piece.

A kit was a kit at the end of the day. Wealthy, powerful or none of the above. There was nothing different between Fern and her… aside from those very off-putting legs which Fern was very clearly trying her best to look at again when she’d gotten blasted by the sun’s refraction through those giant buggy wings. If this so called Duchess thought that flaunting her family’s achievements was going to scare her, she was dead wrong. But that did give her an idea.

A horrible, humiliating, disgusting idea…

Fern’s own claws sank into the ground beneath her, her tail squeezing tighter against the plush as she braced herself mentally for the horrible thing she had to do. She had no choice, lest she be mauled by those powerful legs. “You know what? You’re right.” She spoke through gritted teeth, squinting and blinking at the floor in hopes to activate the waterworks, “I am simply rotten. Just a cold-hearted bully. Oh your radiant and glorious Duchess, I am so deeply sorry for my rancid attitude! I am truly a monster!” She sniffled, finally feeling the first of many crocodile tears roll down her cheeks as she slowly looked up at the kit before her.

The words felt like slime on her tongue as they rolled around her mouth. Denying her heart. Giving in to… Lies. The most words evil of all. Lies and deception. Toxic scourge of the Earth which she so deeply despised more than anything. She felt so dirty… the kind of dirt that can never be washed away with any kind of soap. Yet it appeared to be working as the kit’s eyelids turned up into the most sanctimonious of smirks.

“So. You have given up the fight I see.” The purple kit asserted triumphantly, voice holding all the chilling calm and vicious pride of a supervillain who had their claws firmly around a hostage’s neck while waiting to be handed the all important MacGuffin by a defeated hero. Though Fern theorised that it probably looked like much the opposite for the other perspective.
“Y-yes… right… I um… I submit to you, your ladyship.” Fern sighed, lifting a paw and lowering her head in a bow of sorts, her chin practically touching the floor given how low her stance was to begin with. There was no point in reasoning with her, it’d be a waste of energy to try to plead to have her case heard and even if she did listen… Fern wasn’t sure she wanted that sensitive information in the hands of someone who would act like this anyway. Someone who seemed so willing to stoop to threats and manipulation by overwhelming the target would likely have no qualms with blackmail, after all. A worry which was only further solidified by the kit’s next few sentences.

“Quit your crying and we will discuss this properly. I expect you have a better attitude than earlier, otherwise another lecture will NOT be your punishment. Do you understand?” To stop crying at this point was easier said than done, that threat of what she could only assume was violence piecing through her chest and causing her metaphorical heart to catch in her mouth. She wasn’t even sure if these tears were fake anymore as she rubbed her face against her sleeve trying to stem the flow to appease her captor. Sputtering out “Yes, your ladyship”s and “I understand, your ladyship”s between wipes. Sweet love, she was shaking so much at this point. She could barely make out her hand each time she removed it from the stability of her face. She just wanted it to be over. She wanted to wake up and realise that she’d fallen asleep on the way to the dance. She wanted to never see this kit again. But she knew that last one was an impossibility living in the den… the tree may be vast but the community within was surprisingly tightly knit. Not to mention she was limited to a certain range away from the den’s sleeping quarters due to the curfews.

“Good. We shall speak about everything, as well as what you have to say, on the way back to the dance.” Fern flinched, back… to the dance? Just to apologise for… not letting herself be forced to do something she didn’t want to do and nipping a situation in the bud before it spiralled, right? Perhaps just her tone. Not… This kit wouldn’t force her to dance for the enjoyment of others… would she? “I'm afraid you have quite the mess to clean up and do not dare try to escape this, because if you do I will find you and once I do so, you will be hounded until you fix this mess you made. This is a fact and a promise. Am I clear with these instructions and this warning?”

Stalking… was she mishearing things or was that an active threat of stalking?! You cannot run. You cannot hide. She suddenly felt the weight of a thousand eyes cast onto her all at once. The seeds of paranoia rooting their way deep into her subconscious. Hounded by who? Just her? How many connections did this kit have? How many eyes now keeping tabs on her for just one stupid little insignificant dance? Would it just be until she apologised to that Melody kit and the other one or was she now a servant to the public under threat of unspeakable violence. That her feelings didn’t matter just as long as she never upset anyone to keep herself was safe. As long as she kept everyone who approached her happy she… she would survive another day unscathed… Just play nice, was that it? A simple enough thought for some but… Fern had never liked people. This situation was getting worse by the second and with the shock of it all, it was a wonder Fern even managed to nod toward the purple kit, let alone squeak out yet another “yes, I understand”…
“Splendid. Now let's get going, the sooner you fix this mess the sooner your free to continue whatever it was you were doing.” It looked as if she was going to start walking for a moment before she stopped, giving a disparaging glance toward Fern’s torso. “Ah, and please give your body a chance to breathe and take off the hoodie once we get there. I admit I admire the lovely patchwork, but it is June, summer has arrived and you are going to die of a heat stroke and turn into a puddle of sweat.”

Before Fern even had a chance for even a slight rebuttal, the six-legged kit finally made a movement toward walking away. At least now the grey kit finally felt able to relax ever so slightly. Standing up and giving her now aching legs a break from the intense crouch she was pressuring them under - or at the very least her front ones as she took to standing upright out of habit. Yet she was only able to take one step forward toward the exit of that tree root prison when she felt a sudden and harsh tug on the fabric of her hoodie.
“D… don’t touch- I can- you don’t-“ she sputtered out on instinct, voice breathy and barely audible as she stared down at the clawed hand digging into fibres of her beloved garment. Pupils constricting as the realisation that she’s just talked back hit her. So focused on the hand that she almost didn’t even notice being given an immediate side-eye from the kit.
“Oh, but I do, dear. Cannot have you running off again now, can we? Now come along, you have an important job to do.”

—

The trudge back to that hall felt like one of the longest journeys of Fern’s life. Trapped to ruminate on her thoughts. About Daffodil. About the kits she’d supposedly hurt. About the situation she was in right now. Sore and tired and yet having to keep pace with the lunatic who was holding her beloved handcrafted hoodie ever so tightly. After all, if she didn’t keep up those claws would have dire consequences in store for her, sharp enough to tear the whole garment apart with minimal effort. The once tranquil silence of the streets was now deafening. Her ears desperately searching for any noise that wasn’t footsteps - however her mind was not soothed as the sounds of the speaker bass came into earshot yet again. And before she knew it… they had arrived.

Stopping abruptly just before the entrance, Fern stumbled slightly to catch herself. Why did they… stop? Feeling those piercing eyes on her once more, she knew she wouldn’t have to wait long for that answer...
“You remember what we discussed about the hoodie, dear?”
“Ah- I-“ Fern’s vocal cords were more tense than they’d ever been within recent memory. That sentence repeating over and over in her head. What they had ‘discussed’… A shared discourse… together. No part of this was ever a discussion… only instructions. Orders. Assumed subordination. Staring down at her beloved hoodie she felt a whole flood of emotions. Fear and rage. Contempt and shame. Which was only made worse by…
“Come on now, off with it. You will quite frankly bake in there.”
She wanted to scream. Scream and kick and shout. Scream for allowing herself to be pushed around by some random kit who was possibly even younger than her… She… She…
“. . .n-no…” escaped her lips, barely audible even to herself so it wasn’t any surprise when the purple kit gave her a look of mild puzzlement.
“What was that, young lady? Speak up. It is impolite to mumble.”
“I-I-I…” Fern gave a hard gulp, attempting to reopen her constricted throat for just long enough to speak, “I… I SAID NO!” She finally snapped, her hand impulsively slamming down against the clawed hand that was gripping the hoodie with such speed and force that it caused the young duchess to recoil in shock. Letting go for brief enough of a moment for the now free kit to leap into a quad stance and escape.

Escape… into the hall.

The sudden overwhelming rush of warmth, sound and light of the room hit her all at once, combined with the adrenaline rush she was already feeling incredibly sick to her stomach. Her nose immediately feeling pressure of breathing from how heavy the air in the room was as it was even without her panicked breaths falling hard and fast. So sudden that in any other situation she may have just frozen on the spot, fallen to the floor and cried until she was taken somewhere quieter by an adult. But not today. Not right now.
Oh, praise be… oh, sweet love… what had she done?! Immediate regret sinking in as she vanished within the crowd - wrapping herself up in a nearby dropped blanket flag to better disguise her form for just a little longer. Safety in numbers… she just needed to disappear.

Though while her body may have been physically disguised that didn’t stop her from being noticed at all. Her frantic glances around the room causing more than a few looks and eventually…
“Hey, are you ok?” A kit approached her to ask, Fern almost bursting into tears on the spot from the shock of it all. She was just about to usher them to go away when she suddenly had an idea.
“U-u-uh… I’m um…” Steady yourself, Fern, it’s ok… “I’m looking for someone actually. Brown, pale muzzle, glasses… uh… Lovely white jumper with little hearts on it?”
“Andi?”
“Yes, yes! Uh… maybe?”
“Ah well, he’s over there by the punch. Was just talking to him actually an-“
“CHEERS!” She called, cutting the poor kit off before they even had a chance to finish as she sprinted away in the direction she was pointed in. Just apologise. The sooner she did that, the sooner she might possibly maybe NOT get murdered under mysterious circumstances? She could only hope. At least this so called ‘Andi’ was a lot closer than she thought he would be…

“Excuse me!”
“Huh? Oh! It’s you again, hello.” The brown kit exclaimed, looking up from where he was refilling his cup from the punch bowl. “Do you need me to move?”
“Y-yes, I mean yes it’s me- no, you don’t have to move- I mean, h-hi!” Fern sputtered out, entirely embarrassing herself by her utter failure to use her mother tongue through all the wild emotions she was having to deal with regarding the whole ‘actively being in danger’ thing. “Uh… I just wanted to say sorry for my tone earlier. My mind was elsewhere and I didn’t mean to come off as rude and I’m sorry if I upset you and-“
“Nah, it’s all good, don’t worry about it. We all have those days.” Andi smiled warmly, expression quickly shifting slightly to concern upon seemingly noticing how Fern kept glancing over her shoulder. “Are you… doing alright there?”
“Y-yeah, I’m just fine, peachy. But uh… thanks for checking up on me… again.” She laughed nervously, flashing her own incredibly awkward smile. “Say… do you know where that very purple kit with the hair curl and scarf is? Um… I think her name was like Medley or Melody or something?” Fern was pacing on the spot at this point, couldn’t stay in one spot talking, had to keep moving. Couldn’t be seen. Couldn’t let her hear her voice.
“Well… ok then.” The brown kit seemed unconvinced but continued anyway. Squinting around the crowd as he scoured the area for the requested kit, “Last time I saw her was… right about… THERE!” He exclaimed, proudly pointing directly at the kit in question, much to Fern’s utter relief.
“Thank you so much, you’re a lifesaver!”
“Don’t mention it. Good luck with whatever you’re doing. Have a nice night!”
“Y-you too!” Fern barely managed to squeeze in one last smile before hurtling toward Melody. Ducking behind other kits as cover yet still hyper aware that at any moment that kit could appear… and she had a sinking feeling that threat of ‘yet’ might just become ‘now’.

Skidding to an abrupt halt in front of the kit with the scarf, Fern fought to catch her breath as she quickly tried to explain herself. Now struggling to speak more than before as she felt a bout of lightheadedness fully settling in. “Hi, I… phew… I um… sweet love sake, let me just…”
“Catch your breath? Of course!” Melody finished her sentence for her, “Are you alright? You need a drink? You look really tired… and sweaty. Mostly tired.”
“No, no, no… I’m… just fine. I just wanted to say sorry… for… for snapping at you earlier…”
“Oh! Right! Don’t worry! You just didn’t want to dance… That’s ok! I didn’t mean to upset you either!” The kit beamed, rocking up and down onto her tip-toes a few times as she spoke. Seemed like all was forgiven but…
“It’s alriiiight… just I- whoa!“ Fern felt herself stumble in place, quickly flicking her feet into a wider position to maintain balance.

Everything was just… so heavy… so bright, so loud… so hot under what was now two layers of not exactly thin clothing... It was getting harder to breathe. The air… just so dense. Her body… so tired… So scared… so… did this room always sway around this much? Out of her left peripheral she could see that duchess kit. Running directly toward her, blurry as she was. Face like thunder. But when Fern tried to will herself to run - to escape her swiftly impending doom - she could hardly feel the world around her anymore…

The last thing she heard was “Are you sure y-” followed by a sharp gasp before feeling a sudden breeze rush against her cheek and then… darkness.

~~~~~~

Bandit
Opium
Melody

36/1147 Acorns