I got up, to the protests of Kit 1. "Owlheart told us-"

"Owlheart isn't here! And that might be bad!"

We were silent again, exchanging looks. "We're just two kits though.." I admitted, rubbing my arm. Kit 1 seemed to agree with the sentiment - reluctantly. We wouldn't be able to fend off for ourselves like this if something were to happen. I felt odd. Unsure. I wish Owlheart could've been telling us what to do in moments like these.

"Well.." Kit 1 stood up as well. "We can still do exactly like they said! If there's something bad we run off immediately! Sooo.." they held their tail precariously. And it sounds good to me.

"Are you sure this is the entry?"

"Well Owlheart stopped here, so.. It must be here somewhere.."

We scoured around with our small, naked claws. I smelt something. It smelled familiar, but I couldn't describe why. I also couldn't describe it as pleasant.. My foot touched something sticky.

"Euhck!"

"What? What is it?" Kit 1 rushed to my side as I looked at the bottom of my foot, toes curling in disgust. The substance was dark, and had somewhat dried - though not fully, making it tacky and coagulated to the touch. "Ew.. What if it's contagious?" Kit 1 immediately began foaming up, and I felt a growl rise from my throat as they spat on my foot. "EW!" Shaking my foot, I shoved them away from myself. "I could've used my own poison on it!"

"Well I got it first! You're welcome!"

"Ew!"

Hissing them off, I crouched to examine the sticky substance further. The smell.. It..

"Hey.. Where is this coming from?" I trailed my pointing finger to a crack in the wall. "Do you see that?"

"We could fit through there!" Kit 1 carelessly skittered over, their feet too now getting coated in the substance. I felt my lip curl in disgust. I still struggled to consider this creature as one of myself sometimes..

"Okay, well I'm using my poison for your foot then. It's only fair." I crawled after them, and we entered a tunnel of sorts. Dark, but light was coming ahead.

"Mine's better!"

"But nows my turn to spit on your foot!"

"Says who!"

"Says Fairness! You spat on my foot, I'll spit on-Ahk-!"

I stumbled across something in the dark, and Kit 1 scurried over to my side quickly. I felt more.. Sticky. There was a lump on the floor. It had weird outlines in the dim light, it's textures both soft and squishy, hard and smooth.

We stood still, staring at it. Making sure our eyes were seeing and minds were understanding what it was. It's mouth loosely hanging agape, shriveled up lips stained dark. Unmoving, ending in half. Unlike any other persons we'd seen so far. Why

Why

That's not normal

Why

Why is it like that

Kit 1 kicked it, and I hissed as if it could jump up right then and eat us both alive. But it didn't. It didn't move. At all.

"KITS?!"

We both jumped, hissing, crouching into threat position at the sudden noise, when we saw Owlheart stopped further down the tunnel. Recognizing them, Kit 1 jumped up again in relief, and I did too, but.. I felt weak. My eyes couldn't find themselves away from the still, stiff thing we were standing by.

The next few moments went by as a flash, and I didn't properly register it until we were outside again. Owlheart beelining towards us. Being grabbed and dragged off. Kit 1's protests and squeaks. The ground dragging my soft skin as we were wrangled away. The sticky stuff on me. Stuck. Stained. Cold.

Owlheart all but shoved us back into our hiding place, and I almost thought to fear they were angry before I looked in their face. It wasn't angry, but the emotion was bigger than I knew to recognize yet. It resembled fear.

"I told you both to STAY PUT! What were you doing in there!? What were you doing with- looking at-" they heaved, sounding out of breath and ragged. "What was it?" I asked, my voice stuttering. I winced back as Owlhearts eyes laser focused onto me, and it felt so sharp and painful somehow that I felt afraid I'd asked. The look in their eyes, as if I'd pulled a tooth. Kit 1 cowered next to me, having probably seen it too. Owlheart sat there, claws digging into the ground. Heaving.

"We need to go. We're leaving."

"What?"

"But what about the garden?"

They didn't respond. Kit 1 grabbed onto me for courage (they borrow it sometimes, say I don't use it). "Why didn't you let us in there, we got worried about you and we-"

"We're not going in there! We're leaving! No more garden! We'll find another! We need to go." Owlheart screeched, their voice raspy and bloody. It sounded like a wet wound.

"But isn't this Your garden, we really wanted to-"

"Stop talking."

Owlheart spat it out, like the bloody tooth I'd just pulled by asking them, like they'd have choked on it if they didn't. I saw something flaring up under their robe, making them look bigger. It rattled, and Owlheart scattered away, clutching their hood with both claws. We both balled up, hearts beating in our ears. I felt Kit 1 curl up against me, and I watched on as Owlheart walked in aggressive circles a distance away before crumbling to their hands and knees. Screaming, before the noise died. Because we all knew better than to make ourselves known to whatever lurked out there.

I don't think Owlheart slept much that night.

I almost didn't want to, either. I felt like I needed to apologise, but I didn't know what of.