(Takes place around Petalpassion’s death) The stench hit him. It made him nearly choke. Could anyone tell him why? Could anyone tell him why the scent of blood and venom hung in the air of the Pyroclan camp? Perpendicularparadox could only wonder. A fight? Someone killed a snake? Maybe someone had found a genius way to extract venom from snakes, and now they could use venom to catch prey and kill predators. Nothing could’ve prepared it for what came next. Petalpassion laid there. In the center of all the hubbub. Perpendicularparadox managed to walk up to her. He tilted his head, his mind filled with nothing but pure curiousity and confusion. He placed his paw on her body, letting out a “hmm?” Sound. The trickling blood clung to his paw. It took it a moment to notice. He pulled back. That was the moment everything changed. Only now, had he noticed how lifeless, how terrifyingly still Petalpassion was. It shook its head. No. He was seeing wrong. He rubbed his odd eyes. He blinked once. Twice. Three times. Nothing changed. She laid still. She was right in front of him, but yet, she felt so distant. Perpendicularparadox tried to calm itself. This was a joke. Any moment now, Petalpassion was going to wake up. She’s fine. She’s just tired. This was a dream. Any moment now, he was going to wake up. He’s fine. It’s just tired. But for every positive thought, for every attempt to escape the truth, his breath came in a bit shorter, its heart beat a second faster, and the ground beneath his paws spun another circle. A rumbling started in his chest. It started as a raspy whimper, but it grew. It grew louder and louder, more and more desperate, until it became a wail. A long, mournful wail. How? He had seen Petalpassion in camp, just fine a bit ago. It must have been that snake. He wanted to feel angry. It wanted to run outside, and start searching for that scaly murderer. But it couldn’t. All it could manage to do was sit near Petalpassion, and wait, tears streaming out of his eyes.
