June had run from her house, giddy and beaming with excitement. Belladonna was here! She was coming to play! Oh, it'd been so long since she'd seen her, and she really had missed her. She'd just been waiting, passing the time with herself, doing things all on her own like she usually did. Boredom. No longer did that matter, however, because right past this gate, Bella would be! And they could play and play to their hearts content. Or at least until she went home. June screeched to a stop before she reached the fence, remembering something and running back to her house to grab her favorite toy stuffy. Doge! It'd want to come too. She grabbed it by the back and bound back outside, taking big pawsteps to handle the toy. It wasn't that much smaller than she was, after all! June ran to the metal part of the fence, the chain link that made a gate for her twolegs. She liked this chain link fence since it let her see through and sometimes, she could also wriggle her way through the chain link. Now, she ran to the chain link, dropping Doge before she peered through the holes. Was this... really correct? Did she really see this? Was her eyes playing tricker on her? No. It was real, and her blood froze, ears shooting back against her head. She dared not make a noise, seeing the black-furred cat laying there, calling out to her. Her voice met unhearing ears that blocked out all sounds except for her raging thoughts. She couldn't comprehend the bloodied cat in front of her, lying on the pavement. She didn't want to. She was terrified, more than ever. She stood there, staring in terror, horror. She was helpless. Eventually she just... ran. She just ran. She didn't know what else to do. So, she ran. She ran away from Belladonna, leaving her there and leaving Doge on the ground in the grass, even. She didn't know what happened after she turned around and fled, but she already felt the shame burning on her pelt, but the fear was stronger. She didn't want to see. She ran into her house, the flap slapping shut after her as the kittypet shot under the couch, hiding under the bulky object, trembling. It would all be okay. When she went back outside, it would have just been her imagination, and Bella would be fine. Surely. Please. ------------------------------------ So. This is an AU take on this thread where Junebug's best friend and only friend (for the most part) got hit by a car. It's the only important thing so far that's happened in her life where she'd had to make an important, meaningful decision and this is the other way it could have gone. It leaned more into her fearful side. Helping Belladonna vs. letting her fear overpower her and leaving her. I imagine in this AU June would probably have abandoned friendships and attachments to try and negate any fear she'd have for someone else. This is for the wq, but I think it's cool to think of the different ways it could have gone so I'm really glad I did. Btw the art was made by me with my mouse.
