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 Posted: Mon Aug 12, 2013 12:51 am
 Owl did not know what to really expect as she went deeper into the shrine, to its center. But she went, without asking any questions - why would she? - and approached the statues. Err, statue? Wait. There was only one? No, that wasn't right. There were two. But one was... empty.
Like she was.
The thought flitted away so quickly, Owl had no time to comprehend what it meant or where it came from. Instead she blinked at the Goddess speaking.
And now she had a bag.
"What... do I-" Oh. She was to open it. Doing as she was instructed, Owl opened the bag to reveal... nothing. Frowning slightly, she glanced back up at the Goddess. "You can?" Well, that was pleasant to know. Right? "The special labs? I can get them." That was no problem. It wasn't like she minded or had anywhere else to be. Owl nodded in understanding as she was handeded scissors. "The heart. Got it."
Turning on her heel, Owl headed towards the tiny opening. She squeezed through it, squinting in the darkness and trying to see. Her nose wrinkled as three doors came into focus. Moving closer, she brushed her fingers along the first. Simple. That was... the feeling?... she got from the door. With the pumpkin. Pumpkin? How had she known that?
Shaking her head, Owl moved to the second and did the same thing. This one made her feel strange. And a little uncomfortable. Quickly moving off to the last door, her hand didn't even raise to touch the door. Just standing before it made her skin crawl and something in her howl. Yet there was something familiar about the... dark feelings. It confused her. But... maybe... She wasn't sure what all went through her head or prompted the choice, but with determination, Owl pushed open the third door.
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Posted: Mon Aug 12, 2013 1:26 am
Silence. It was absolutely silent. Chills went all up and down her spine and she jumped slightly at distant sounds of thuds. But when the door slammed shut behind her, Owl squeaked and literally jumped a good foot in the air. She was plunged in darkness and felt... something. She couldn't find the word to describe the feeling, but it felt like her... her heart was racing.
"H-Hello... ?" She whispered, not hearing anything but those thuds. Hand reaching out, Owl started a slow shuffle forwards to try and make her way down the hallway.
And smacked right into an object. Owl yipped, stumbled back, and somehow managed to stay on her feet. Shaking it off, she inched forward until her hands ran along the object. It was large. And square shaped? Crate. It was a crate! And it was completely in her way.
Huffing, she tried to see if there was any possible way to squeeze around it, and found the top of the crate was opened. Freezing, Owl stared at the top, the chills worsening as something stuck out of the crate, bathed in red. Of course, instead of moving away, she moved closer. Closer... what was it? Was it an arm? It kind of looked like one. Without knowing why, her hand shot out to grasp it, locking around the object.
And the thudding stopped.
Oh thank Jack for that!
Maybe, some other time, she'd have wondered about the phrase. But she had something else on her mind. Like what was in this crate. How she was going to get it out of her way. How it felt funny when she touched it. But was still very much in her way.
A sound. Owl leaned her head closer, listening. Heart. It was a heart! That's what she needed! The soft bump of the bag against her side reminded her of this. She wasn't sure how long she actually sat there, leaning over the top of the crate and debating how best to achieve her goal, before the reminder of the scissors came. And then it was fairly easy to figure out how to take the scissors and work them into the object.
Suddenly, a piercing feeling lit up along her arm, as whatever she held clawed into her. Owl would have fallen back, if she hadn't been poised with scissors implanted in said object.
"Skeeeeeeter!"
Owl froze, every part of her dull being going stone cold. It felt like the pit of her existence had just fallen out her body. She waited, unaware of how rapidly she was breathing. But the... thing remained silent from then on.
Vaguely, she thought her hand may have tried slipping inside to snatch the heart quickly. Only to fail. More work. More prying. More digging. Strange feelings and sensations as she continued her task. Even stranger things in the way. Until finally, finally, after much determination and hard work - she'd had to use both hands and a little leverage with her legs - there was a 'plopping' sound. And the heart was hers.
Reaching into the very bottom of the crate, she grasped the heart. It beat once. And then nothing.
Something - Owl didn't know what it was - made her feel off. Feel... almost sick. She was glad she couldn't see quite well-
... A creature. Furred and crimson in color. Almost the twin to another.
A sneeze.
And a tiny boy sat on the floor. Hair as crimson as the fur before.
He grinned hugely at her, and tossed flopped beside where she lay.
It was sleepy times for little pups.
Especially the youngest two...
Owl's hand shook, the memory fading slowly. It meant something! She knew it did! But... she just couldn't grasp what. And the darkness around her was almost too much. She slipped the heart carefully into the bag and quickly moved away from the crate. And whatever its contents had been.
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Posted: Mon Aug 12, 2013 1:45 am
Okay. She wanted out of here. She wanted to just return to the Goddess and hand over the heart, like she needed. Not... this. Whatever 'this' was. Even the ground was changing! Owl didn't know the exact way to describe how it felt, but the few times she slipped, it felt sticky.
She shuddered.
And came to a dead end.
Again.
Slosh slosh thump.
All those chills she'd had before came back in full force. Shrinking down into herself, Owl peered hesitantly over her shoulder. But there was nothing. Swallowing, she headed in another direction, hand making a fist and that prickling feeling against her back worsening.
"Please give it back."
There may have been a tiny noise that escaped her lips. Shaking, again, Owl looked behind her. But there was nothing! This... this... nope. Just walk. That was what she was going to do. "Walking." She whispered, to try and hear something other than... whatever that was. But her movements were getting slower as the water got deeper. It unnerved her and made travel a pain. By the time she was neck deep and almost treding water, she couldn't go any farther. Owl turned to move back...
"Please give me back my-"
... and hands had a hold of her. Before she could even struggle or make a sound, she was being pushed down. She couldn't breathe! Couldn't move. No matter how much she tried to struggle. Until she saw the eyes. And felt the pain as she was pushed further... further... those teeth...
"Give me back my heart."
No!
"C'mon, Skeet! Show me again!"
She sighed dramatically, tail swishing as she moved to stand beside her brother. With a few pushes and shoves, she had him standing in an awkward position that was the starting pose for the dance she had been working on.
"Now... do what I do, bro!" With a giggle, she was moving fluidly to a soft tune playing in the background. "That's right! Move your left leg out. And spin once. Bow down. Back up!"
"I'm dancin'! Look at me dance!" Her brother beamed, tail wagging like the puppy he always would be.
She laughed, moving around him and with him as they danced. She heard chuckling somewhere around the corner, but she didn't care! They were having fun and she got to practice!
Until one of them tripped and dragged the other down too.
And then two became several and everything began to blur...
Brother...
There was nothing left. Or at least very little. Except the precious memory. And those deep, grey, glassy eyes.
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Posted: Mon Aug 12, 2013 1:55 am
There... was no choice. No other way things could be. She had the memory. That would have to be enough. The memory and a face. A feeling to go with that face. But now, at this time, there was only one option open to her.
Owl gritted her teeth, and gave one last struggle. She had to exist. For the Goddesses. And the Blessings!
Her hand curled tightly around the object she'd carried the entire time. Given to her by the Goddess. She didn't have to think, just reacted. With as much force as her body could muster, Owl slammed the scissors into the figure, her eyes resolute.
The shriek that emitted hurt her ears and made a part of her feel heavy.
And then they were gone.
And so was the water.
Sputtering, and gasping in lungfuls of air, Owl sat up. She coughed up more and more water, coughing even more at the wretched taste. Her breathing was labored and harsh.
A light. There was a light!
Owl blinked rapidly at it, wiping a hand across her face to make sure she was really seeing it. That was all she needed for reassurance. Scrambling to her feet and making sure she had a death grip on her bag, Owl ran towards the door. She glanced over her shoulder as her body prickled. For one... brief moment, she thought she saw something.
Him. The figure. The one she'd fought. She didn't know if she'd really seen it or not, but the seconds that it had taken to glance and bolt, it had sure looked like he'd been holding her scissors.
Shuddering, Owl pushed through the door as swiftly as was possible.
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