PA 3.5: End of a Tail

Chapter XXXVI Part VII

The oozing conflict from Patches waxed into evident displeasure. "Yes, I guess you can say goodbye before we go." He tilted towards Shie, Sam losing his composure as the blade nicked him just a bit.

"Canna?" They asked, sidling up to the long-eared junior and placing a paw onto hers. "I want to k-know... um."

Occasionally, the flow of movement halted- looking towards Patches and his pockets, then back up to her.

"Do you..." they brought their mouth inward, hushed now, "... trust Patchie? W-With me?"

She took a thin shot of air through her muzzle, registering the question and the firm upward stare from Shie. "As long as we have the wand... he won't hurt us, but, sweetheart..." Their big eyebrows shifted, and they kneeled down a foot to match Olive's bashfulness.

"Oh..." they trailed their paws towards Canna, arms slowly curling inward and wrapping around the dog. "I'm sorry for a-all of this."

"Don't apologise," Canna replied, soothing them with a pat on the shoulder. "There's nothing about this that's your fault."

"I k-know but," Olive murmured, leaning in as potential built up in them. "But, I want you to know I feel bad, I feel bad, and I want to help. I w-want to make a choice that helps you."

"Olive," she lamented, "You're just a pup, please, don't blame yourself for this. We won't let you get hurt by him, me and Shie have a plan."

They wandered their paw down, slumping either as the hug diffused. "D-Do you really think he'd h-hurt me?"

Their dry jowls stuck together as Canna opened her mouth. Thick eyebrows contorted, then shifted with the swivel of her eyes. He was just sitting there, trying to ignore the conversation, trying and failing; his paws were still clinging to that blade, though now it laid at the dog's side, rather than to Sam's neck. He kept nibbling at his cheek, eyes darting between everyone, eager to leave.

"We can't take that chance," she started, raising herself up and firmly returning the hug. "You'll be safe, I promise."

"Want to say bye to him too, Olive?" Patches asked, gesturing to Sam.

"Um!" Olive began, wiping at the back of their paw nervously. "N- I- Uh, we..."

"Sam, it's Sam. We've never met." The cat stated.

"B-Bye Sam!" They waved from their hip. "O-Oh, and... I think you made the a-announcement? That's against the r-rules I think, but, t-thank you, I hope that saved some p-pups and c-cats."

"Yeah, okay, please don't get me killed in exchange?" he replied.

Olive smiled back at him, then at Patches. That curt, adorable smile rose from their chest. "Patchie, c-can I say something?"

He grumbled, dirt tumbling around in his mind at the nickname coming up so frequently. "Bleh, fine, go ahead."

"It's to y-you," they added.

Patches frowned, his brows sinking, then floating to the top as frustration came and went. "Yes, what is it Olive," he sighed.

They shut their eyes and exhaled. When their eyes reopened, they only came halfway, and the pup's eyebrows jut forward in an alien expression. "Patches!" They spat. "You keep h-hurting people, and it's just m-made things worse and worse! Just let the p-pups and cats in the school go, okay? P-Please?"

He narrowed his cheeks and sunk his gaze into the dark of his bangs. "What are you talking about, Olive."

"What?" Sam asked, "Why'd you say it like that?" The cat's palms angled down, closer towards his hips and pockets.

In a lengthy flourish for attention, Patches whipped up to the cat's throat with the knife. The tip bit into him, an invisible length of red trailing from the needle-like graze. Sam hissed and balled his shoulders up trying to defend himself against the perceived attack.

"Sam!" Shie bellowed. "Get away from him!"

"Or what?!" Patches yelled. "You're always making threats, always trying to get a leg up on me, but never willing to sacrifice your weaknesses. If I had your girlfriend, you'd be putty in my paws, wouldn't you be, 'sweetheart'?"

Shie hissed, crumpling their mittens into fists, daring themselves to strike the dog.

"S-Shie?" Canna murmured, raising the wand like it had any power as a blunt weapon, and readying to bat it at Patches.

They subtly nodded, then raised their head up. "Canna, I love you."

Attentive to the signal, Canna lowered the wand, and squeezed their lungs empty. "I love you too," they replied with a nod.

Then the coils in Olive's heels sprang out, their teeth the speartip that chomped her paw. She jolted, allowing just enough leeway for the red mutt to lunge away, carrying the wand close to their chest like a bundle of books as they ran headlong towards the main exit.

"Olive!? What the-" Patches stammered, "Stop running or I'll-"

The pup was full-blown sobbing, their tail stock still and jabbing into the air. Their composure revealed itself. "I-I'm sorry C-Canna!" they paced backwards, ignoring the flashing of the blade. "P-Patchie, I- W-We're gunna go chase!" they said, waggling the wand around in the air to display it to the incredulous dalmatian.

Shie paused, the dental floss wrapped between their paws as they were in awe of the dog, so much so that they stopped their attempted choking to observe the small thing turn their tail and scamper off down a hall. "Chase, chase!" they shouted, all the way towards a cat demon that had been peeking its eyes around the corner, lying in wait. The long hungry claws clattered against the school concrete as their intent grew closer to the mutt.

They scream-panted, and lept to the side, narrowly avoiding the wide sweep and slipping down another one of the endless winding corridors held in the eastern part of the school. "HELP ME PATCHIE I'M SORRY!" they bellowed.

Sam's laboured breaths came just as Patches withdrew the blade and dashed at them, hyper-aware of the paper and glass their body was made out of. "S-Stay right there, or I'll come back with the wand and kill all of you!" The empty threat was brief, and the dog took off without another curse in the direction of his 'friend'.

Shie dashed forward to Canna once the dalmatian had turned away, checking her for wounds. "Are you okay?" they asked, "Did... Did they bite you?"

"I'm fine- they," she looked at the little toothy marks, "They bit me?"

"They took the wand!" Sam cheered, "They took the fucking wand, and now Patches gets to have it again when they die, great!"

"Uhm, hon?" Shie whispered. "If you're not hurt, we should go. There are ghosts everywhere- we have to leave."

Canna grit their teeth. "But- Olive?"

Shie replied in a grimace and teetering words. "I have to make the call. Whatever Patches wants with them, they could've killed them a dozen times now. This is the first real chance to escape." They looked over to Sam, raising an eyebrow.

"Holy cats," Sam cried, "I guess that's just it now! I guess..." He scoffed, "I guess we leave."

"Sam, are you fine?" Canna asked, "You're-" she dotted a line across her neck.

The cat brought a paw up to their neck, squishing the blood in their palm. "I'm fine. Just pissed that was our last chance to really kick the shit out of that guy."

Shie shook their head. "I don't mind the swearing, but could you be less rude?"

The open challenge killed most of the cat's enthusiasm. What vigour left in his tired eyes was dwindling, marked by the slack in his shoulders. "I'm going to stab you."

"Um, Sam?" Canna asked, nudging the cat. "Shie?"

Both students followed her pointer finger to the crack in the nurse's room. The large plywood door strained on its hinges, the sweltering and heaving form of a black poodle crawled from behind it.

"Luna!" Shie darted forward, moving to catch the dog from her inevitable fall. "Are you okay?"

She startled, digging her claws into the corners of the metal doorway. Finding herself now off-kilter in the wrong direction, stumbled and was barely righted by Canna tossing aside the door and throwing herself onto the ground belly first.

 Canna's red ascot licked dirt off of the floor, and Luna fell right onto the plush back of the older dog. Both let air like a pair of pillows colliding, but it was better than the concussion she would have otherwise suffered.

Shie jumped up with a smile. "Great catch, Canna!"

Her body melted onto the floor like discarded gum, an arm raising up from the blob to give a thumbs up.

Despite the effort, Luna spat and coughed, clutching her wound and sailing the edge of consciousness.

Sam cringed at the mewling pup. He maintained eye contact with Shie in a suddenness that passed like a hushed flame. With it, the cat cursed and kneeled, wrapping the junior's left arm around his neck, while the german shepard did the same- both cat and dog careful not to touch her wounds, or each other.

"You know," Shie murmured, "We can hold her if we wrap our arms together like-"

"Nope," he hissed, "Not happening."

Canna curled into a grovel, peeling her snout off of the floor as her head followed her hips into a kneel. Arms forward, she raised herself up and wiped a candy wrapper from her forehead.

"Front door, c'mon." Sam grunted, hefting the infirm like a log.