Chapter Text
Poppy grunted in pain and surprise as Koa pinned her against the stalagmite with her boot. The wind was forced out of her so suddenly that she was wheezing for air, though the weight of Koa’s shoe did not help. Once she got in a gasp of air, she looked to Koa, but flinched at the anger in the woman’s features.
“DON’T! GET CUTE WITH ME!” Koa growled. “I owe you nothing!! If anything, you owe me! You’re the one who betrayed me! I gave you my trust on a silver platter, and you stabbed me in the back! And you call it ‘sacrifice?!’ You know nothing of sacrifice!”
Koa growled and shifted her foot to force the doll onto her back on the cavern floors. Poppy clawed at the boot in desperation, but it had no effect. DogDay, CatNap, Kissy Missy, and the Ruined Critters all watched in surprised shock, though they understood Angel’s anger.
“You may have warned us of the dangers that we’re about to face, Poppy, but that doesn’t mean you have my trust. I made a mistake trusting you so easily in the first place. I won’t make the same mistake twice. I trust them,” she gestured to the others, “because I know DogDay, Kissy had three opportunities to attack me, the first two times she didn’t take them, and the third time she backed off. And I was there when the Prototype betrayed CatNap. You can’t fake that kind of pain. You on the other hand, hid in the shadows while I did all the heavy lifting.”
Koa paused. Realization flooded her features faster than a heartbeat. Poppy flinched and wheezed when Koa put a little more pressure onto her body.
“Now that I think about it, we don’t really need you now, do we?” Koa growled in a suggestive tone. “DogDay, CatNap, Kissy, and now the Little Critters are willing to help me. Seems to me I have all the help and support I need. I don’t really need you, now do I? Maybe I should just do you in right now! For all the deaths and pain you’ve caused to those people and to me!”
Getting the message, Poppy tried to struggle from under the human’s foot, but Koa was putting too much weight on the porcelain doll. She looked to the others for support, though she knew by know it was pointless. As expected, they all just watched with anticipation.
“Hmm,” Koa hummed in thought. “Though… you’re so lucky I’m not stupid or unreasonable. Instead, for now, you live. But don’t think for a second that you won’t get some kind of punishment for what you’ve done. You say you want the Prototype dead for what he has done? What about you, huh? You killed innocents too. You are just as twisted and sadistic as the Prototype. So don’t think you’re off the hook.”
Koa removed her foot from Poppy, who gasped for air as Koa knelt down above her.
“Like I said, I don’t trust you. And that means I can’t trust you won’t… run off on us and hide like you have been,” Koa growled.
Before Poppy could react, Koa had her right ankle in her grasp, and with a swift flick of the wrist, the sounds of crunching bones and Poppy’s screams echoed the caverns as Koa dislocated her ankle and crushed a few bones in her foot. Once her now injured foot was released, Poppy cried and whimpered as she nursed her leg. A shadow loomed over her, forcing her to look up at Koa once again.
“That’s just a warning, Poppy. If you try anything, you give us away, or you say anything out of line, I will bleed you dry and leave your sorry corpse to be picked off by whatever finds you first.”
Poppy gulped with a nod, and Koa stood up and walked away from the pathetic, pitiful display the doll was giving. Once Koa rejoined the others, who comforted her as the scene had worn her out emotionally, Poppy rolled over to her side, her back facing the group, tears streaming down her face.
Though they were not tears of guilt or pain. They were tears of fear.
Once Koa rejoined the others and settled down against a large rock, she held her hand to her forehead and gave a heavy, tired sigh.
DogDay reacted first, sitting next to Koa and huddled close. Koa caught DogDay’s vanilla scent and relaxed by degrees. Her nose then picked up the sent of lavender, though it smelt slightly burnt. The slight sound of purring echoed around her. Koa looked over and saw CatNap lying next to her. She then felt long arms wrapping carefully around her from behind. She looked over her shoulder and saw Kissy. Koa then noticed that the little Ruined Critters started to huddle around her as well.
Koa gave a small sigh and said quietly, “thanks, guys.”
They gave a silent, understanding smile in response.