"What the fuck are you doing here." I growled.

"I came to finish what I started." She sneered, ichor dripping from her now near-completely covered mouth , "But it looks like that whiny sea-worm is taking care of that for me!" She leapt off the house, landing squarely in front of me. For every step she made towards me, I took another backwards.

"This isn't like you. This isn't like the Petite I know at all!" I managed to choke out. She only scoffed. "What happened to you?" She growled at me. Lower and harsher than any sound my doggy vocal chords could ever hope to make.

"I already told you what those filthy humans did to me-"

"No!" I interrupted her, clamping my muzzle shut as soon as I realized what i'd done.

"What." She stopped dead in her tracks. Fuck , was I in for it now. "I was enlightened! I was shown by Whittney that the only thing humans are good for is to use you and leave you when you need them most!" I swallowed, bracing myself for what was probably going to be the dumbest thing i've done yet.

"No, I meant what happened between when you got that concussion and when I came to visit you at the healers!" I stated, trying to keep the waver out of my voice by bolstering fake confidence. A bubble formed in the sludge covering the side of her face, letting me see her eye.

It looked like she wanted to cry. That's when it all fit together.

"Petite!" I cried out, "I know you're in there! Fight it, damn you!" I barely sidestepped in time to dodge a lunge. I prepared for more attacks, but she didn't move from where I was just standing. She shook, like she was caught in an earthquake only she could feel. Her mouth hung open, letting the goo fall out like drool. "Tell me now, while you still can!" I pleaded, praying to every deity I knew of and then some that she could. She choked up more ichor from deeper inside her body, shiny red streaks laced through the puddle forming at her feet. I tried not to think about it.

"Ghhhch..." She tried speaking, but another bubble formed over her mouth. She kept going as it popped, distorting her words. "Cahts... Heahd... hurrts..." Was all I could decipher before the slime seemed to gelatinize around her and stick even harder than before.

"Petite?!" I had to physically restrain myself, biting my tongue to jolt myself from getting closer. As much as I desperately wanted to help my friend, I had to remember that for all intents and purposes she wasn't anymore. This proved to be the right action as she let out an indragon screech, gurgling violently as she started stalking towards me. I stumbled over the dropped scale, forgotten in the encounter up to this point. My brow furrowed and tail swished. "God damn it Petite, I don't have time for this!" I barked, unexpected anger reaching a boiling point.

"Yes you do!" 'Petite' taunted.

"Back to full sentances! Wow." I snarked, repositioning the scale with my paws so I didn't have to break eye contact. "As a matter of fact, I fucking don't! So either get out of my way or help me with this." I growled, shifting the scale over one paw.

"I will be doing no such thing!" She scoffed, shaking off the last of the excess goop. She made another leap at me, but I actually managed to dodge properly for once, grabbing the scale in my teeth and preparing to bolt. 'Petite's movements became erratic and wild, as I managed to run in circles around her. I spat out the scale behind her and tackled her, tugging at one of the only spots free of sludge at the base of her wings.

"Giff uhp!" I growled as she tried bucking me off. I only bit harder, almost puncturing the soft flesh stretched out between the digit and bone. She shrieked. "Yuh haff hurr mem'ries don ya?!" I said through the mouthful of scales. "Yu oh me!"

"I owe you nothing!" She screeched.

"Yesh yu do!" I let go of her wing to growl in her ear. "When I visited you in the healer's hut you said that 'cause I saved YOUR life, you would 'be of service' or whatever! So BE OF SERVICE!" She yowled angrily and bucked me off, holding the wing I injured tenderly as she glared daggers my way. I glared back, almost snarling. The same flash of familiarity danced in her eyes, as the sludge moved to muzzle her. It was a miracle I didn't hurl again right there and then.

Petite dropped to the ground, hacking the pollution up once again. "Ghett... Ohn!" She pleaded. She didn't have to tell me twice. I snatched up North's scale and carefully attached myself between her wings, trying my best to ignore the mucus. She was shaky and stumbled, but she got a running start and leapt into the air regardless. I gently nudged her wings to get us moving in the right direction. "Pehhp, m'suh sorry..." She mumbled, dropping sludge into the earth beneath.

"...Meeh tuu." I said, clutching the scale as tight as my jaw would allow so that it wouldn't get taken by the wind. I wanted to duck my head, but aerodynamics dictated that to be a shit idea. "Cuhld'ha helphed yu."

"Nuh... Cahts cayme... In nihte. Weerd rohk."

"Yu duhno whuh id'did?" I asked, marvelling at our shared ability to speak through things.

"Nuh... Hrk-!" She choked on more gunk, and I had to cling even tighter to her as she struggled to regain balance through her coughing fit. "S'rryh... Can' holdon... Ny'mohr..." We balanced out despite dropping several feet and lowering still. I could see the dragons and North, still fighting but both parties tired. There were dips and crevasses blown into the sand and outcropping, an entire chunk of Petite's cave knocked in.

"Cn'ya lehmme ohff firsh?!" I tried grabbing her wings to control her, but to no avail. We crashed headfirst into the sand, me dropping the scale and Petite already lost to the cats again. She was spitting and snarling, but luckily our impromptu sand-angel caught enough attention that she immediately backed up.

"You're dead." She spat, scrambling to fly away.

"Was dead, bitch. Past tense." I shot back, snorting sand out of my nose. She hissed and flew off as B.B., still carting the twins, rushed to me.

"Pepper what in the name of all that is-" he fretted, sheilding me from more sand being picked up from all the flying with a wing.

"Not the time man!" I cut him off, looking for the scale. I spotted it upended a solid half foot away from the landing zone. I scurried over, grabbing it despite his protests. Ruffnut said something to Tuffnut, but I couldn't hear. The sun was almost setting now, I was running out of time. Darting over to the closest spot I could get in front of North without getting slammed by a wayward blast, I stuck it back in the ground and tilted it, trying to catch any light I could.

"Hey!" Hookfang cried indignantly as I accidentally caught him in the face.

"Move it! I'm trying to blind a serpent here!" I hollered at him. I'll apologise for real later. The others heard me this time and listened, falling back from North's general face area. I got him in the eye just barely. He roared in annoyance, completely ready to shoot me.

"Dame Pepper?"

"Fuckin' finally." I huffed. I turned around to give the dragons a tail-waggle. "I got it from here, guys!"

"Thou art with these dalcops?!" He sputtered as he sank back into the blue. I trotted up to him, getting my paws wet.

"Uh, yeah, those 'dalcops'? Kinda my family you're whaling on there." I deadpanned.

"A thousand pardons! I had no imagining they stood with thee-" I cut him off with a groan.

"Ugh, dude, listen. There's a lot to catch you up on." I nodded my head towards the dragons and the riders, staring dumbfounded on the beach behind me.

"Wanna apologise to them first?"

Author's Note:

Sorry for the little chapter delay! I've kinda been fighting the ff app since it updated and it started fucking over my formatting at every opportunity. Anyone else who uses it having trouble with it putting spaces wherever it damn well pleases? I'm gonna find another app that actually works until staff replies to me about that. If anyone has any suggestions on that you know where and how to hit me up.

In other news... My birthday has come and gone between this chapter and the last! Whee. Dancing Queen finally applies to me. Man I hate aging. On the bright side I go t to preorder Animal Crossing New Horizons with my birthday money though! Not too hyped over the whole "only one island per switch rah rah buy more switches" thing but hey. Capitalism. Whattrya gonna do.

Story news! The steak hits the pan! It'll be done frying when it's done frying! Weird analogy! But for real there was a lot of buildup and we got some things squared away here finally. And we'll get more things squared away next time! AND THEN WE COOK THE OTHER SIDE OF THE STEAK! Get excided because I've served you your salad and biscuits and thats just two outta the seven course meal and hoo baby save room for that peptol bismol and tums.

Ok this is getting even weirder can I stop with the food stuff now?

Let's see. Where can I squeeze in a please and thank you for reviewing this fanfiction? I don't wanna stick it in the birthday news... I really don't wanna stick it in the food bit... Is it kinda implied at the end of the app complaint? Whatever it'll just be it's own thing. Please review! Please! Please let me read what you think! I'm dying here! I'm dying, Squirtle! Rudy, you gotta draw something! Like, zoinks, Scoob! I need healing! Do a barrel roll, press A to shoot!

-Carly