I curled up behind my stakeout. This was all so shocking…

"Hey Rufioh, do you see that spot in the bushes?"

"Yeah. Probably just that nut beast that lives next door. Little guy likes to crawl around over there."

"I don't think nut beasts have blue tails."

"Oh. Wait a second... Oh my god…"

I didn't notice the two talking about my hiding spot until it was too late.

Rufioh peeked over the bush and glared. "Meulin! What the heck are you doing behind here?"

I flinched as I rolled over to look up at him. "Huh? Oh… I guess I was hunting and I thought I'd take a rest behind this bush here."

"Where's your kill?"

"Oh. It's been a furry unpurrductive night so far."

"I thought you were with Damara."

"No. She had to go back to her hive, and she had impurrtant things to deal with."

"Why is there a camera in your bra?"

"Can't a girl take up a new hobby without being questioned about it?"

He grimaced at me. "Meulin be honest. Why are you back here?"

I frowned harshly and sat up, brushing the leaves out of my hair. "Okay okay, you got me. Damara asked me to spy on you for her and headed home earlier tonight."

"And the camera?"

"Purroof."

"Proof? Uh… Meulin you didn't!"

I puffed out some air from my diaphragm. "Rufioh, she has a right to know!"

"Meulin, give me that camera." He reached for it, but I brushed his hand off. I was giving him the evil eye now.

"Rufioh, she's going to find out one way or another. There's nothing mew can do or say that will stop me."

"Maybe I can't stop you," He said, "But Horuss can."

He glanced back and motioned for Horuss to come over. That's when I flung myself off the ground and ran.

Horuss was chasing after me, quickly gaining, but he was no match. I had lived in these forests for years, I knew every shrub and tree.

"You sneaky low blood, get back here now!"

"Nefur!" I had yelled, quickening my pace. Up ahead was a huge block, a fallen tree that had long been there. Mold was growing on the side, meaning I couldn't climb it. If I didn't jump high enough, I'd surely be caught. But really, what choice did I have?

I ran at it head on, and pushed one back paw as hard as I could off the ground. I just barely made it. Landing on the top of the tree, the breath was knocked out of me, but I scrambled over it rentlessly and dropped to the other side. I had laid back against the tree and tried to catch my breath. I didn't even notice that Horuss was clumsily circling around until it was too late.

My eyes turned into slits. My immediate reaction was to flee, but as I lifted off the ground and started to fly, he grabbed me at the waist and hoisted me down.

"Give me the camera Leijon," He had said. I glared at him and clawed and pushed, giving everything I could to get away. To no avail, he stood and held me, until Rufioh had flown over.

"Come on doll, just give it up."

"Never!" I screeched, clawing and kicking at Horuss. He was much too strong though, there was no way I could get free.

"Damara doesn't need to know about this Meulin, please. Just hand me the camera." The anger from his voice was completely gone. In its place was more of a pleading tone.

"She already knows Rufioh," I had said, still trying to get free.

"She… Does?"

"No Durr! She's not stupid, purractically efurybody knows about it."

He frowned and looked down. I could have sworn that there were liquid brown tears welled up in his eyes, but he quickly wiped them away.

"Let me go Horuss!" I was now focused on getting free. The sooner Damara knew, the sooner she could start to heal.

He just looked down at me with the same pleading that Rufioh had spoken with. As much as I pitied them both, they had brought this on themselves.

"Meulin, please. Just delete them." Horuss was giving me the woof beast face as he spoke. If it weren't bad enough I felt awful about spying on them, now this? I managed to huff out more air and looked away.

"Come on doll. Please?"

"Give me one good reason why I should," I had said angrily.

"Because it will hurt Damara. You and I both know it."

I frowned at the ground. He was very right. It would break Damara's heart to see this. But that didn't mean that she shouldn't see what was going on, what HAD been going on for quite some time.

"It would hurt her more to lie," I had said blatantly. I could see Rufioh flinch at my words.

"Maybe so, but I don't want to hurt her. Please Meulin, I'm begging you."

"Rufioh, you've BEEN hurting her for long enough. I think it's time she knew. The truth, that is." I had practically spat the words at him, staring him in the eyes to make sure each word burned as much as the next.

"I… I know Meulin. I'm a horrible person who deserves to be culled. But please, let me handle it. I think it might crush her a bit less if she heard it from me."

"Maybe so, but you and I both know that you'll put it off and it will end up just another one of your unsolved problems. Horuss, I mean it. LET. ME. GO." I had started to push off of him again. I could see that what I was saying was getting to them both.

The next instant Rufioh had started bawling. He fell to the ground and started to cry into his hands. Horuss had dropped me to tend to his lover, and I hesitated before springing off.

"Please… Meulin…" He had whispered, looking up at me. His tears were trailing down his face, falling off. Horuss was quietly wrapped around him, offering him some comfort. I felt so torn.

"I'm… Sorry Rufioh. But Damara, does… have a right to know." With that I had started to take off, and the two watched me disappear into the shrubs.

"Do you really think she'll show her them, Rufioh?"

"Y-yeah… She sounded pretty set on it…"

"Maybe I can talk her out of it."

"Maybe."

I had run home as fast as I could. Nothing was going to stop me, not a grizzly beast, not another tree, nothing.

I had run in the door and headed up to my room without a second thought. I swiped the cord for my camera off the dresser, and plugged it into my grub top. Damara was offline right now. I would send her them later. I saved the files to my computer. I was contemplating sending them early when Horuss messaged me.

clompingTechnician[CT] began trolling adorableCatscratch[AC].

CT: 8=C Meulin please

CT: Don't do it.

CT: Think about how badly Damara will be hurt.

CT: It will literally crush her.

CT: She will go into a depression and neighver come back.

CT: Please.

AC: (=TェT=) Horuss, I don't mean to be rude,

AC: I'm even going to paws my quirk to be serious here.

AC: But there is really nothing mew can say that will change my mind.

AC: I'm telling Damara, and she's going to see the pictures.

AC: No amount of guilt will make me stop.

AC: Don't you think I feel bad about it?

AC: I realize how hurt MarMar is going to be.

AC: But she has the right to know.

CT: But…

AC: No butts Horuss. It's what needs to be done.

CT: Don't you think it will ruin Rufioh and Damara's relationship?

AC: I'm pretty sure it's far beyond fixing at this point.

CT: …

AC: Yeah. That's what I thought.

AC: Now I'm going to tell Damara, whether you, Rufioh, Me, or even Damara likes it or not.

AC: I'm sorry Horuss.

AC: I hope mew won't hold this against me.

adorableCatscratch[AC] closed the conversation.

I sat back and thought to myself. Was it really the right thing to do?

Damara… did have a right to know. It would be wrong not to show her.

asianicAntagonist[AA] began trolling adorableCatscratch[AC].

AA: Hey Meulin.

AA: You do my favor?

AC: (=^‥^=) Yeah Marmar.

AA: How it go?

AC: (=^・ェ・^=) Well, just tell me.

AC: (=^‥^=) Are mew ready fur the truth?

AA: Honestly, no.

AA: But tell me anyway. I can handle.

AC: (=^.n.^=) Yeah. He's… He's cheating on you.

AC: (=^‥^=) And I got pictures.

AA: May I see?

AC: (=^・ェ・^=) Yeah. Hold on.

AC: (=^‥^)/ image318 image319 image320

AA: …

AC: Damara?

AC: Are mew okay?...

asianicAntagonist[AA]'s computer was shattered against a wall.

"Oh my god…" I had muttered. Damara must have been furious enough to throw her computer at a wall. I could only imagine what she would do know.

She would probably go over to Rufioh's and confront him about it, maybe show him the pictures. Then she would raise her hand to hit him, but end up running off and crying. And after that, they would be over and she would be horribly depressed, and as Meenah pushed her further off the edge in the game, she would take it out on everyone.

I looked solemnly down at the floor. "But… It was the right thing to do, wasn't it?"

"She would have found out either way Mew." Cat mom said, walking into the room. She smiled warmly at me.

"Yeah…" She jumped up on the bed and wrapped her tails around me.

"Don't be sad Meulin. You definitely did the right thing. And I couldn't be more purroud."

I smiled lightly at her, wiping away the small tears forming and sniffling. "Thanks cat mom."

"Oh, that boy mew like stopped by. He said he left his sweater, but he decided that you could have it."

"His… Oh yeah! That's in the shipping room still. I'd better go get it."

She smiled at me again as I slipped down the other hall to retrieve the hoodie. Once I found it, I slipped it on and smiled. I pulled the seam around the hole for the head up to my nose and sniffed it.

"Still smells just like him," I had said to myself.

"Meulin! Come down fur dinner love." Cat mom screamed from the kitchen.

"Coming!"