Nana Ana's Secret Hideout

Chapter 8 - It Knows

A whizzing butterfly struck Anders cheekbone with a sharp pop, stunning him briefly. Holy crap, that could've put my eye out. Turning his back to the howling wind, he grabbed Eirik's elbow. "We've gotta get low!"

Eirik nearly touched his forehead to Anders' so the wind didn't snatch away his words. "There's no cover!"

Spying a natural depression in the ground at the same time, they jumped into it. With Eirik shielding the bear, they became as flat and small as humanly possible, back to back, and covered their heads as the day turned black, insects thundering against them and the field like driving, potentially fatal rain. In the next moment the violence dissipated as abruptly as it had commenced, leaving behind an alien stillness worthy of a refrigerated, soundproof room.

Satisfied it was over and that he and the cub were uninjured, Eirik glanced back over his shoulder and pat his buddy's hip. Anders lifted his head to reveal that all exposed portions of his body, including half of his head, had been slathered in an uninterrupted coating of deceased insects. No worse for wear. Simply filthy.

Eirik forced sincerity. "That's a good look for you." 

Anders brushed wings away from his jaw as if sweeping away luxurious, flowing locks. "I wanted to take that bug-smeared look to an epically disgusting level."

"You nailed it, man. Good job."

"Thanks."

Anders peeled himself free from the layer of liquefied insects and lent a hand to Eirik who, once on his feet, put the bear over his cleaner shoulder like an infant. The entire field bristled with bug guts and baby blue wings.

This feels gross. Anders raked a glob of dead insect remains from his hair, scowling so he wouldn't gag. Oh. It is.

Despite feeling welts appearing where they'd been pelted, they were in one piece. Eirik called that a win. Until he noticed something. Patting his coat pockets, he cast a furrowed glance around the ground. "My bottle's gone."

Anders' hand went immediately to his own pocket. "I still have the box." It's crushed now but I have it.

"You only have one green item between you?" said the panda, wide-eyed with alarm.

While Anders suggested ripping the now flattened Green Tea box in two and the bear insisted it would still count as a single item, Eirik hoped the green bottle would be easy to spot amongst the field of blue butterfly wings. However, instead of finding the bottle, he noted a dark shape sitting hunched at the tree line. Conformed somewhat like a cow but with no light showing between its belly and the ground, it returned his attention.

"That's a stupid rule," said Anders. "How does evil know if they're two halves of the same thing or two halves of different things? Huh? How?!"

"It KNOWS," said the panda. 

Eirik nodded in the figure's direction. "It does know."

The staring shape slunk forward a few steps and settled again like a creeping neighborhood cat.

"Boys, run, " murmured the bear in horror. "Now! RUN! Run to -- oh, an orange cottage, what a ghastly color. GO THERE! I don't know who could possibly live there but we won't make it to the bungalow if we cant find or borrow something else that's green! And certainly not if it catches us!" 

With the bears claws digging into Eirik's shoulder, they ran and didn't look back, or they would've seen the cow-shaped shadow rise up like a crocodile under a black silk tablecloth and swim over the earth after them in broad powerful strokes.