The Otherkind

•Chapter 2•

Eris briefly stirred due to a sound. A door slamming, and running. Who decided this was a good time to run through the house? Most of us are trying to sleep, she thought in annoyance. She listened for a moment, hearing Alli's voice. She sounded worried about something, but Eris was too tired to wonder much about whatever that may be. She drifted back into sleep.

She was awoken by Kora frantically shaking her. "Eris," she said, "I'm sorry but we've been found. I'm not sure how, but they know about us. Alli saw a group of police heading here with freak extermination gear while she was out. We have to leave, now." After she was sure Eris was awake, Kora rushed out of the room to help Alli wake the other children.

Eris flung herself out of bed, terrified. She knew this was her fault. The crushing guilt of what she and Ari had done hit her at once and she couldn't hold back the tears. She grabbed her backpack and packed her favorite clothes, books, and her art supplies as quickly as she could. Slipping it onto her shoulders, she wiped away her tears and tried to stay calm. Kora and Alli needed her to listen to them now, and crying would only make them worry more.

Running out of her bedroom, she found the others in the living room, each of them carrying their own backpack, Kora carrying a satchel over one shoulder as well. Kora and Alli were trying their best to calm everyone down. "Okay everyone," began Alli, "we're going to leave through the back door. I understand you're upset and afraid, but we're going to keep you safe. Follow Kora, I'll be right behind you making sure no one gets lost."

The children followed Kora into the woods, looking back at everything they had ever known for the last time. The little group went swiftly and quietly, temporarily worrying about nothing other than putting distance between themselves and the police. Leo was whispering to Ray and Lukas toward the front of the bunch, while Ari and Eris spoke quietly in the back.

"This is our fault. We both know it. Someone saw us last night and now everything is awful!" Eris tried her best to keep her voice down and stop herself from crying.

"It's my fault, I never should have told you to come outside with me." Ari sounded near tears herself, feeling just as much guilt as Eris did, if not more. It had been her idea to go stargazing, and her decision not to warn their guardians they may have been spotted.

Alli's voice interrupted the girls' thoughts. "Okay everyone, we need to walk a bit faster now that we're far enough away that they won't hear us. Keep following Kora and we'll find a safe place to rest by tonight." Kora nodded her agreement and continued to take a twisting path through the woods, each step leading them farther from home.

Despite attempting to seem calm, Eris knew her guardians were afraid. Alli's ears were perked up, listening for any sound of them being followed. Kora's tail fur was on end, showing she was more worried than she was telling the children. Leo's tail twitched nervously, and Lukas and Ray held hands, each trying to help his brother feel safer.

Suddenly Alli froze. She signaled to Kora, who quietly instructed the children to climb into the trees as quickly as possible. "They have dogs with them," Alli warned, trying to keep her voice steady, "follow Kora, I'm going to go in a different direction on foot to lead them away." She handed her backpack to Kora, who managed to carry it over one arm.

"Be safe, please," called Kora softly, clearly fearful that Alli would be caught when she wasn't there to help. However, she knew she couldn't leave the children alone just to make sure Alli was safe. They couldn't have any hope of defending themselves, and they didn't know any other safehouse locations. Worried, she watched from a branch as Alli began walking away from her and the children.

Eris was tense, her heart racing, her ears flattened in fear, and her fur standing on end. Ari sat quietly on the branch above her, next to Leo. Lukas and Ray were on the opposite side of the tree.. Kora's voice broke the silence. "Alright everyone, do you see how the tree branches overlap each other?" The children nodded. "Good, we're going to move carefully from tree to tree, so that the tracking dogs can't smell us. Step where I do and watch closely. Be careful."

Cautiously, the group went from one tree to the next, trying to be as quiet as possible. Barking and footsteps in the distance got closer by the minute. They heard the noise subside once more as the dogs lost their trail and began following Alli. They waited, wanting to be sure that those hunting them were gone before moving from behind the safety of the foliage. Eris and Kora both had their ears pricked, listening for any sound of Alli returning, the dogs, or the police.

A scream echoed in the distance. No, Eris thought fearfully, that couldn't have been Alli. She can't have been caught, she has to be okay. Eris turned her attention toward Kora. Her ears had flattened and her tail fur was spiked out in all directions. She didn't bother brushing off the tears that streaked across her cheeks, and none of the children blamed her. Eris was shocked, she had never seen Kora cry. Kora was always careful to control her emotions, being serious and calm, especially compared to Alli who struggled to contain her feelings. This is my fault. Alli was taken because of me, Eris thought, crying herself. Kora lost the person she loves most and it's all my fault.

She felt Ari's arm wrap around her as they crouched on the branch together. Eris knew by her friend's face that while Ari hadn't been able to hear what happened, she had noticed Eris and Kora's change in expression. Eris wasn't sure they'd ever be able to tell Kora that what had happened was their fault. Alli could be killed, or taken to a zoo if she went without acting violently. The kids who didn't have enhanced hearing didn't know what had happened, and Eris knew it would be up to Kora to tell them when she could if they didn't realize it themselves.

Kora stood up carefully, using her tail for balance. "Let's go. They're not nearby anymore. We need to keep moving." Her voice was tense. The children followed her in silence, not knowing quite what had happened and too afraid of the answer to ask.

By the time Kora gave everyone permission to come out of the trees and continue walking, it was late afternoon. Eris had felt numb for the last few hours, still in shock after everything that had happened. The other children hadn't said a word either, trailing behind Kora in an uneasy silence. Even Leo had been quiet since Alli had left the group, and he was nearly always talking. Eris didn't know where they were going, but she trusted Kora to lead them somewhere safe. Her numb feeling was broken for a moment thinking again that it was her fault Alli was lost. She was afraid of the day that she would have to tell Kora what she had done.

Eris was worried about the younger children as well. The twins were only ten years old, which wasn't much younger than herself, but two years felt like a lot sometimes. Leo was only about a year younger than herself and Ari, but Eris still felt like she had a small responsibility to make sure he didn't get hurt. As one of the oldest kids in her home, Eris had always felt like she should be a good role model, even if everyone else was nearly her age anyway. Ari disagreed, saying that it wasn't up to her and Eris to have less fun just because the younger kids were around.

Eris sighed, pulled out of her thoughts by the sound of one of the others stepping on a twig. Her arms and legs ached from keeping herself steady in the trees for so long. Her tail dragged behind her, her fur growing dirty, but she didn't have the energy to care. Her stomach was empty as she hadn't had a chance to eat that morning, and she hadn't thought to put food in her backpack. She hoped someone had brought something to eat and drink, or at least that there would be food and water wherever they ended up.

The sunset painted the sky a swirl of warm colors, orange, red, and yellow mixing above the trees. It almost felt inappropriate for something to be so serene after the events of the day. As the sky grew dark, Eris realized she saw something in the distance. Her first instinct was to run, to get away from whoever was there that may cause them harm, but Kora was heading towards the structure with confidence. Eris and the others followed her, hopeful and fearful, as a large building came into view.