Trouble comes calling.

The next few days go by pleasantly, actually. Tuvon moved them about the ruins, not comfortable staying in the same place every night. Too predictable, too dangerous. They raided a couple other bookstores, though, and a couple places for clothing, though the latter hadn't much useful stuff...

Thus the current expedition to find durable clothes and gear for Raena, as her other stuff was torn.

Tuvon was happy to have a companion, and respected her needs. Heck, he had his own hang-ups, after all, too, so he could understand, even if he tried to keep those hidden and controlled. Her speed at picking up sign language was astonishing, and he was very proud of her progress--he even told her as much. It made for easier communication between them.

It was nice to have someone to talk to. Someone he didn't have to be careful what he revealed to, or shared his opinions with... like he had at the labs. Their talks were pleasant, fun even.

But on to vital things...

Like getting clothes for her. A children's store seemed best, size-wise, as she was a small creature. So Tuvon led them in, bounding on all fours with his pole in his pack. Peeking within, he frowned. There was an oddly-musty scent about... one he didn't recognize. Crouching on the rubble of this entrance-hole, he drew his pole, not certain.

*Strange smell?* he signed to Raena, shrugging. This would be a team foray--if she didn't like the odds, they could look elsewhere. *Can try finding another place.*

Though she needed some kind of jacket or something. She was always so cold, in those ragged clothes. Tuvon was a bit worried that at this rate, she could end up sick again, like when she was hurt (when he met her).

Raena sniffed the air and frowned. She didn't recognize the smell either. She considered for a moment that perhaps they should leave and look elsewhere, but the thought of going back outside without something warmer on convinced her otherwise. She shook her head. *we look here,* she told him, nodding toward the store. There had to be something...

Tuvon led the way inside cautiously, sniffing often and bounding quietly on all fours, stopping often to peer about and over objects and rubble. He paused, frowning, to study a footprint in the dust... rather dog-like, and clawed. But he couldn't tell how old it was, not here, indoors. Clearly it was the source of the musty scent, though.

Beyond, however, he could see clothing on racks and shelves, dusty but useful.

*Find--quickly--I guard,* he signaled Raena, waving for her to look through them.

The mutant used his pole to vault up onto the top of one rack where he balanced precariously, eyes narrowed at their surroundings. Something about this place set him on edge. Crouching onto his haunches, he held the pole across his lap, watchful, wary... ready for trouble to show itself.

Raena hesitated, her nose twitching as the hair on the back of her neck stood on edge. Still, she nodded and moved forward, mindful of the tracks in the dirt and of her surroundings. She had no intention of being caught unaware again.

Tuvon wasn't sure he liked this. From his high, precarious vantage point, he could hear a faint scuffing in the distance yet saw no hint of movement to reveal the source. Whatever it was certainly had made the tracks, left that odd scent... and was still around.

With one hand, he signaled for Raena to try to be quick in her search for warmer clothing and a jacket. They needed to get out of here before the owner(s) of this burrow noticed them.

Raena caught his gesture and nodded, hurrying. She found three warm shirts, three sweaters and a jacket in her size easily enough. She wasn't overly concerned about what any of it looked like so long as it was warm and would fit.

She paused, sniffing the air. Something was there.

She gathered up socks and underclothing very quickly.

She jumped. Had she heard something? She couldn't be sure. She glanced back toward Tuvon, making certain he could still see her.

The pants were the tricky part. Most of them were either too short for her legs or too wide for her hips and waist. She searched through several racks before finding something that would fit her properly. Then she grabbed three of them, shoved them all in a pack and moved toward Tuvon, thinking she could put them on somewhere else.

She could feel eyes on her, and they weren't Tuvon's, though she knew he watched her too. She didn't know who or what else was in here, but she did know that she didn't want to be here anymore.

A burly bear-sized monster abruptly came charging out from the back, hissing--the back was all spiky, like a hedgehog's, the tail and legs lizard-like, the head armored and just a long snout full of sharp teeth.

Tuvon caught sight of it immediately, and shrieked and whooped a challenge at it, bounding down to confront it.

The beast bowled into Raena, intent on facing Tuvon but not about to let her be, either, not when they invaded its home turf.

Tuvon leapt towards the pair, concerned for his new friend and intent on getting it away from her--ready for a fight with this mutant thing, pole raised for the first powerful strike even as he whooped to get its attention.

(OOC--Move it as you like, Ro. I bet it acts kinda like a bear on a rampage.)

Raena hears Tuvon's warning cry as she's slammed into hard. She picks herself up slowly, painfully, a low, deep growl emanating from her throat as her eyes begin to glow brightly. She shifts swiftly into a large ebony wolf and charges the beast, determined to protect her friend.

The thing turns, seemingly torn between foes, then, seeming to decide upon decimating the easier prey first, it charged Raena again.

The wolf leaped at the creatures throat, but was batted away easily leaving only a few scratches for it's efforts. It rose again as the creature bore down on it, even angrier than before...

Tuvon leapt behind and to one side of the thing, swinging his metal pole to smash at the beast's back legs, knocking them out from under the thing and sending it sliding. Then he began pounding at it with the pole with all his might.

The monster shook off the blows on its armored body and swiped at the mutant with a claw and whip-like tail. Though he blocked the blow with the pole, those strikes still cut Tuvon's arms and sent him flying back into some of the racks of merchandise.

It turned back to the wolf, hissing...

Tuvon scrambled back to his feet, ignoring the pain of cracked bones and cuts from impacting objects, and threw himself back into the fray, his tail taking the pole while he whipped out his glass knives, looking for an opening to throw the at an eye or weak spot.

Raena growled, circling the creature, doing her best to distract it from Tuvon. She recognized that he was looking for a weak spot. If she could just keep it focused on her long enough for him to find it without getting hurt they could still get out of this.

The creature bore down again on the wolf, lowering it's head, then using the long snout to throw it upward, bouncing it's hindquarters off the spikes on the back of it's head. The wolf landed on the floor a short distance away, shifting back to human form as it did so. This time it didn't get up again.

With nothing left to distract it, the creature turned it's attention back to Tuvon advancing as it hissed through razor sharp, bared teeth...

Tuvon crouched low, hissing back, taking 4 glass blades between his fingers of each hand, holding them like cat's claws. His own wouldn't be enough here.

When it ducked its head and charged him, he flung a handful in quick succession at it--shots that went home with deadly precision. An eye, the throat, an ear, just behind and under the nearest forearm. It crashed onto its belly, sliding a dozen feet, snarling, before struggling back onto three legs, half-blind now and beyond furious. It whirled back at him with those sharp teeth and armored snout, intent on doing the same as it had with the wolf--charging and throwing him--but Tuvon was too agile for that.

His tail plunked his pole down, and he scrambled up it with his free hand, using it to vault over the beast's rushing attack and land on his feet.

The pole then swept the monster's back legs out from under it, and momentum sent the creature sliding on the injured shoulder into a wall.

Tuvon leapt on it like a mad creature, hooting like an enraged chimp, flinging his next four glass daggers into the same locations on the now-vulnerable "good" side of his foe. It kicked and struggled despite such serious injuries, trying to get back up, the belly exposed, but it was too slow. The mutant was on it like a tiger on free steak, taking one of his good steel knives and slitting it open as if for market, throat to belly. Then he beat at it with his metal pole until it lay still.

No mercy.

Panting and grunting, he straightened, and turned to glance at the former wolf with glittering, animalistic, yet oddly blue eyes.

In a bound, he was by her side, crouching over her, huffing softly in concern.

Raena stirred slowly, then sobbed, reaching weakly toward her bloody hip and leg. Her breathing had a pained, wheezy sound to it. She looked up at Tuvon, blinking away tears as she reached up and gently touched his cheek...

The mutant sighed, leaning his furry cheek against her hand, then bared teeth in a grimace at what they now would have to risk.

*Take to help. You pass for human. They help--then you come back,* he signed, not happy with the idea but knowing it was their best option.

Well, if she wanted to, after being with people. Tuvon wouldn't blame her for trying to fit in with them, and wanting to stay if she found even a little acceptance among them. He knew--he was perhaps the only creature like himself, and therefore alone. Even if some other species decided to accept him in some way, he would always be an outsider still to such a social network.

Quickly wiping his metal knife clean, he sheathed it, then swung his pole and her pack onto his back, before crouching to scoop Raena up in his arms. He didn't like the faint grating sound when he moved her--the sound of broken bone--but there was really little choice.

They couldn't stay there.

With a bound, using his tail to help stabilize himself, Tuvon leapt for the hole they'd entered through, and back outside...

And off towards where he knew people resided in numbers of quantity.

Raena cried out, the pain of being moved ripping through her. Even so, she shook hear head, rejecting Tuvon's idea, her eyes filled with terror. Breathing became harder as panic overpowered her.

*not leave me...please..* she signed weakly, tears coursing down her cheeks.

She'd rather huddle somewhere and heal or not as she could than risk being without him. The pain of her injuries didn't come close to the pain her loneliness had caused.

He was her first ally...her first friend. If he left her now she might never find him again...

She couldn't lose him.