[Freezair]

Krii~~~~~~Skycutter

Hazel

"Bleck. It smells like fish here," Krii complained.

Hazel raised her nose to the air, sniffing as they walked along the rows of vendors hawking various goods. "Not if it's any good," she observed. "Fresh fish doesn't have any smell. If it smells 'fishy,' that means the fats in its body are going rancid. Stay away from that."

"We're not shopping for fish anyway," Skycutter shrugged. "Just looking for a place for lunch."

"Can it please not be fish?" Krii asked.

"No fish," Sky agreed with a chuckle. "Hmm. Never been here in the Dead Coast before. ...Pretty lively for someplace called 'dead.' Well. What say we all split up and look? I'll go north, Krii can go west, and Hazel, you can go east. We'll rendezvous..." She looked around. "--By that bakery there. Half an hour. Sound good?"

"...You can fly," Krii said incredulously.

"And the air traffic here is terrible," she replied blankly. "No thank you. Besides, splitting up is quicker. Agreed or not?"

"I don't see why not," Hazel said, trying to be the peacemaker.

"Alright," Krii grumbled. "See you guys in half an hour. Bye."

"Gee," Hazel chuckled. "You don't have to be such a sourpuss. See you!" The Shinzo lept off down an eastern alleyway.

"See you!"

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Tiera

From her position up in the abandoned building, Tierra looked down on the alleyway with contentment. She could see the fanny pack on the Shinzo's chest sway.

She grinned darkly to herself. "Never carry your money where other people can see it, m'dear."

[391, 6, 1]

[AmberGlaze]

As the three talked, and the one stalked, a pair was wandering through the crowded roads and stopping at every stand that had, as Rayne put it, "pretty colors!"

"Ooh, Timber! Come look at this! Isn't it pretty!"

The WomBear rolled her eyes and shook her head. Although she loved Rayne, Timber never really understood her. There was no way that anyone could be full of this much happy! Crawling over to her friend, she peered over into the cart.

"...What the heck is it?"

Rayne smiled and picked it up, craddling it in her open arms.

"I dunno, but doesn't it look precious! I'm gonna take a picture of it!" The young girl said, whipping out her new Polaroid.

Uh oh. Timber thought. Lately all she's been doing is snapping pictures, of me and everything around. One day it's gonna run out of film and no matter what she says I won't take her to buy anymore.

But Timber knew that was a lie. No matter how annoying she found Rayne to be, she would do anything for the girl. That's what friends did, after all. As Rayne snapped a picture of the weird looking object, the WomBear took time to notice her surroundings. Skimming the crowd and buildings, she noticed a big figure watching someone in the crowd. Unfortunatley, she paid no mind and turned her head back to Rayne, who was holding up her new photo.

"Isn't it pretty! I'm gonna give it to Shay when we get home. She'll love it lots!" She exclaimed, before turning around and bounding off, a sighing Timber by her side.

[Freezair]

Krii sniffed along the ground and up in the air, trying to find a tantalizing smell that might lead him somewhere. A tantalizing spice teased him from an Indian restaurant just down the way, but he knew Hazel couldn't abide by spicy foods.

He skittered up to the feet of a Wombear who didn't seem too busy. "Excuse me," he asked her, "but you wouldn't happen to know of any restaurants around here that are pretty good, wouldja? ...That aren't seafood?"  

*~*~*~*~*~*

Hazel's eyes scanned the alleyway. Dead end, from the looks of it. Her ears fluttered as a gust of wind rolled past, kicking up trash.

She turned around. "Well, I guess there's nothing he--"

She felt a surge of body heat beside her, and the ground reverberated with the impact of a large... something landing beside her. She whipped to look--a cold, sharp piece of metal pressed against the back of her neck, holding her in place. Another one met the front of her throat, tip poised dangerously close to her jugular. Hazel trembled. The sharp, bloodlike stench of brass filled her nostrils.

"Give me your purse," a feminine voice said coolly.

"HE--"

The metal bit moved up over her mouth. "Don't shout for help," she said. "I'll poison you now if I have to. Just--give me the money, and I promise you you won't get hurt."

Shuddering, Hazel loosened the string holding her bag of Keystones in place. She'd heard it said that, when being mugged, one should listen to the mugger. No possession was worth your life. Hazel heard a scraping sound, and felt a big, furry thing drag her pouch back."

"Much obliged," the robber said. "Now, I want you to count to ten. Slowly. When you get to ten, you'll be free. Go back out. Call the police if you want." She giggled coldly. "Until then, don't turn around, don't move, and don't. Make. A sound. If you do, you'll be dead. Got it?"

Hazel nodded fearfully.

"Good. Now start."

Hazel swallowed and began aloud. She heard boxes and old wrappers clatter behind her in the alleyway as the robber moved.

She swallowed deeply as she got to ten. She turned, not sure what to find. The alley was empty.

She inhaled deeply.

"HELP! THIEF!"

*~*~*~*~*~*

Sky's hearing twinged.

"...Hazel?"

[392, 7, 2]

[AmberGlaze]

Rayne had just been skipping along the rows of goods when Timber was disturbed by a seemingly stranger.

"Restaurants? Do I look like a tour guide to you?" Timber snapped, standing up on her hind paws and glaring at the passerby.

Luckily, Rayne had happened to hear the little brawl, and grabbed her tiny coin purse. Running up to Timber, everyone could see that she was barely taller than the WomBear. Rayne giggled and scratched Timber's ears, before turning her attention to the Rengosett.

"Heehee, sorry! Timber is just a little grouchy...all the time. But I dunno where you can get food. Although it does smell mighty good here!" She said, allowing her nose to take her off.

Timber watched Rayne go and rolled her eyes. She knew she should probably follow her and make sure that Rayne didn't get herself into any trouble. But instead something shiny caught her eye, and she turned to look at a row of shiny golden collars.

***

Rayne had just stepped into an alleyway before she heard a deep voice from down the way. Eyes wide with fright, Rayne shakily slipped out her camera and secretly crawled behind a box. Quickly snapping pictures, Rayne then properly hid herself before shaking some more. As the figure crawled away and the Shizno cried for help, Rayne sniffled, a tear running down her cheek.

***

Timber had just bought the golden collar when she heard a cry for help. Her eyes wide, she turned and ran wildy to the alleyway.

"Rayne? RAYNE!" She screamed, on all fours.

Timber finally spotted Rayne, crying and sitting on an empty sack of potatoes. The WomBear ran to her, and craddled the little girl.

"Are you alright?" She asked, the panic clear in her voice. "What happened? Are you hurt?"

Rayne cried into Timber's fur and held her friend closely.

"We have to help her! We have to help her!" Rayne cried, pointing to the distraught Shizno.

Timber looked quickly at the Shizno, and then scooped up Rayne onto her back, before racing over to the Shizno.

"Are you alright? What happened?"

[Freezair]

The tufts on Krii's ears perked as he heard a familiar shout. "Hazel!" He followed the Wombear and her companion down the alleyway, where Hazel was sitting, halfway collapsed on the ground.

"Move aside! Move aside!" he snapped at Rayne and Timber. "I know this gal, she's a close personal--holy cheese, Haze, what happened? You look terrible!"

"I was mugged!" Hazel said. Her voice, unsteady and already oddly pitched, cracked a little. She swallowed. "Some huge, horrible--I didn't even get to see it! It snuck up from behind me! It took my purse and ran off with it! All I know is, it had some... some metallic blade-part thing to it..."

The dust and old papers in the alleyway flew into small flurries as Sky landed next to them. "Woah, woah! What's going on here? I heard Hazel shouting!"

"I was robbed!" she said, at the same time as Krii chimed in, "She was mugged!"

Sky looked pointedly at the human and her Wombear. "Did either of you get a look at the robber?"

*~*~*~*~*~*

From her warehouse, Tiera looked down with some worry.

Blast. She DOES have a lot of friends. I'll have to be quick about my escape.

She pulled down a backpack from one of her top shelves with her teeth. She began to pack the day's spoils into it, in case she had to leave in a hurry.

[393, 8, 3]

[AmberGlaze]

Timber glared as the Rengosett pushed past her and Rayne. Holding Rayne even more closely, she snarled.

"Watch it. By the looks of it, your precious 'gal' wasn't the only one hurt from this!" She snapped right back, stroking Rayne's dark blonde hair.

Rayne sniffed and wiped her nose and her damp sleeve before she hear exactly what happened.

"Timber, what does mugged mean?" She asked, the tears slowly evaporating and her curiosity growing right back.

Timber was beginning to answer when another pet showed up. Dang, she thought. Is this a freaking party?

"Anyways, a mugging means that she was robbed. Did you happen to see who it was? We might be able to track them down."

Rayne glanced at the others before nodding.

"Yea. They had a deep voice and-" She paused to pull out the pictures. "I took these." She said, handing Timber the photos.

Timber looked back at the group, clutching the photos tightly.

[Freezair]

"Wait, you got PICTURES?!" Hazel pulled herself up off her feet and nearly charged the Wombear, but stopped short of toppling her. "May I see those, please?" she asked, trying to stay calm. "We can go to the police with those!"

"Please. And thank you," Sky said, bowing her head. "We would be extremely grateful if you could help our friend."

Krii scurried behind Timber and tried to peak over her shoulder. "Doesn't look like you got too good a shot... Ah! Looks kinda like a Khimera, though."

"Krii, stop reading over people's shoulders," Sky chided. "Please, Miss--erm, I'm sorry. I don't believe we caught your names."

*~*~*~*~*~*

..."Wait, you got PICTURES?"

Tiera's head jerked at the shrill sound. Pictures! Some damn fool got pictures?! She pressed her nose against what remained of the glass. She tried to remain unseen.

She noticed what seemed to be a flap of photos in being shared between the girl and the Wombear.

I'll have to remember to take care of them, she thought. But how to do it and still remain unseen?

[394, 9, 4]

[AmberGlaze]

Timber jumped at the shrill cry, and shook her head to bring back her hearing. Rayne stepped foward boldy and proudly.

"And yes. I did get pictures. I did real good!" She said, smiling toothily.

Timber threw a small smile at Rayne, before returning her attention to the rest. Snatching the picture from the Rengosett's view. Giving them back to Rayne, she sniffed.

"Actually, I believe your friend was rather rude. And I don't think it's best if we get too involved. After all, it wasn't us who was robbed." She said, grabbing Rayne's hand that wasn't holding the photos.

"Now if you don't mind, we need to go home. Shay will be worrying and we need to get the stuff on the list."

Rayne tried to pull away from the WomBear's grip, at the same time gripping the photos very tightly.

"Aw, Tim! Come on, we have to help!"

[Freezair]

"I wouldn't say it's a matter of getting or not getting involved," Sky said, looking thoughtfully upward. She thought she saw someone move behind a window in the old building, but decided that it was simply the light. "After all, someone was robbed! If it were you, wouldn't you want someone to come to your aide? A crime was comitted, and if you withhold evidence relating to the crime, you can get in trouble."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm sorry," Krii said. "Look, you don't even have to come with us. Can we just have the pictures? We'll take them down to the police office. We'll keep you all anommynous if you want. Please?"

"I'd be ever so grateful," Hazel sniffed.

*~*~*~*~*

Good, Tiera thought, sniffing to herself. They'll hopefully be separating soon. Then, I can pounce on that annoying girl and that Wombear. Should be a simple task indeed...

[395, 10, 5]

[AmberGlaze]

Timber shook her head and held tightly onto Rayne's arm.

"Look, I'm sorry but it's best if we just go-"

But Rayne thought otherwise. Tugging loose, she bounded up to the Shizno.

"Hi, I'm Rayne. And I wanna be a detective and help!" She said, jumping up and down like a hyperactive puppy.

Timber stomped towards Rayne, but the little girl turned around so fast Timber almost ran right into her. Rayne held up an ebony palm and shook her head.

"No, TimTim. We have to do what's right! After all, isn't that what Shay always taught us? Come on, we have to help! What if someone stole our money, or worse. What if they took me!"

That last part got to Timber, but the WomBear wasn't so keen on backing down.

"I can't compare you to a few coins!" She exclaimed, glaring right back.

But all that was in vain, for both of them new Rayne would get what she want. Timber was powerless to reject Rayne when she was as determined as this. Rayne, realizing she had one the fight, turned back and smiled.

"We'll give you the photos, if and only if you let us come with you!" She said, waving the photos frantically in the air while keeping them tight.

Behind her, Timber sighed and sat down, wishing she could go home.

[Freezair]

Skycutter looked somewhat warily at Rayne. "Ah... Just how old are you, anyway? It might be somewhat dangerous," she said. "I suppose we can protect you, but... Are you entirely sure?"

"Well, Avani romped around with us when she was little," Krii shrugged. "Not sure what Jimjam would say."

Hazel looked at Krii. "If worse comes to worst, you and I do have fire abilities, you know. I think we can protect a young girl and a Wombear if we work together. Besides! Don't you always bost about how you have some of the highest 'stats' in Evelon?"

Krii rubbed the back of his head. "...Yeah. I guess so."

*~*~*~*~*~*

Tiera listened in closely to their conversation, her bionic ears twitching and adjusting to make sure she got the best sound quality.

If the girl was too young, she would have to leave her. She wouldn't harm a child beneath a certain age. But above that, and even a little girl was fair play. She'd simply give her something to think about.

[396, 11, 6]

[AmberGlaze]

Rayne looked deflated at Skycutter's dangerous, and Timber groaned. She could feel a super tantrum coming on.

"BUT I'M FIVEEEEEE YEARSSSSS OLDDDDDD!!!" She wailed, her dace turning red as she began stomping up and down.

Timber watched Rayne and rolled her eyes.

"You had to tell her it would be too dangerous for her." She muttered angrily to Skycutter.

Lifting Rayne up and into her arms, she turned to look at the now forming little group.

"Look, you want pictures, we both come along. Both of us." She said in a strained voice. Then throwing a glance at Hazel, she added, "And trust me, we can BOTH handle ourselves very nicely."

Rayne turned around with a tears covering her face and nodded.

[Freezair]

Up in her loft, Tiera snarled.

She couldn't touch someone who was only five. Even she had morals. But that didn't mean she had to like them.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Skycutter winced as Rayne tantrummed. Krii bent over, slamming his paws over his ears. If someone unknowing had come along, they might have thought he was part of a "see-no-hear-no-speak-no-evil" statue.

"Alright, alright!" Krii snapped. Hazel, making a similarly pained face, reached out and patted Rayne on the shoulder.

She said, "But you HAVE to stay CLOSE to us, alright? We don't want you getting hurt... Or your mommy and daddy getting angry at us." Hazel looked off to one side.

"...This probably counts as child abduction," Krii sighed.

"Well, her caretaker is coming with us..." Sky added.

[397, 12, 7]

[AmberGlaze]

Rayne smiled as she knew she had won. Although she might have seemed like a brat, she was actually pretty smart. And it was oh too easy to getting what she wanted from this group. How easy life had seemed! Well, let's wait for later on.

"And don't worry, you won't get in trouble. I don't have a mommy or daddy. Amber explained that my mommy and daddy were turned into trees and had lots of babies, so they made the whole Amazon Rainforest! So now Amber and Shay and Petal and Cloudy are all my mommies!" She said, giggling.

Timber sighed. If only Rayne had known the truth about her parents. But this "little white lie" (as Amber had explained it) was just to protect the little girl. Timber decided it was time for her to cut in.

"And I'm not her caretaker. I'm her friend. So don't start calling me up asking to care for your little brats, because I won't." She grumbled.

Rayne laughed and unfolded the pictures, as Timber came to stand by her side. At once she began talking.

"Okay, well you're right. It's plainly a Khimera. Except this was printed in black and white so we don't know what color, and Rayne only got the back. But in the last one, we can see it escaped to the right, so it has to be on that side. Rayne, can you explain what you saw? In fact, can both of you?"

Rayne nodded eagerly, and didn't wait another moment.

"Well, I was in the alleyway, and she was...purple and brown! I didn't see the other colors. Aaaand-"

"Wait, Rayne how do you know it was a she?"

"Because Timber! It had a deep voice, but a girly deep voice! Anyways, I saw her go into a building, and then you came. But that's all I remember."

Timber pondered this for a second, and then pointed to Hazel.

"She robbed you. Can you give us a better description?"

[Freezair]

Sky and Krii exchanged glances as Rayne explained about her parents. Even if Sky couldn't use thoughtspeech like other Temple creatures could (part of being mostly organic), she and Krii still knew what the other was thinking.

Krii coughed a little. "Umm... 'Kay then."

They listened carefully as Rayne explained what she'd seen. Then she pointed at Hazel and asked for her information. Hazel fiddled with her hands, trying to speak. "Well, she snuck up behind me, and put--I think it must have been her tail--up to my neck. She told me to give her my purse or she'd poison me. I feared for my life! What else was there to do? I let her have it. She pulled it away from me, and told me to slowly count to ten. When I did, she said, I could move, but not until then. I did... And she was gone! You must have come when she was still around..."

"Entered a building, huh?" Sky asked. "Any one around here? Or somewhere else? We could follow her, perhaps. There might be clues."

*~*~*~*~*~*

Tiera snarled. So they WERE planning to follow her, the idiots! She threw the backpack over her back and snarled. She would have to be quick in her escape.

She turned over a few of her possessions, so that her hideout didn't look lived-in. Upside-down vases, split food, broken books--surely this place had been abandoned long ago. She pulled on a cord dangling from the ceiling, releasing the trap door and the ladder that lead upstairs. She clambered up on her paws, squeezing into the space that lead up to the roof. Then she pulled up the ladder and closed the door.

[398, 13, 8]