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Beth shivered under the root, watching as the tall, skinny one knelt by the cat, speaking in what seemed to be gentle tones towards the Predator's paws. Perhaps the blonde had not seen her flight; were the words meant to coax her out?

A flurry of activity, directed at her hiding spot, made her flinch and toddle back into the hollow. The one with the pale hair that confused her rodent eyes stopped by the Predator and the other one and seemed to see that she had escaped, as they instantly lifted their eyes and looked around. Their eyes caught on her, cowering by the tree, and then they were off, striding straight towards her. Or, almost, as when they came up, they looked around a bit before speaking hesitantly towards the tree. There was a sweetness to the voice, both concern and fear. If Beth tried to calm down, she thought she could discern the words. Something about help and wanting to keep her safe. She watched warily, not wanting to trust something she could not look in the eyes.

Then the very tall one made their way over, the determination and speed of their steps shaking the ground to her senses and she curled in more. And then they stopped. And then they were less tall. And then they were offering a paw towards her--she flinched, but instead of grabbing at her, they simply laid on the ground, palm up, outstretched towards her. She was a bit wary, as she imagined those claws balling up and tightening around her, trapping her just as surely as the Predator had. Again, that word, "safe."

Beth's nose twitched as she stuck it out to assess the danger. She could not see the Predator yet, as the very tall one blocked her view. But there was no immediate threat exactly. She slowly crept toward the outstretched paw, pausing every few seconds to ascertain if there were changes. She very, very gently reached out and placed a paw on the tip of one of the paw's digits. She stared up at what she thought was their face, heart beating frantically and breath coming in short gasps.

This face was a good face. She remembered this face.

Her ears swiveled at the sound of four paws creeping through the underbrush and she jumped up into the paw of the one who had knelt, staring out where she had seen the Predator last. She had circled around the others, keeping herself in sight, which was strange. Then she stopped, further than a single pounce would allow her to cover, another curious departure from the animal instinct. And finally, staring at Beth, she had dropped her belly to the ground, a position that did not herald any attack instinct said she could make.

Beth blinked, her gaze flitting from Predator to face to face to face. She was not fully trusting, but she balanced on her back feet, sniffing the cuff of the sleeve on the arm that held her. She was ready to jump and flee at a moment's notice, but for now let herself linger in the closeness of her pursuers.

Weapon: Whip (agile ranged)
HP: 26/60
Dmg: Beth tried but was left defenseless against the next attack!

Brian crouching not-too-close to the tree seemed like as good an approach as any, and Sylvia watched to see if it worked. She stayed standing in case Beth fled again, but even she could admit that Brian had a calm and soft air about him that she hoped would lure their friend out. Her breath hitched a bit when Beth finally crept from her hidey-hole, and she chewed at her bottom lip as the tiny mouse hesitated only a few times and then reached out to touch Brian’s hand. Success! Small success, a tiny step.

Misha was trying very hard to be nonthreatening now, which seemed to be the better approach. Beth still jumped at Misha’s movement, but the serval kept her distance and laid down with a look that Sylvia would have called ‘too much’ were they in any other situation. With Beth staying in the palm of Brian’s hand, Sylvia figured she should also do her best to be nonthreatening, and so she began to sink to the ground. She set her shield down as quietly as she could, then sat across it cross-legged and watched the tiny mouse as she looked between their faces.

Lex moved closer as well. He didn’t sit like the others, but his voice was soothing. Sylvia smiled at his comments. Beth would surely want to know that the foxes they’d been fighting before were safe. The image of Beth riding Misha was funny, but adorable. “My shoulder is available, too. You could even take turns.” Sylvia giggled a bit. She could definitely see Beth riding along with each of them and skittering along linked arms to switch shoulders – once she was calmed.

“Beth, sweetie… Try to remember that we’re on your side.” Sylvia propped her elbows on her knees, and her chin on her hands, bringing her face even lower. She offered the tiny mouse a sympathetic smile and wondered how much was getting through to Beth. She seemed to be calming. She was working on trusting them, somehow, in tiny steps. Hopefully she would realize what had happened soon, and come back to them fully.

Hesitantly, Sylvia reached out to offer one finger for Beth to sniff if she wanted, and then moved to stroke the little one’s side in what was hopefully a reassuring way. “We’ll bring you home and make things right again. Some people have made cures now.” She smiled, “You’ll be okay.” It was the best she could offer. She knew from their earlier conversation that Beth had already been a bit overwhelmed, and she could only imagine what she might think after all of this. But hopefully it would be reassuring that she had so many people who had come after her, who wanted to help, who were there to make sure that she was safe.


Weapon: Tower Shield [heavy defensive ; -15 init, base 10 dmg, -1 hit]
DMG: (5 - 1 = 4; 100%) 10
HP: 56/56HP

Seeing Beth crawl into Brian's hand brought a swell of relief to Misha's chest and she sighed almost audibly. She wanted to jump up and dance and then swoop Beth up in a relieved hug... But she was a cat and Beth was a mouse and Misha knew that they were far too close to coaxing Beth back to her senses to risk it with such an over-the-top display of energy. The last thing she wanted to do was scare Beth back into a hole somewhere. Brian and Sylvia and Lex had made so much headway.

It hurt her to know that every attempt she had made proved only partially successful. She felt almost useless and that was one of the worst feelings in the world. Beth had brought her back. Why could she not easily do the same for her dear friend?

She crawled forward a tiny bit more, still keeping her belly flat to the ground. Her paws stretched out in a motion designed to draw attention to her. It also proved to show how impossible it would be for Misha to leap up at a moment's notice and attack. It was just the most awkward, silliest of poses.

Misha's HP: 80
Damage: 2
Beth's HP: 6

WC: 820

Lex didn’t move any closer, keeping his eyes on the tiny mouse balanced on the palm, watching Beth explore a bit. Was she remembering? Was this working? It was so much different than when he was with Rob hunting down Sid. He snorted slightly, watching her dive back into the burrow with a tiny squeal.

Okay, that was rather cute. “That was the cutest little squeak I have ever heard.” He said quietly and grinned at the tiny burrow. “Beth, come out. Please? We aren’t going to harm you, or let anyone else harm you.” He said soothingly. “No one is going to eat you.” Another coo.

“I made some cures, we could try one, here? If you want? Be human again?” He questioned and paused, considering. “Though you might end up naked.” Well, maybe that wasn’t the best idea. He did play with the cures in his pocket, lock in cubes of brown sugar to help mask the sickening taste of moly.

Pffhs, ending up naked in the swamp. No, Beth would not be pleased with him if that happened. Though it was a bit laughable. But then, he was chasing a mouse though the woods and now trying to talk her out of the burrow.

“You know, when I was chosen by a god, this was the farthest from my mind.” Lex grumbled and sighed, blowing a frizzing curl from his eyes, and shifted to be more relaxed in the hot Louisiana heat. “Think it was the last thing, any of us were thinking about. People turning into animals.”

It was something out of a dream or nightmare, and any magic in the idea of being an animal was pretty much ruined. He scrapped his fingers on his pants, rubbing the frayed edges, watching the burrow with a bit of hope. Come on Beth. Come out, please?

HP: 50
Weapon: brass knuckles 4 base +1 to hit roll
Damage:4 defend all = 0
Beth HP:8

As Beth cowered in her hiding place, she told herself to think about the situation. It was like trying to think while someone played a trumpet in her ear. A trumpet telling her to run, to hide, to get away, there were things coming to eat her. But slowly, slowly, she realized she recognized the words the white haired girl was song. And more importantly, she recognized her voice. She stuck her head out of the hidey hole, staring with eyes open.

If Beth could have cried, she would have. Here were all of her friends, assembled for the sole purpose of rescuing her. And rather than fight her or hurt her, they reinforced both concern and affection for her. Never had she felt so enveloped with love.

And so, not wanting to be any more of an inconvenience but also overcome with relief that flooded her more potently than the fear, she scampered out and back into Brian's hand, chittering and squeaking up a storm. She took a moment to brush her paws over the back of her head, her ears, and her face, instinctively grooming herself. She ran in a circle across Brian's palm, squeaking as she whirled.

Misha waited until Brian had stood fully before she even twitched an ear. Then, every so slowly, she drew her legs back beneath her. When she finally stood, it was even more careful and she kept her eyes on Brian and the precious burden in his hands. She gave a hopeful little trill.

Despite itching to stand at Brian's side, she did not dare. She did not want to scare Beth again. She hoped that time and proximity would override any lingering Mouse Thoughts in her friend's head.

Especially since, thanks to Sylvia's suggestion, she now wanted to have the tiny form of her friend riding on her head. It would be so cute!

It was with a baited breath that Lex watched the tiny mouse hole. Come on Beth, come out, he slumped slightly as mouse Beth poked her head out. There she was. He grinned as she started squeaking, turning around in excited circles in Brian’s hand. “Glad to see you are back with us, Beth. “

He nodded at Sylvia. “Let’s go back to camp.”