Though She Is But Little, She Be Fierce

"Taily-"mumble, "Taily-"mumble, "I want my taily-"mumble.

"What is it saying?" Zero asked. "A bone? We don't have any bones!" she called into the darkness. "Maybe it's a code?"

From:

Nadia flicked her lighter on as she stepped forward again, calling "hello?" softly.

Two spots of light flickered, and Nadia stepped forward again, holding the lighter out. The light glinted again.

Two yellow eyes, peering through the brush.

Nadia froze. "I don't think that's a person," she called backwards softly.

From:

It sure talked like a person...

"Parlay?"

From:

"It's kinda low to the ground for a person...maybe it's a lost kid? With really freaky eyes? Sweetie, if you come out, we'll help you find your taily thing."

"Taily-po!"

"Yes, yes, your tailybone. Whatever that is."

From:

Nadia crouched down low, bringing the lighter closer to the eyes again. "I really hope you're a person--"

A critter that was not so much people shaped as black and furry with pointed ears and a stumpy little bit of a tail came leaping out of the bushes.

Right on top of Nadia. That would be a scream from Nadia as her lighter went flying and she toppled backwards, the things long and very sharp claws whirled and scratched at her furiously.

From:

"Hey! Hey! BAD...thingy!" Zero yelled, whipping off her jacket and trying to use it to grab the thingy. "BAD! Pippi, help me!"

From:

"Oh how cute!" Pippi said reaching for the thing with her bare hands. "Angry, but cute!"

It's possibly a bad idea to grab hold of something that is in the process of doing a convincing Tasmanian Devil impression.

From:

And doing so on top of one of your friends.

"Ack! Stop! Get this thing off me! Ow, geez, what are you, Pip's cat's sister?! OW!" Nadia started to flail. "Get it off! GetitOFFgetitOFFgetitOFFgetitOFF!!"

From:

"Cute but bad! BAD!" Zero managed to get her jacket wrapped mostly around the thingy and started trying to pull it off Nadia. And she'd really liked that jacket...

From:

Pippi grabs for Taileypo's forelegs to keep it from doing much more damage to Nadia, Zero's coat, and Zero. The little critter bit Pippi's hand, latching on and growling while looking up at her.

"Ow... Fiesty."

From:

Nadia just kind of stayed where she was, lying wide eyed on the ground.

She didn't appear to be bleeding or anything, though her shirt was ripped in the proper horror movie fashion ~~to perfectly entice the female form loving parts of the audience with just the faintest, teasing hints of her boobs~~ and her brace would probably never, ever, ever be the same.

She had a couple delightful scrapes and such where the thing's claws had managed to not even remotely break the skin, though.

From:

The thing let go of Pippi's hand and wailed, "Tailypo!"

"No wonder it's bein' aggressive!" Zero realized as struggled with the thing and noticed the blood all over her jacket couldn't be from Nadia. "It's hurt! Some bastard cut off the poor thing's tail!"

"I want my tailypo!"

"The poor baby!" Zero cried.

From:

Pippi's hands are a little scratched up, not really bleeding.

"Awww! That's terrible!"

Oh yeah.

"Nadia? You okay?"

From:

Nadia continued to lie on the ground and continued to stare up at the sky, wide-eyed.

After a long moment, she spoke very quietly. ". . . am I dead?"

From:

Zero cradled the thingy in her jacket, muttering soothing things to it and promising to get it to a vet just as quick as she could. "What? No, Nadia, you're not dead. Unless we're all dead..."

From:

Pippi, who's shirt has also been artfully shredded byt Taileypo, kneels down next to Nadia and starts to gently help her up.

"You're fine Nadia, it was just a scared hurt little critter."

From:

Nadia slowly got to her feet, then just as slowly held up the remains of her brace, which now resembled a half-dead feather duster. She looked from it, to her shirt, to the thingy, to Pippi and Zero, then back to the thingy.

"So help me, if I have to spend even more time in a sling or a brace or an immobilizer or whatever because of that thing, I'll show it hurt and scared. It'll be hurtier and scareder than its ever been in its ever-lovin' life."

From:

The thingy said, "Tailypo," mournfully, and Zero twisted to shield the jacket-wrapped bundle with her body. Also because it was cold and the wind cut through her now-artistically shredded and previously-part-fishnet shirt. "Auntie Nadia didn't mean it."

From:

Poor thing.

Both of them.

"Come on, let's get our ~~artfully tattered~~ selves back to Dave."

From:

Nadia started walking back the way they came, carefully holding her left shoulder still with her right arm and generally starting to shiver a little.

And mutter:

"'Auntie' Nadia did so mean it . . . and she ain't that thing's 'auntie' neither . . . swear to god, can't have a single weekend without something trying to kill me. . . . Dr. Pevenise is gonna lock me up . . . ."

From: