Dear Fellow Travelers | Small Group RP | 4/4 | CLOSED

((well it's wonk as heck but here you go; I was in a rush so I apologize for the quality of it :S also I didn't really know what to do so they've just arrived at the town that morning and are kind of scoping the area out to try and find a relatively safe place to stay for the time being))

In life, there is always a time and place for things— and this most certainly was not the time nor the place for Bridger's loud humming.

"Bridger, please." Callie's voice was soft, barely above a whisper, and even that sounded far too loud for her liking in the silence of the darkened alley where they walked. Her footsteps were light, quiet against the pavement, but Bridger and sounded like some kind of Clydesdale horse clomping around in those galumphing boots of his. She didn't blame him for it, no, but— she still didn't want it to be the death of them.

"What?" Bridger nearly bumped into her as she stopped walking at the edge of the alley.

"The humming. Someone is going to hear us." Callie leaned forward warily and peeked out of the alley, though there was no one to be seen. Her wings folded tighter behind her back as she glanced left, right. "There could be people anywhere. Everywhere."

"I'm just trying to lighten the mood a bit. You've been on edge all day." Bridger patted Callie's shoulder once, then stepped around her to take a look out of the alley for himself. "Maybe someone else will hear my beautiful humming and it'll lighten their mood, too."

"Bridger— No." Callie grabbed his arm and tugged on it; he relented and stepped back into the alley. "You know you can't just walk out there and risk being seen; you're gonna get us killed."

"Cal," Bridger said patiently, "Look at me. Do I look like a guy who is very good at being stealthy or discreet? No. Not at all. But we've made it this long, haven't we?" He grinned and gently brushed her relatively petite hands from his arm. "There's no use in overthinking it. We're gonna find a safe place to stay a couple days, gonna find something to eat, and we're gonna go on our merry way until we find a way to fix our other problem." Both knew he referred to the virus. "Nobody's gonna mess with us. Anyone who does is gonna get a smackdown." He made a slow-motion punching motion and bumped his fist against Callie's shoulder playfully.

Callie sighed.

_{(No worries, that'll work!)}

Pilot didn’t seem to notice his new companion’s internal struggle, far too focused on the shack in front of them.

He did notice the flicker of concern in Hana’s eyes as he turned to address her, however, immediately interpreting it wrong. “I can go check it out—there’s no reason for you guys to endanger yourselves anymore, and you’ve already helped out tons! She’s my responsibility, anyways,” he explained quietly, a thankful smile on his face.

-

Mallory stared at the digging fox, clearly unimpressed. She nudged him unceremoniously into the hole while she turned to grab his bag, quietly and gently setting it in after Finn and nosing it forward as much as she could for him to retrieve.

As she prepared to follow, she paused to listen a final time, confirming the group was still stopped before squirming and wiggling her way through. To her horror, she almost did get stuck, but luckily, with a little skillful maneuvering that had absolutely nothing to do with the extra space Finn cleared out, she managed her way out.

With a disgruntled rumble, she dipped her head gratefully before lifting it to scent the air again. She almost didn’t catch it at first, clouded by the scents of the other two, but that was definitely—

Pilot!

Her ears perked up immediately and she crouched to peer around the corner, confirming it was her friend and not just an item of his that carried his scent.

That idiot, why is he here? And who is he with?

She started to reveal herself but froze when her sensitive ears picked up a faint humming. More people? But they seem farther away, she mused, glancing at Finn to see if he’d picked up on it, too.

If necessary, she was sure herself and Pilot could take the two strangers he’d shown up with, even with her injured. But there was no telling how another group would impact the mix. She needed to get Pilot—Finn, too, if she could—out quickly.

Carefully, she slipped out of the shadows and faced the original group, keeping to the side of the house that would hide her from view of the humming group down the road. She stayed silent, unwilling to make a noise and hoping her demeanor would tip Pilot off once he noticed her.

Finn crawled through the hole easily when he was pushed roughly into it, thankful for his small shifted form. He grabbed his bag in his jaws when Mallory dropped it in and pulled it out with him. He watched the wolf try and get through the hole, growing uneasy when she was temporarily stuck. He knew he wouldn't be strong enough to pull her out in either of his forms. He couldn't help but sigh softly in relief when she made it out.

He caught onto the humming pretty quickly and glanced around, his ears swiveling to try and find the source. Wherever it was, it was out of his sight. He wouldn't be able to find whoever was humming without moving, and he wasn't sure he wanted to meet them anyway.

Noticing Mallory moving, Finn padded along silently by her, keeping to her side and slightly behind. He halted when she did, not entirely sure what she seemed to be looking for. We need to get out of the open… she's going to get us seen.

_{(Sorry for the wait!)}

Pilot opened his mouth, about to say something else when he spotted movement out of the corner of his eye.

“Mallory?” he exclaimed, posture relaxing in relief in direct contrast to the wolf, who tensed and flicked an ear in annoyance.

So much for avoiding unwanted attention, she grumbled inwardly, flattening her ears to her skull and turning her nose meaningfully in the direction she’d heard the humming.

Pilot seemed to catch on, facing his new companions and bringing a finger to his lips despite him being the only loud one. He motioned for them to follow him to the side of the shack, where they’d be hidden from view, the thought of them being concerned about the large werewolf never once crossing his mind.

It wasn’t until a few steps closer that he even noticed Finn crouching behind her, and he tilted his head curiously at the fox.

Mallory huffed impatiently and wound around Pilot’s legs to shove him towards the shadows a little faster, waiting until he was there to shift back.

“Hey wait a minute, you’re hurt—”

The werewolf rolled her eyes and put her hand over his mouth, appraising the two other newcomers suspiciously as she addressed Finn, first. “This is the companion I mentioned. Pilot, this is Finn,” she spoke curtly, only briefly taking her eyes of the changeling and ghoul to clarify who she was introducing. “Who are they?”

The mutant muttered something incoherent, noting his friend’s feverish touch as she finally pulled her hand away from his mouth. “This is Hana and Abe. They helped me find you when you didn’t come back,” he explained, accusation creeping into his tone at the last bit.

Finn cowered behind Mallory for a few seconds, growling defensively. When Mallory seemed friendly with the stranger, he hesitantly shifted back into a human, still glaring at Pilot distrustfully. Regardless of whether or not Mallory trusted him, Finn couldn't be sure. After all, he couldn't exactly trust Mallory either. He hardly knew her. He kept glancing around to try and find the source of the humming, figuring that Pilot was at least safe for now.

"So…" He began awkwardly, his voice tense and uneasy, "How exactly do you two know each other?" He asked. "Friends, siblings…? Something else?" He rubbed the back of his neck a bit, obviously pretty uncomfortable with the situation.

Upon Callie's request, the two had decided not to hit the open streets and rather ducked into another alley— a broader one that cut between several dilapidated buildings, winding and twisting in a somewhat chaotic manner. Bridger led the way this time, though for Callie's sake, he decided to put his humming to rest for a bit. It was a darn shame, though, considering how catchy of a tune it was. If only he hadn't gotten it stuck in his head—

"Did you hear something?" Cal's voice came from behind, barely a whisper, as usual; how Bridger even heard her was a mystery.

"No," he responded, keeping his voice low. Well, low for Bridger; he had never been the best at whispering quietly. "What was it?"

"I don't know." Cal stretched her wings once before folding them back behind her back. "I couldn't tell. But I know I heard something."

"Maybe it was a dog or a cat," Bridger suggested, though he knew better. There were people here, likely Stage Threes, and while he wouldn't express any concerns to Cal directly, preferring to keep his relaxed and careless attitude, he was hyper-aware of his surroundings. But they had to find a place to stay and something to eat, and soon; Bridger's condition was worsening, and lack of food or proper rest definitely wasn't going to help him fight off the virus. They had to keep going. Might as well make a point not to cause Cal greater anxiety along the way. "I'm sure it was nothing to worry about."

"I'm not." Callie picked up the pace so that she could walk beside Bridger rather than beside him.

(Bump)