See the lightning in your eyes

From around the side of the garage, Maruui was doing her best to figure out the bike Kaison had distracted her with, but balancing on the two-wheeled device was decidedly tricky. And doubly so for Maruui, who was use to the counter balance of a long tail and a wide, four legged stance in her natural form. With her bare toes scraping the grass on either side of the bicycle as she waddled the device along, the eleven year old was nevertheless determined to make it work.

...until she saw the figure moving down the road, towards the garage.

All lessons about stranger-danger from Datharil went out the window. She half hopped, half tripped over the bike in her excitement to dismount it, and let it fall sideways into the lawn while her bright emerald eyes turned to the bipedal fox. A smile came next, and a friendly return wave of the hand, "Hi!" She skipped forward, crossing over to the driveway in record speed, "You come in peace? That's good, so do I!" Wavy, auburn hair fell forward, framing the kid's freckled face as she hunched down, bringing herself a little closer to Nine's height, "My name's Maruui... oh, you look hurt! Want me to heal you?"

Just as Maruui was noticing the fresh scrapes on Nine's knees, and before she could launch any more questions at him, a sharp voice barked out from the garage. "Hey!" It was pitched enough in its anger that Maruui started a little, and drew back from the experimental sniff she was going to give Nine. "Maru, get back. Who are you?" The heavy, quick slap of boots came next as Kaison left the garage behind and started a brisk walk down the driveway towards the pair. In his hand was the air canister he'd been using just moments ago, and already there were a few indentations into the cylinder's metal casing, where the wiry man's fingers pressed with tension.

"It's okay, he comes in peace!" Maruui chirped back, though the girl's usual enthusiasm seemed to waver a little under the dark cloud of Kaison's approach.