[i]Long walk.[/i]

There was no reason to talk. The fox wouldn't speak back, most likely, and the quiet was enjoyable. Little noise but the slow [i]crawnch, crawnch[/i] of the leaves beneath his feet, and the quiet [i]pitter patter[/i] of those ahead of him. Mal glanced up at the pair again and smiled. A beautiful woman with an intriguing air about her was accompanied by a rather young gentleman as they scampered through the path. Both of them had caught his eye, not because they were out of place, but because of how cute their clothing was. Perhaps Mal could take up sewing as his next hobby. Perhaps after stargazing.

They had made camp. It was an odd place to make camp. Little shelter, near the road where bandits could easily find them. Mal didn't mind. He laid down on his back and looked up at the stars before pointing. "That one. I call it Wren," he said simply before looking over to his fox companion. She had noticed something, but Mal couldn't tell what it was. The fox seemed insistent, so he picked her up and set her on his shoulder to go investigate. As he approached the camp, suddenly everything went black, and the sound of feet quickly scrambling on dirt was the only thing he could hear. Mal set his jaw. "I will protect," he said simply. Perhaps they had been ambushed, and some magic user had taken out the biggest threat first. Mal could probably catch up and keep them safe. Once he found his way out of the darkness, he began to jog lightly, his frame lumbering heavily down the dirt path. The fox napped.

There was a city nearby. Lots of loud people clanging their pots together and shouting. That must be their destination. Mal usually avoided cities. People threw things at him, yelled at him, called him things. But if the pair were in trouble, Mal must help. His pace slowed to a walk, however. It was unlikely that the duo had run as long as he had without tiring themselves out. Neither looked very hearty from a distance. Luckily, he saw them just as they entered the city. Mal quickly ran forward and closed the distance. The pair stood out quite a bit in the crowd, so Mal had little trouble following them, just glad they were safe. When they ducked into an alley, Mal slowly turned the corner. At first he thought they were gone, but Wren nibbled at his ear, directing his attention upward. There she was, dangling helplessly from the walls... or so he thought.

Evidently, this alley was the woman's home. The poor girl, having to live in this dirty city. Mal reached up to shake her hand, but it seemed she was just a few inches out of reach. He considered jumping, but decided that he might be more likely to accidentally pull her down. Instead, he figured he would introduce himself in the only manner he knew how.

"I am Mal. You are cute. Your friend too. Need help? I protect the cute."