[center]As the afternoon dragged into early nightfall, Julia gathered her engulfing garments around her malnourished body and stood weakly against the dumpster. She concealed the shatter-trap she'd made in the crook of her armpit and stumbled slowly towards the street. She made every effort to stay quiet and avoid making much sound, but the tall girl was having trouble balancing on such a light-head. After a few noisy encounters with the alley trash, Juliana managed to compose herself enough to lower into a crouch and stalk like a shadow along the San Diego streets. [i]Food[/i]. Her mind couldn't shake the thought of a nice piece of rat or rabbit meat. It made her miss the company of her faithful mutant hound, Richter. Juliana avoided all social traffic and picked up two or three more broken glass bottles to add to her shatter-trap. 

After at least 10 minutes of night-stalking, she came upon an abandoned hospital. Juliana looked down to her scarred arm, which was enveloped tightly with white bandages, and then up to the sparking red letters of the public sign. She looked both ways cautiously and sprinted into the broken entrance without a sound. The noxious smell of rotting cadavers filled her open nostrils, and her empty stomach churned. She heaved slightly, unable to conceal the sound, and was echoed by a low growling coming from behind a dimly lit corner. Juliana reached for one of the broken bottles inside the hollow makings of her shatter-trap, and held it in front of her shakily. She was less than prepared for a fight, she simply needed nutrition more than anything at this moment.

A foreboding, dark figure crept into the filthy hallway. Hackles raised, Richter pounced forward with a menacing growl. The large hound swept it's paw into the air, knocking to bottle in Juliana's hand to the floor. Surprisingly, it did not shatter, just rolled noisily into one of the patient rooms. Juliana's breath caught in her lungs as she recognized the creature attacking her.

"Richter! Richter, stop! It's me."

She lowered into a submissive position and allowed the hound to gruffly root his nose into her sides as he assessed her. Richter's keen sense of smell had been effected by the strong smell of chemicals lingering in the building. He retreated his head and snorted loudly as his body sat obediently in front of Juliana. Her hands cautiously slid from her face and she eyed he long-lost companion with a sort of elated sorrow. Her thin arms reached forward to hug the large mutant's neck and he rested his large head into the hollow that was her shoulder. Juliana whispered into his advanced ears, [i]I've missed you, bud.[/i] His long, threatening tail whacked against the ground once in response.

Juliana leaned back onto her knees and used her palm to lift herself to a standing position. She wandered into the room where her bottle had rolled and searched the drawers and cabinets while Richter nosed around in the corners. A few high pitched screams informed her that he had captured a rat. He swallowed it whole before she could retrieve it. Her lips frowned, but she was happy to secure her hands around a few used rolls of medical tape. She stripped the dirtied bed and placed the sheet in her knapsack for later. Richter followed her throughout the other rooms as she gathered up a few meager medical supplies. A handful of assorted pills, an almost empty tub of Vaseline, two syringes, and a small medical scalpel. She placed the puny supplies safely into her sack and slithered into one of the less foul patient beds. Richter curled himself by the door protectively as Juliana's eyes closed in pure exhaustion.[/center]