Running, Running, when was his human going to stop this incessant running! Palladium heaved a breathed as he did his best keeping up with Aysel, switching between forms as they went, from a chickadee, to a cat, then a thin brown fox, all in attempt to remain at her side. Surely she was faster then any child he had seen before, perhaps all their times escaping from danger had made this so. Hunger had lead them into the streets, but the usual law keepers were about, and having just made a dash from the orphanage, they were looking for the child amongst the trees nearby, in the marketplace, everywhere they could imagine a child may go to hide.

Why was it so important to them? Just because she didn’t have a mum or dad, adults were crawling all over themselves just to put her somewhere. Aysel was beginning to wonder if they weren’t doing this for her, but for their own self conscious. She certainly didn’t need their help. Leaving her be would have been much better. The girl had much bigger matters to deal with. In between two shops Aysel’s pace slowed, just as two boys burst into the parallel alley. Thieves, like herself. Children who couldn’t afford to pay upfront, who needed to eat just like the rest of the citizens of Oxford. That was the same wherever you went. Children were homeless, hungry, and orphanages were always full.

“Hey- Hey Aysel! There’s someone down that way, must’ve caught those boys stealing!” Palladium lifted into the air, a dainty white moth, before settling on his human’s shoulder as a ferret. He curled himself into her hair, nuzzling her cheek to reassure the child of the risk. Aysel’s heart hadn’t yet slowed down from their previous run, the beating was so fierce she worried someone else could hear it. Pressing herself up against the wall just before the corner, Aysel waited and listened. “Look around the corner Pal, tell me when they leave.” Doing just that, Palladium crawled down her person, and met the floor as a small brown mouse. He peeked around the corner, expectant to see an angry man and his daemon. Aysel, curious to see what her daemon saw, crept closer to the corner, peeking into the alley with consciously.

"It's a boy!" Palladium whispered obviously. "Sure looks like a boy, don't it?" Aysel smirked looking down to Palladium who gave her a sour look, "ha ha, very funny" a comment which only make Aysel snicker. "Second one we've seen all by themselves like this. This one don't look too old though." Aysel found herself stepping forward curious, but kept herself from turning the corner too soon. It was Palladium's time for cynics for he replied sullenly, "I can't see why you're surprised, didn't we just see two other boys run that way?"

Before Aysel could find words to a comeback, their presence had been discovered. Suddenly the boy's daemon took the shape of a lizard whilst the boy himself took a startled step back. Alarmed Aysel clung to the wall, Palladium shifted, becoming a ringtailed possum, his salt and pepper fur ruffled to make himself seem intimidating enough to fend off a lizard. However as the boy's daemon changed for a second time, Aysel and Palladium sensed a change and in turn relaxed.

Shaking himself he lept into the form of a pine marten and peeked his head out further. Upon hearing his question, Aysel walked into the alley cautiously. "You scared me boy! I thought- I thought you was a gobbler or somethin'! The way those other kids took off, either some angry adult was about or a gobbler... I was certain, but I come and check... to find you..." All sense of caution fell aways, curiosity bid the child forward and she obeyed it without question. "What'cha doing out all alone, boy? Don'tcha know them gobblers been snatchin' up kids left an' right?" From behind, Palladium scampered forward coiling around her legs protectively. Far be it from him to leave her unprotected, child or not, past experience stated his own self appointed duty to keep her out of trouble. Clasping her arms and jumping from one foot to another Aysel shivered, trying to let the adrenaline go. "Anyway, I'm Aysel, and this is Palladium. Pal for short... What's your name?" She didn't skip a beat, thinking it best to be more hospitable this time around, after all that was more her way any how.

Hearing this boy's version of gobblers, Aysel felt a tinge of fear trickle up her spine. Nasty business gobblers, even before that suggestion came into her mind. The child wanted to go up north, but certainly not that way. As he looked at her, Aysel looked back, seemingly more astonished that any other human being had remained around her for this long. It often felt as though she stank of Gyptian, for any respectable person would move around her in an instant of seeing her. True she wasn't exactly the prettiest girl, nor did her clothes look presentable, but that didn't determine the person inside them.

'Aysel... have you ever seen someone with eyes like his? The thought was passed idly, but in turn had prompted her to look with more scrutiny upon the foreign color of the boy's eyes.

'Curious... very curious, don't you think Pal?'

Snapping to attention when she heard the boy speak again Aysel felt pangs of sympathy reach into her heart. She knew how it felt, being alone and unwanted. Not a single glance was ever passed to look upon the unfortunate children who walked the streets, not even here in Oxford. It was the same everywhere, people ignored it, out of sight out of mind. His brave reply made Aysel smile. He must've been pretty tough to stick around for so long. He probably knew this place better then she did, that's for certain.

With a name to place with his peculiar face, Aysel's smile brightened further. "Nice to meet you Lucan and Dewy." Aysel spoke quite pleasantly, clearly far more happy to have met the boy then a simple passing. Palladium, watching Daelera with inquisitive interest slowly crept from around his girl's legs and toward the other daemon. Suprised to hear another daemon speak, yet thoroughly pleased as well, Palladium's figure bristled and shrunk somewhat, taking on instead the form of a snowy white squirrel.

"Indeed we are, been on the run since six, this girl has." Palladium remained with his gaze upon the she-daemon, he had never really had much interaction with other daemons before, those that he had, were far off in the memory of a seaport town and an innkeeper's house. Blushing suddenly Aysel looked down to her daemon, once again he was too honest. "Well.... homeless for the moment.... we got a family... up north somewhere." Trying to suppress her embarrassment as well as her shame Aysel lowered her head. It was awful knowing that no one would claim you as their own, and surely this boy would understand that, yet she couldn't shake the feeling of shame.

It took a while for Aysel to come up with a reply to his question. ’What are we doing here Pal? In all honesty, she wasn’t entirely sure, perhaps it was the hope of finding food, or it could have been the fact that people were after her. But she wasn’t going to mention that. It would make her seem a criminal. Palladium mused quietly, swishing his tail coyly in the form of a slim black cat. ’Of course we’re criminals, Aysel. What else would you call thieves?’ Displeased with the response, Aysel grasped at straws, attempting to find something safe to say. ”Oh, we’re just hanging about, not much else we can do now.” She did her best to sound casual. Happy to remain in the conversation with Daelera, Palladium, now beagle shaped responded quite avidly.

”I tell you, it wasn’t easy. This girl of mine gets into the worst fixes sometimes, if it wasn’t for me, who knows what would have happened!” Mentally he felt a nudge, Aysel clearly disagreeing with the statement. Humbly, and perhaps more honestly, he continued. ”Honestly, it’s a wonder even to us. Since the first we ended up out in the streets, we’ve been moving from town to town. It keeps us going, that’s for sure.” Having no qualms with this, Aysel left him to the conversation. This was good for both of them, she thought. To communicate with someone other than each other? It was fantastic!

Surprisingly, she must’ve said something to have caught Lucan’s attention so well, for he lit up quite quickly upon mention of the North. Unable to find words, Aysel stammered, ” y-eah, least, that’s what I’ve been told. Haven’t ever met them though. But I know their somewhere. My mother was a Gyptian, see? She –“ Faltering, her words halted suddenly. Did he think poorly of Gyptians too? She could have very well messed up the entire meeting with that one word! Clasping her hands to her mouth, Aysel lowered her head, ashamed. Sensing his human’s feelings, Palladium went rigid, slipping into the form of a ferret his elongated body went stiff. Sympathy leaked from daemon to human.

’Maybe – maybe he en’t like that, Aysel. Don’t get worried over it yet. Maybe he’s different…' Just the same he was watching Daelera, should there be signs of animosity, it would come first in the shape she would take. As much as he would like to hope for the best, he was afterall getting along quite well with this new encounter, but if needs be… he would have to prepare to protect his human. Other children, those who were spoiled upon their parent’s laps and told of the shifty lives of Gyptians, often looked at Aysel as if she were the plague walking, some would even go so far as to throw something at her. Both daemon and girl looked to the boy and his daemon, praying he would not be the same as those others.