Tonight was one of the few times Sara chose to be without a roof. It wasn’t that she wasn’t able to break into somewhere for the night, it was she had too much pent up energy. Stopping for the night, wasn’t something she felt she could do. Call it itchy feet.

Sara often found herself with itchy feet. Feet that she couldn’t force to old still, but made her want to move. Especially in the cool night air.

Sara hopped across the roof, Slid down the slope of an adjacent roof top, before pushing off of the edge of the slanting shingles, and looking like super cat, before her hands caught the metal frame work of a fire escape on a building across the alley way. Making the city her giant jungle gym, as she swung around the bar to land on the alley way below.

Her knees bent as they took the impact of her landing. Her arms extended to either side in a motion as if to say, Ta-da! But no one was there to applaud. If anyone had, she probably would have freaked out right then and there.

Moving on, Sara chose to exit the alley way, and travel down the mane street. Letting the road side lamps bath her completely in light. Pulling her hood back so that her feline face was completely in view. Where Sara’s instincts told her to hide they also told her she shouldn’t have to. She should be able to be bold enough to walk without shrouds around her, and she should be able to eat without clearing a restraint, and she should be able to dip her toes in water, without someone making stupid cat jokes.

“Here kitty, kitty, kitty.”

… Speaking of bad cat jokes. Sara tilted her head, looking over her shoulder, as three men stepped out from around an alley way. “you’re original.” Sara’s tail flicked as she slowly shifted to turn around.

“you’re pretty strange.” The mane guy grinned as he leveled a pistol with Sara’s head. As he spoke the two following him, The one on the right had shouldered a sawed off shot gun.
“And” Sara asked. Her ears flicked back and forth as she listened to others step out into the open. Slowly covering the places Sara had mapped in her head, to use as escape.

“You’re beautifully too strange.” The ring leader told her. “We’re going to put you down.”

Great

The was the rustle of fabric behind Sara, and she spun on her heal, instinctually knocking an axe to the side. The axe clattered across the cement, in shadows of the buildings, There was a shot fired, and a bullet lodged it’s self in Sara’s shoulder. Making her cry out.

The city was quiet and that always worried Wraith... while most would be happy for a quiet night he knew that this was just the city trying to lull you into a false sense of security. New York seemed to have it's own spirit and guiding power so that the worst crimes and attacks always happened right after a brief lull.

Closing his eyes his eyes in concentration Wraith focused on using his enhanced hearing to slowly sweep the city for whatever excitement might be hidden from normal senses. He had never understood why his hearing only worked when he concentrated but it wasn't something that bothered him so much he had to investigate. What mattered was that he could access it when it became necessary.

“Here kitty, kitty, kitty.”

Cat calls... not necessarily a dangerous situation but it was quiet tonight so you never knew exactly what was going to happen.

“You’re pretty strange.”

“And?” A female voice responded. There was something familiar about that voice that Wraith couldn't quite place and then it hit him... the sushi shop. He hadn't seen Sara in a while but that had to be her.

She could only be a block or two away. Suddenly leaping from his perch, Wraith landed on the building next to it and took off at a dead run across the roof tops. If someone was making calls like that towards someone that looked like a cat they couldn't have friendly intentions.

“You’re beautifully too strange. We’re going to put you down.”

If it was possible Wraith ran even faster... he may not have super speed but he was about as fit as a regular human could get. And then the sound he never wanted to hear suddenly came... a gunshot followed by a cry of pain from Sara. Wraith's adrenaline had been moving before but now it was going full tilt. Focusing he blasted the area up ahead with his sonar, knowing that its current frequency would make the men below see shadows and ghosts as the edges of their vision. He wasn't sure how Sara's eyes would respond but if her mutation was far enough then her eyes should be different enough to keep her immune from the effects.

"Hold on Sara!" He muttered out through gritted teeth as he made another leap, grabbing onto a flagpole and using as his high bar to send him towards the nearest fire escape. He was a few seconds away and that was what terrified him... what if those seconds were to many?

Sara’s body twisted around with the pain, when she was shot. Feeling the bite of the bullet fully, with her teeth grit hard together, before her healing ability took over and began numbing the pain. Sliding closed with a sensation that mimicked ice, against the open hole.

With the fluid motion, Sara grabbed the telft shoulder of her coat, with her right hand, and pulled the coat off. Flinging the fabric back at the first gunman. The movement hurt, as the wound from being shot twisted, and reopened. Trying to rip further, but it was a small price to pay. Smaller than getting shot by the same gun, again.

While Gun man number one worked to untangle himself from Sara’s goat, the man who threw the axe, came at Sara from behind. She ducked as he tried to clobber the back of her head, and grabbed his hand, a quick twist, and he flipped over, landing on his back, on the cement at Sara’s feet.

Sara’s ears pinned as they hummed with the rush of blood, that pumped with her adrenalin. Buzzing at the back of her head and making shapes swirl around the shadows. She turned just as the rest of the gang, leveled their weapons on her, then where they were looking, shifted. Sara didn’t ask questions, she just reacted, running to the closest edge of the circle, of men. Her movement was followed as the gun men fired, for her legs, so as not to shoot each other in the circle, and the shots sparked behind her heals. She tumbled forward onto her hands and swung her feet around to try to catch the closest man around the knees.

He went down, and Sara shoved him, with a second kick, into the man on his other side. Those two went down, tangling into each other, and Sara caught a glimpse of someone running their way at full tilt to the group. Another gang member. Sara’s ears pinned against the back of her head.

Two throwing knifes were thrown straight at two of the shooters, Taking out their gun hands. Sara went the other way. Jumping into the air and angling her feet to try and come down on the new comer. Attempting to knock him out before he even joins the scuffle.

Wraith had arrived on the scene as quickly as he could but even as he approached he could tell that Sara seemed to have things well in hand. He hoped the extra strength sonar had helped possibly distract the gunmen but there was no way to know for sure at this distance. As he closed in, he suddenly realized that Sara was no longer moving towards the gang and was suddenly in the air coming towards him.

"What in the world?!" He thought as his mind kicked into overdrive. Had she been thrown off balance? Was she dodging an attack? Had she seen him and thought he was part of the gang? There was no way to know for sure what exactly was factoring into the situation but it was easy to know what would happen if Sara made contact.

Throwing himself to the side Wraith dove and shoulder rolled back up to his feet, swiftly pulling his baton from its holder on his back and throwing it towards one of the gang members Sara had disarmed with her knife. The loud crack as it slammed into the side of the man's head told Wraith all he needed to know... that guy was out of the game.

"Just here to help Sara! Watch your back!" Wraith barked out, puposely making his voice more grating than usual. It wasn't a huge disguise in the voice but it was enough to make it sound different from how he sounded when in his street clothes. Diving to the side again, the gray-clothed man moved into the shadows out of the street lights, doing his best to stay out of the other gang member's view. His sonar was working at full power but he knew better than to depend on the 'shadows' and 'ghosts' to completely distract his targets.

Sara’s body twisted in the air, using her tail as a rudder to angle her feet forward. The new comer rolled out of her way at the last second, and she readjusted how she was falling so that her feet would land on the pavement. Sliding sideways till she turned her feet so that her claws would hook at the pavement and bring her to a complete halt.

Whoah. That was strange. Sara could have sworn the guy hadn’t even looked at her. Yet there he was, still moving and not drooling and giving the ground a big hug.

"Just here to help Sara! Watch your back!"

AND HOW THE HECK DID HE KNOW HER NAME! “Huhhh?” She didn’t recognize the voice, but it was obviously being made raspy. Her ears flicked back as she heard someone running her from behind. Ok so questions later.

Sara allowed her instincts to kick in, and grabbed a hold of the hand that was headed for her back. Finding a knife in his fist, before it could be stabbed into her. With another twist the guy was shoved off balance. She kicked his mid section, knocking the air out of him and causing him to stumble back. Sara followed giving him a second kick, scoring across his head and knocking him out.

All the while, keeping the strange man with a raspy voice in her peripheral vision. He was here to help her? No one helped her. She liked the standing alone but the standing alone wasn’t a complete choice. It have been something she had accepted and it was out of her ordinary patterns.

She took two fast steps towards the remaining men, and one holding a gun still raised it to fire. Only making the trigger back and forth. “Boo!”

Wraith crouched silently in the shadows, focusing on any bit of movement he could pick up with hsi sonar. Right now Sara seemed to have a handle on the remaining members of the gang but were all the ones that had been hit actually down for the count? The man that had previously wielded an axe was beginning to stir but Wraith was doubtful he would want to join back in with the fight.

Slipping through the darkness with accuracy that few would ever understand he appeared behind the two remaining gunmen with his staff drawn, extended, and held out in front of his body.

“Boo!”

"Droll Sara... very droll." Wraith rasped out from where he had appeared behind the two men. It was amazing seeing just how well the young lady could fight and he was beginning to appreciate just how far her mutation had taken her. Obviously her senses were enhanced but it also appeared that her strength and speed were higher than normal. "Note... don't cross cat lady." He thought wryly to himself.

"So what now? Kill them? Send them back to whatever pit they came out of?"

There was no telling exactly what Sara's plan was but he didn't believe in murder. Killing in self-defense was one thing but once the tables were turned and the gang members were pretty much defenseless, he couldn't see any reason for continuing the mayhem.

The man with the stressed voice moved oddly to Sara. Most people look right at where they were thinking about or doing, but his head and where his eyes should have been focusing on, didn’t match everyone else. He was behind the two remaining men now, and Sara shrugged at his Droll comment.

The man with the gun tried turning the chamber before Sara snatched his hand, putting her claw behind the trigger so he couldn’t pull it back. Just in case. Sure she could heal, but healing hurt. Speaking of healing, she still had the first gun shot wound her body was dealing with. All the extra movement she had just preformed kept making the area stretch and tear.

The two of the gunman had jumped when the raspy sounding man spoke, the first time. The second wasn’t so amusing to watch.

"So what now? Kill them? Send them back to whatever pit they came out of?"

Sara twisted the gunman’s arm so that his back was forced towards her. Arm behind his back and gun pointed at the second, man left. Sara’s free hand moved, with the claw of her index finger extended, against the gunman’s throat. Tapping the tip against his skin. “Killing them, is tempting.”

If Sara was really going to kill them, she would have done it when they were more of a threat. No Sara wasn’t all about forgiveness, but she didn’t like getting blood all over her hands either. In any sense of the definition. Still a good threat was in order. Something to make this group either think twice next time they want to shoot her, or make sure they hit her in the head.

There was no way to tell if Sara was joking about the killing or not... he didn't have enough of a track record with her to be able to discern her moods or intentions but he couldn't just let her kill the men. Of course, with her claw against the man's neck there wasn't exactly a whole lot he could do to stop her but maybe some 'words of wisdom' could help calm down the situation.

"Killing them you don't have to worry about them trying again, but maybe they'd be useful to you." Wraith spoke as he turned his head, lining it up with Sara as best he could as though he were trying to stare her down. The visor would keep her from seeing his eyes and the hood should put enough shadows on his face to keep her from identifying him... at least right away. "Maybe they can be messengers to the rest of their gang and to other gangs letting them know that the cat is off limits."

It wasn't the best suggestion in the world but it was all he could think of at the moments. "Take the offer Sara... don't turn yourself into a killer." He thought to himself as he waited for her to respond. This was Raina's friend and he just couldn't believe Raina would make friends with murderers.

"And you boys have heard of Wraith... if I say she's off limits, and she says she's off limits, you better go along with it." He spoke again, his gaze never leaving Sara. "Accept Sara... accept your chance to step away without blood on your hands!"

When Sara said that she practiced self control, this was one of those moment. No she had no plans on killing these two, but her words, about it being tempting, were the truth.

Here she stood among a group of men who tried to kill her, and here she had a chance to get rid of them. She swallowed, as she noticed an itch at the tip of her trigger finger. The claw on her thumb extended, and scratched the tip of her index finger. Same hand that held the gun.

The wound from being shot, was slowly closing, and felt cold. Her muscles forming around the bullet that she hadn’t removed yet, where she would either have to remove it later or she would forget about it, because things were just numb. Cooling, cold, and numb.

"Killing them you don't have to worry about them trying again, but maybe they'd be useful to you."

“Huhhh?” Sara’s eyes flicked sideways to the man with the raspy voice, before they hardened back on the man she was aiming the gun at. He thought she was serious. Her lips tightened together, and she continued glaring at the gang member she was aiming the gun at. Damb that trigger finger still itched.

"Maybe they can be messengers to the rest of their gang and to other gangs letting them know that the cat is off limits."

“You know all those thoughts never work.” This wasn’t a perfect world. In a perfect world, Sara wouldn’t be getting attacked on the streets. She wouldn’t have to hide. She shouldn’t have to hide. Ever.

"And you boys have heard of Wraith... if I say she's off limits, and she says she's off limits, you better go along with it."

“I told you things don’t work that way.” Sara said with her focus flicked back to Wraith. He called himself Wraith. Only now was Sara getting a chance to take in Wraith’s sent, and it was familiar. The dead pan look in her face, and her shoulders back, but relaxed, despite the scene involving her forfinger claw and a gun. Her mind flashed back to the images of the camps escape, and the crazy look in the one man’s eye that she had ever killed. He’d gotten to six other mutants before he found Sara, and he actually had put them in a pile. Like they were nothing but crumpled papers. The man was lower than scum, and Sara still had regrets.

“You are to leave everyone, alone, unless given proper reasons to protect yourselves.” Sara whispered in the gunman’s ear, though the words rushed out in a hiss. If the gang went after someone else the blood would be on Sara’s hands too.

Sara let go, allowing the gunman to have his neck, arm, and gun, whole.

So she believed the world was close to hopeless... things didn't work that way. "It would work that way if everyone would take a stand... sorry Sara but I'm just one man." Wraith thought to himself as he watched Sara carefully. Finally with a hissed warning to the man Sara released her grip and allowed the man to step away.

The shadowy figure's reactions were instentaneous and without the slightest hesitation his staff suddenly swung forward in an uppercut type motion, crashing into the man's gun and sending it spinning up into the air.

"Picture perfect." Wraith thought smugly as the weapon arced back towards him. He had been able to catch the weapon at just the right angle so that it didn't go flying off into the darkness but instead, came right towards him. Extending his left hand with practiced ease Wraith caught the weapon and ejected the clip followed by a swift clearing of the chamber to make sure the weapon was empty.

"Stick to defending yourselves and I won't be back." He knew the warning sounded cheesy but it had worked on other gangs and there was no reason not to use it on these particular punks, "Start attacking for no reason or trying to widen your 'turf' and you'll start getting a lot of unpleasant visits."

Tossing the weapon back to the man, Wraith 'watched' dispassionately as the man fumbled to catch the weapon, just barely grabbing it in time to keep it from falling to the ground. It seemed like this particular confrontation was over but there was never any way to be sure.

"Get out of here while you still can."

Sara let go and stood still. Even with the set of movements that followed right in front of her. The bit with the gun. Wraith emptied it before tossing it back to the gunman, and Sara still just watched. She could have done that. She normally did that. Emptied weapons or just took them apart. There was a realization, yet again that she had been tempting a lot of fate lately, crept into her mind.

Wraith gave his warning and the gang turned to make their leave. Sara finally took the chance to check on her own injury. Her left hand tried to feel where she had been shot on the back of her right shoulder. It was hard to tell when everything went numb. “So wraith,” Sara was breathing in his scent and he smelled familiar, but she wasn’t putting things together yet. “you do this often, I take it.”

She was still trying to figure out his scent, but there was a strong buzz about the air around her, that felt like it was pressing in on her. The tip of her claw brushed where she’d been shot and she flinched. “ok there’s the spot.” She grumbled to herself. The wound was almost closed but she felt a need to extract the bullet that had invaded the sanctity that was her. That should be her. Sort of the way this noice kept invading her head. Just like…

“Luke..” her head tilted, but her arm and shoulder staid in place working on squeezing past the muscle tissue that was reforming it’s self while she was trying to use her claws like a pair of big tweezers. “… Oh you’ve got to be kidding me.”

“So wraith, you do this often, I take it.”

"More often than I might like." Wraith replied as he collapsed his staff with practiced motions and then stowed it back in its holder on his back. Sara was muttering about having found the spot as she was scratching her back or something but that wasn't to important. Turning away he walked over to where the one gang member was still stirring as though trying to come back to consciousness and retrieved his baton that had fallen to the ground after his accurate throw. As he slid it into the second holder on his back Sara spoke again.

“Luke... Oh you’ve got to be kidding me.”

For a brief moment he was frozen... how in the world could she have identified him? His sonar was there but that wasn't a sure sign. "Who's Luke?" He asked as he turned back around. He was going to do his best to save the situation but if the sinking feeling in his stomach was any indication, this was a hopeless case.

"Sonar gave me away... but that's not enough for a sure fire identification.... cat senses... to many shadows over my face for her to see that and I'm changing my voice. How sensitive is a cat's smell? Is that my problem?

Wraith was moving off to collect his stuff and Sara had just hooked the tip of her claw, around the bullet. Pulling it out and wincing. Well that done, she tossed the oddly shaped piece of metal aside where it tinged along the pavement. Sucking on her reddened claws, and holding her shoulder still so it would heal faster and restop bleeding.

"Who's Luke?"

Yeah right. Ok there might be a bit of blood in the air, but Sara’s nose was sensitive enough that that didn’t throw her before. So it wouldn’t throw her now. Take that Mr act cool, who’s Luke guy. Sara knew your deal. Sure she had just been a bit slow on the draw… of breath… so shoot her. Someone just had, and that was excuse enough for her nose’s slowness.

He turned his back to her, and Sara’s ears flattened against the back of her head. Oh really. So there were a few tests Sara could perform. He had a sonar. If he had a sonar, not saying his sonar was perfect, but lets say if he did, he would know Sara was walking behind him.

“So you really don’t know a Luke?”

And if this said sonar was really working and he really knew Sara was walking up behind him, he would know she was close enough that when her hip popped out to the side, her hand was resting there, and her pinky finger was just under one of his pouches, while she took the time to pick up the axe that had been thrown.

“I must be mistaken.”

Just like if this was really Luke, with the really cool sonar, he would know her pinky claw had come out and was currently slicing a neat little hole in the bottom of on of his pouches. Oh and who would forget that he would also know, because of that great sonar, that this pouch dropped a little plastic device. A cell phone. Oh good. Sara had been wanting one of these.

Sara stood back up waiting to see if the absence of the cell phone was going to be noticed. “Either way that’s some sonar you’ve got.”

As Wraith went about replacing his equipment on his back he could sense Sara moving closer. "Perfect... just perfect... she doesn't buy this for even a second."

“So you really don’t know a Luke?”

Maybe this had a chance after all. It sounded like she was beginning to accept it. "I know several Luke's around town. Whether any of the Luke's I know are the same one you're referring to is anyone's guess."

"Just stay cool... stay cool. This might work."

“I must be mistaken.” Sara finally said, her voice cooling off slightly as he bent over beside him to pick up the axe that had fallen to the ground. Wraith was so relieved that his charade as working that he failed to notice the claw working at the bottom of the pouch or the fact that some of the weight on his belt had just dissapeared.

“Either way that’s some sonar you’ve got.” She finally said as she backed away from him.

"Another couple of lies and I might be free and clear... perfect!" He thought triumphantly as he turned around to face the lady cat. "I emit sound that makes the human eyeball vibrate forming shadows and ghosts at the edge of their vision. I can also sense danger as it gets closer and closer. I'm afraid sonar isn't on my list of abilities."

That danger sense idea sounded pretty crazy but it was all he could come up with at the spur of the moment. It was probably a good idea to change the subject before she had to much time to think about it.

"It looked like you didn't really need my help there but I'm glad you didn't kill them." He spoke quietly but firmly as he focused his face towards Sara as best he could, "Trash like that aren't worth getting blood on your hands... or claws."

I can also sense danger as it gets closer and closer. I'm afraid sonar isn't on my list of abilities."

“Oh interesting.” The theft of cell phones, and having your pockets cut, must not count on the dangometer. Sara’s head tilted when Wraith turned around and her wrist rotated around from where the phone had slipped into her hand, so that the phone could slip into her own pocket. You Didn’ See Nothin!’

Take that Mr. Luke who!

"It looked like you didn't really need my help there but I'm glad you didn't kill them."

Sara shrugged. “I’m a healer. I can survive much worst.” She had several time. “I’m not a killer. Those guys were safe the entire time. No matter how tempting it was.” Sara slowly turned and started walking away. She stole from the guy. No reason to stick around and find out what happens when he gets the wiser... Luke.