Bayo hadn't changed much despite being an adult. He was still rather happy-go-lucky with a go get'em attitude and a complete lack of any sort of risk complex. Which meant he would very happily leap into danger if it meant a good time, even if it was a terrible idea.

Like right now, for example. He was currently bounding around Canis, chasing rats and snapping at bone moths, having one hell of a time running around like he owned the place.

His gaze caught on something else and his tail started to wag, eyes zeroing in on a rabbit.

He bolted after it, barking loudly and chasing it through the tunnels, his ears down against his head to avoid the wind catching in them. He lunged over obstacles, nearing the rabbit, only to squeal as it ran into a hole in the wall and his paws failed to stop him in time.

So now he had a bloody nose (again) and a bruised ego and nothing to show for it. Great.

Bayo rubbed his nose and whined, grumbling as he walked out into the open part of Canis, huffing softly. He was so... bored. He needed something to do, someone to talk to. Anything, really, would do.

@Galleon

Heave. Slide. Heave. Slide. Heave. This was the rhythm Galleon had known for the past two days. That was the rhythm she followed to this very moment. She'd escaped Ursa. Took brief respite in the soft sands of Leo. They weren't right. They were wet. Clung to her scales and her jets. It was among the many reasons Galleon did not want to rest in Leo for long. She felt a sort of fear that the raptor was out there.

Just behind her. She would come looking for her at any moment. And it was that which kept her going. Forced her to crawl through the expansive cave of Gemini, with nothing to bury herself in. Heave. Slide. Heave. Slide. She pulled herself forward once more, her claws finding little purchase on the wet rock. At the very least, this cave was warmer than Ursa had been.

Galleon paused. Then she kept going. Her eyes were focused on a tower of white. Heave. Slide. She pulled herself straight into the pile of bones. The resulting clatter, as they all fell around her, was very much audible. And then, Galleon collapsed. Her tail and fins stuck out awkwardly. But the bones were dark. Comforting, and ironically, a terrible sleeping bed. They stuck awkwardly into her stomach. The child's raspy breath left her in a rattling, full body sigh. She shifted, and hollow cracks echoed as she crushed bones beneath her.

Galleon settled into her temporary rest spot quickly. The shark was only awake for a moment longer. Her journey had been taxing. Her eyes flickered out like a faulty bulb. The shield slid over them. And she began snoring. Softly at first, accompanied by wheezing breaths from her jets. It would grow louder as time went by.

@Bayo

Bayo perked up at the sound of... snoring? His head tilted and he made his way towards the noise, curious. He came upon the pile of bones and tilted his head, sniffing at it gently before pawing at the pile.

”Um... hullo? You sleepin' under there?”, he asked, head tilted to one side, ”'Cause I don't know about you but that don't look very comfortable.”

He sat down and scratched an ears before flopping his head over, tail wagging wildly as he waited for an answer.

@Galleon

Bones shifted. A voice. The shutters on Galleon's eyes flew open. The cyan glow returned in full force. An agressor? An attacker? Jaws snapped open. She twisted in a half thrash, half bite. She pushed forward. Her jaws met something hard. Her head pushed through the bone pile at the same time that they snapped closed. A plume of white dust blooming.

Her eyes focused on the brown dog-creature In front of her. Not green, not massive. The baby galleon sighed in her rattling voice, jet's whistling. The broken femur dropped from her jaws. Galleon was still tired. All her limbs ached. She made a half-hearted motion to sink back into the bones. Her eyes dimmed, resolved to just sleep here. Galleon hissed. "Likess...dark..."

@Bayo

Bayo bolted as whatever was in the bone pile shot out, jaws snapping around a femur instead of him, thankfully. He ran a few feet and then turned around, tail still for a moment before it started wagging all over again.

”Sorry!”, he yapped, trotting back over and tilting his head, his tongue lolling out of his mouth, ”You're still kinda in a bone pile. Is that comfy? 'Cause if it ain't I got a nice den over thataway.”

He pointed with a paw off in the distance, ears perked forward, ”I could take you there!”

@Galleon

If Galleon's eyes could squint, they would have. Instead, it was that same blue gaze. She watched Bayo closely. The dog hadn't left yet. But it also hadn't attacked her either, nor did it have the white fuzz. Bayo wasn't explicitly trying to hurt her. Not yet. Her head tilted in the direction Bayo pointed, slow enough that it seemed almost lazily. Then back to him.

"Comfy...?" She rolled the word around in her mind, trying to extract the meaning from it. A light bulb seemed to go off in her head."Warmth?" Galleon still had yet to move. The young shark was either too tired, or too cautious. She breathed out, whole body whistling. "...Why? Fuzz...Mother?" She asked at last.

@Bayo

Bayo nodded, ”Heck yeah it's warm! I got some grass 'n' stuff innit to make it nice 'n' comfy. Some of my fur too- it's great!”

He looked back as she described fuzz and a mother? Huh?

”Oh are you lost? Did you lose your ma?”, he asked, concerned, ”If they're fuzzy like I am then maybe I can help you find 'er. Is that it?”

Not exactly what the other meant but at least it was nice that he cared!

@Galleon

Galleon was warming up to the idea of the burrow. "Can..." She wheezed again." Can dig in den?" She asked. The slow warm up was instantly shattered. As it turned out, offering to take Galleon to Mother was the exact wrong thing to say. "NO," Galleon roared, her heavy jaws closing with a click.

Seeing the Mother character was the last thing she wanted to do, given her last experience. Well intentioned it may have been, but it was not well received. She thrashed in the bone pile and it came crumbling down around her. Galleon whipped around, hard enough that her shovel-shaped face almost touched her tail tip.

Galleon drew in air, preparing to jet away. It didn't help on land, but the instinct was still there. Using her last burst of energy, Galleon pushed forward. She flopped like a rather front-heavy seal, driving herself away from Bayo with hard pulls of her flippers. Dust flew up around her, pushed into the air by the discharge of air.

@Bayo

Bayo yelped as she suddenly thrashed, jumping away from the bone pile, ”Sheesh!! Okay okay! I'm guessin' your ma ain't that good, that's fine! I'll keep you safe from 'er then, okay? If you want me to that is!!”

He feebly chased after Galleon, calling out to her, ”H-hey wait there, miss! Or mister, can't really tell- Just hold on one damn minute!”

He slowed when he realized he probably wouldn't be able to catch up, frowning to himself. Damn...

”I jus' wanna help ya!”, he bayed, tossing his head up and howling before planting his butt down with a tired sigh.

@Galleon

Galleon kept running, panting as she continued to push her body. She heard the click clack of nails on stone as Bayo pursued her. Gradually, they faded away. She heard nothing but her own breaths and the scrape of her claws on stone. They weren't pursuing? Galleon paused, still breathing heavily. She was tired, and she was alone.

She turned around, watching Bayo with blank eyes. She was still as the bones, not even twitching. This lasted for a good long while. A flipper twitched. Cautiously she dragged her front pair forward. Then the other pair. She slowly crawled towards Bayo, pausing to regain her breath now and then. At last she stopped a couple yards from him. Her quad eyes staying glued to him. "Den?" She asked quietly.

@Bayo