The...creature went stumbling out of the tunnel, panting from the effort of running all this way and cringing from the uncomfortable feeling of sprinting with paws that weren't made for it. But, really, what the hell were his paws made for? Absolutely nothing, probably. They weren't natural. She had seen her mother's paws, with long, cruel talons, nicely dexterous, and she had been able to walk normally. Probably run too. Not them, though. Was it perhaps their other parent? Or something else? They had no idea what had happened, why they couldn't run like they wanted to. Why they could barely see. It wasn't fair!

Wherever they were, they didn't really care. It was bright in here, brighter then the tunnel, which at least gave them some comfort. They weren't straining to see every little thing, but the blurriness was giving them a headache. More proof that there was no way this was natural. Intelligence, perhaps, was their curse - every second longer that they were alive, they could point out more things wrong with it. And Jayberry wasn't giving them any answers. So why bother asking?

The continued trotting forward at an awkward hobble, tripping often and stumbling over their own feet, trying to break their fall with the paws that hung limply in front of them, but even they weren't built for walking and crumpled easily under them. Every fall with backed up with a growl and a curse until, finally, they just gave up. "Fuck this," they muttered, sitting down and curling up. Their emotions rolled through them in a wave and, for a second, they felt heat in their mouth, but nothing happened. Useless. This was all pointless and stupid.

Quiet skittering.

A tiny, brown shape, leap-running across the cave floor; it came to a halt in the shadows near Agony, and then stopped. It sat back on its hind legs, forepaws briefly passing through whiskers a few times as it groomed the dirt from its face--and then a quiet, though deeply masculine, voice came from the tiny creature.

"I don't suppose you're dying, there--or being chased by something?" The rat sat up higher and glanced around, but its quivering whiskers picked up no rumbling stomps along the stone, and sensitive ears heard no pursuing footsteps.

The tiny rat--far smaller than the regular cave rats, and far plainer--dropped back to all fours to face Agony.

"Are you injured?" Its tone was so mild and distant that it was impossible to tell if the little beast was a hungry scavenger asking after easy prey, or if it was a genteel, concerned civilian worried for Agony's health.

@Agony

They heard the quiet voice rumbling in their ears and at first they considered not even looking up and giving the stranger the time of day, but then they thought that it might not leave until they did. Or it might try to eat them if it thought they were dying. Even though they absolutely despised themselves, their life, and everything about it, they didn't really want to die.

So, Gojiberry lifted their head and turned to face the...rat. A rat was talking to them. At first, they blinked stupidly, a little dumbfounded that this rat was talking to them, this tiny little creature was speaking and in such a deep voice, but they got over it a moment later and their lip curled in a snarl. "The fuck do you want? And why would you give a shit about me?" They hissed out a snarky, humorless chuckle, but nothing on their face displayed anything but apathy. They uncurled themselves a bit and raised on of their front paws, poking at the little rodent. "You are awfully small. I could eat you if I wanted." Yeah, that's right, make them scared! Perhaps that would give them some sort of validation - if they could make people afraid they could do other things too.

@Archimedes

Archimedes was near, but as Agony poked, he simply watched. He wasn't a fool enough to have drawn within touching distance, and as the other reached for him he hopped back a few paces.

"Ahh, terribly sorry," he answered with perfectly prim politeness. "I had assumed you able to judge what I want by the questions I had asked. That is to say, to check on a stranger's condition. I'll just be on my way, if you prefer to be alone," he added.

Archimedes then turned, his demeanor wholly indifferent, taking a few scurrying leaps off in the other direction. He paused only briefly, perhaps waiting to see if Agony would agree to his departure, or protest. He seemed not at all afraid, hurried, or really even bothered. Clearly, he was about to take the stranger at his word.

@Agony

It was quite annoying to Gojiberry that the rat was not only leaving but that he didn't seem scared of him at all! Bah! That's the only thing he was good for, and it wasn't working! He huffed and pushed himself up a bit.

The rat couldn't leave. He didn't know anything yet. Perhaps it knew something about...anything. Maybe it would tell them about what they wanted to know instead of hope over the subjects like his shit-excuse for a parent did. "Now, hey! The hell are you doing? You walk up to some guy, bother them, and walk right on off? Get your raggedy ass back here and talk! Who the hell are you anyways?" Maybe he should have been nicer, but honestly, why? Why waste the effort?

@Archimedes

Archimedes smiled, faintly, still facing away. When he turned back, he sat up and washed his face for a moment.

"Please, the... profanity and anger is terribly distressing. I will stay and speak--but only if you wish it. At the moment it does not sound as though you do."

He dropped his forepaws from his whiskers, his small, dark, beady eyes peering at Agony through the thin shadows that lay over the rocky floor.

@Agony

Gojiberry couldn't believe they were being talked down to by a rat. A rat. He had no idea that rats could even talk, let along think themselves above creatures that were obviously far superior. If they were less then a rat, then they were less then everyone. That was not acceptable. They were, at the very least, superior to a rodent.

They sneered. "Sucks. I'll say whatever I want. If I didn't want you speaking, I'd beat the shit outta you." They crossed their front legs across their body, head raised and staring down at the rodent. Why were they thinking so hard about how a rat saw him? Perhaps because the only other person that they'd ever really talked to was, well, the family. This was obviously not the family. Maybe the rat would have some answers. "Alright, then. Tell me your name! It better be better then mine or I'm fuckin outta here."

@Archimedes

So much anger.

"My name is Archimedes," the rat offered, perched neatly on his hind legs a distance from Agony. "I ask one more time that you speak with less hostility. I will go if you do not. You do sound terribly angry; has someone treated you poorly..?" There was a touch of concern in the rat's voice, his nose and whiskers twitching, sniffing, as he regarded the strange black creature before him.

"I imagine they must have been very rude indeed, to leave you so furious. A bad person, perhaps..? An arrogant one, thinking themselves higher than you?"

@Agony

Gojiberry huffed out a humorless laugh. "Oh yeah, much better. I guess not everyone in the caves is an incompetent moron." This time, they didn't even comment on Archimedes's request to calm down. They had pretty much nothing of use but their own burning anger and the variety of insults they had come up with to hurl at their mother. But, internally, they started to be a little more careful about the language they were using - if they did want some kind of answers out of the rat, then they had to get it to stay. Didn't want to risk staying in the dark any longer.

"Better then Gojiberry at least. Yeah, you could say that. I mean, she isn't terrible, but she babies me and treats me like a shard of glass that'll break any second! I hate that shit!" Oops. "She probably hates me, thinks I'm too weak to survive! She tried to teach me to fight and I think her head almost exploded watching how bad I was at it."

They shook their head, a gleam of anger sparking in their eye. "Yeah, she does. She's annoying. All she talks about is the family, the family like I care about her or her other two kids that came out worse then me. Her and her stupid names."

@Archimedes

Gojiberry. A spark of recognition, realization what this meant. And faint humor. That... was a name.

Archimedes sat, after listening--thinking, for a long moment. He studied this black stranger closely, and considered his own words.

"It certainly doesn't sound pleasant, at all," he agreed. "But you are not bound to that one, whoever 'she' may be. You have an independent spirit, I would say. Most of us name ourselves shortly after hatching. Perhaps it is time to reinvent yourself. A new name."

Again, absently, as one might drum digits on stone in thought, he passed forepaws through his whiskers. "And following that, a new purpose. You say that you have trouble with fighting? There are other ways to be strong. And I don't just mean magic," he added, mildly.

@Agony